L-R: Nancy Paish, interim CEO of the Red Deer Regional Airport; Devin Dreeshen, minister of transportation and economic corridors, and MLA for Innisfail-Sylvan Lake; Jim Wood, Red Deer County mayor; Ken Johnston, Red Deer mayor; Adriana LaGrange, minister of health and MLA for Red Deer North; and Iaian Park, chair of the Red Deer Regional Airport board. (rdnewsNOW/Ashley Lavallee-Koenig)

By Ashley Lavallee-Koenig

10,000 SQ. FEET AND AMENITIES ADDED

Airport terminal expansion paves the way for the return of public passenger flights

Sep 27, 2024 | 11:31 AM

Just in time for its 25th anniversary, the Red Deer Regional Airport Authority, government officials, and members of the public celebrated the completed construction of a terminal expansion at the Red Deer Regional Airport on September 26.

The facility expansion adds 10,000 square feet to the terminal, as well as new features like a dedicated security screening area, baggage carousel (yet to be installed), and a future customs area to allow for international flights.

“We had to build it for public passenger service to come back. We were really stuck in a space where we couldn’t accommodate the right number of passengers to make it efficient and effective for passenger service providers or air carriers,” said interim CEO Nancy Paish. “Now we’ve built it and the goal is to get public passenger service back to our community. We do host charter traffic service and the charter traffic is also expected to increase with the utilization of the terminal.”

The expansion marks the end of the second phase of a four-phase upgrade plan for the airport. Construction began in October 2023 and was completed in September 2024. Phase one involved widening the runway and strengthening the taxiway and apron.

Now that the first two phases are complete, the airport can accommodate a full Boeing 737-800, which holds 189 passengers, on both the arrival and departures side. Previously, it could only accommodate about 30-40 passengers at a time. On top of this, the charter operations that currently run through the airport are expected to be able to be maintained and possibly increased with the upgrades, said Paish.

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Members of the public enjoy the barbecue in the new seating area in the expanded terminal. (rdnewsNOW/Ashley Lavallee-Koenig)

Rather than create a new terminal, the Airport Authority opted to add on to the existing one, which helped save on utility and other costs for the $4.2 million project.

“We’ve had a number of comments that from outside, it hardly looks like it has changed, but when you walk through it, it’s a clear and open space that people can really feel comfortable in,” Paish commented.

Both Paish and Minister of Transportation and Economic Corridors Devin Dreeshen said the upgrades are expected to have positive economic impacts on the region once passenger services are up and running.

“It really does help to create more job opportunities here in central Alberta and then obviously it’s a great place for people to want to move to, so it’s overall really good economic news for the area,” said Dreeshen.

Paish also commented on the implications it brings to the tourism industry.

“We don’t always just want to send people out of Red Deer, we want to bring them back in,” she said. “Especially since Red Deer wants to be that major event destination by 2030 for midsized cities, this helps support that strategic imitative as well.”

Phase three of the expansion is a roadway project meant to extend Airport Drive, plus a taxiway extension and is currently underway.

A diagram highlighting the changes made and changes planned in a multi-phase airport upgrade project. (rdnewsNOW/Ashley Lavallee-Koenig)

The end of phase two was celebrated with a tour of the new facility, displays highlighting the airport’s rich history, a free barbecue, and a ribbon cutting that was all open to members of the public.

Photos and newspaper clippings on display to showcase the airport’s history. (rdnewsNOW/Ashley Lavallee-Koenig)

The Red Deer Regional Airport Authority assumed ownership from the Province of Alberta and operation of the airport from The City of Red Deer on September 1, 1999 and the City of Red Deer and Red Deer County became key stakeholders.

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