Westjet flight landing at Medicine Hat Regional Airport on Thursday afternoon (Photo courtesy of Scott Roblin)

By Scott Roblin

Sharp Decrease

Passenger traffic at Medicine Hat Regional Airport down by over 98 percent

May 28, 2020 | 6:06 PM

MEDICINE HAT, AB – Air travel in Medicine Hat has taken a sharp plunge since the COVID-19 pandemic interrupted travel for passengers at the Medicine Hat Regional Airport.

According to airport manager Jeff Huntus, they’ve seen a 98.5 percent drop in the amount of passenger volumes compared to before the virus hit.

A number that Huntus said is something that he’s never seen before, not even during the aftermath of the September 11 attacks in 2001.

“We are certainly in uncharted territory,” said Huntus. “After having been through 9/11 and a number of other aviation and airport crises over the years, this is unlike anything we’ve ever seen as an industry not just an airport.”

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Citing nearly empty planes and fewer people choosing to book, Westjet has decreased their number of flights from Medicine Hat to Calgary to three per week.

It’s been a difficult few months for the Medicine Hat Regional Airport with Air Canada pulling their local service days before the pandemic hit citing worldwide struggles because of COVID-19.

“It was the first hit we took just as the traffic was declining,” said Huntus. “So, we had to manage their exit, manage declining traffic, and try to put a plan in place to continue operations because we’ve got other things happening at the airport that require us to maintain high levels of service.”

The drastic slowdown in the number of passengers is having a significant financial impact on the local airport, as they’ve had to implement a number of measures to save money including limiting security staff hours.

“We’ve done some re-allocation of resources within the municipal works department to try and minimize some of the impact on our budget here at the airport,” said Huntus. “Needless to say there’s been a pretty significant revenue hit.”

There is a hint of optimism from those in the air service industry however, with summer expected to bring an increase in the number of people choosing to travel within the province and country.

“I think we’re on a 30-day timetable and right now in July we’re looking at a full slate, but that could all change,” said Huntus.

Huntus added they’re preparing for that anticipated rebound with maintenance work in the meantime such as remarking the lines in their parking lot and their runway markings.

“We’re focusing very much on maintenance activities, recognizing that there is going to be an uptick in activity coming eventually,” he said. “It’s good to get this out of the way and it’s work that had to be done anyway.”