Details being worked out for air service between Yarmouth and New England

By Tina Comeau

THE VANGUARD

NovaNewsNow.com

Hopes are flying high that in the next couple of weeks there will be good news regarding passenger air service at the Yarmouth airport.

At town council’s Thursday night meeting, Councillor Martin Pink, in his report as chair of the Yarmouth International Airport Corporation, said details are being worked out with an American air carrier to fly between Yarmouth and New England. “I’m optimistic that there is good news on the horizon with respect to a carrier . . . between New England and Yarmouth,” Pink said, adding he expects that there will be a formal announcement soon. He said there could possibly be service up and running in the next month or so.

Pink added that hopefully this will also address the situation with customs in Yarmouth. There is concern over the future of border services and customs agents in Yarmouth given the absence of a ferry service this summer.

In his report to council, Councillor Pink said there are also efforts underway to identify air service to and from Halifax.

He added that in re-establishing air service at the Yarmouth airport, the airport commission is looking for a service that does not require a provincial subsidy. Pink told council there should be more facts and answers in the coming weeks about potential air service.

Regular scheduled passenger air service at the airport ended the first of December when Starlink Aviation announced it was suspending air service after a $2 million development fund that had been established to help keep the air service operating ran out of money in less than a year. The funding was supposed to be in place for five years. Starlink had launched air service to Halifax and Portland in February.

The fund was supposed to help Starlink bridge the gap between the launch of the service and its establishment in the community and beyond. During months that the company did not meet its bottom line it would be able to take from the fund. In months that the company made a profit, it would pay into the fund.