The Gander International Airport Authority is chalking its performance in 2021 as an exercise in damage limitation.

The airport held its AGM this past week.

As Gander International is deemed an essential service, the airport had to remain open, meaning it had to absorb the fixed cost that comes with running the airport.

There were no national carriers at all flying from Gander, and only limited local flights during the pandemic, a period CEO Reg Wright calls a real eye-opener.

To go from a peak of 12 daily departures to one interprovincial departure was a disaster according to Wright. He says the impact was astonishing, as it impacted the mining industry with core samples unable to get out, and the healthcare system with doctors unable to get in.

He says it was the PAL Airlines’ route to Labrador that sustained them over the pandemic.

Even with those challenges, Wright is optimistic about the airport being able to bounce back, as they were able to keep their staff, tenants, and passengers safe and avoid acquiring unnecessary debt.