Labrador MP calls for urgent review following Wabush Airport fiasco

Labrador MP Philip Earle is calling on federal Transport Minister and Liberal caucus colleague Steven MacKinnon to launch an urgent review of the Wabush Airport’s operations.

The call comes after confusion around the unexpected disruption of flights at the airport in Labrador West on Tuesday when Transport Canada ordered that no aircraft with more than 19 seats could fly in or out of the facility.

“The incident has had a serious and far-reaching impact on the region, disrupting travel of residents, impeding business operations, and interrupting critical access to medical and government services,” Earle wrote in a letter to MacKinnon, which he shared on social media Thursday.

“Given the magnitude of the disruption and the clear regional dependence on this infrastructure, I am requesting that Transport Canada undertake a ministerial review of how this occurred, including the decision making processes, oversight mechanisms, and communication between relevant authorities.”

The suspension of the airport’s services occurred because the facility lacks emergency firefighting operations, but it’s unclear why Transport Canada chose Oct. 21 to suspend services with little to no warning.

On Wednesday the government allowed Wabush Airport to resume normal operations on Wednesday, just a day after the suspension, despite not having the required firefighting services in place. It’s not clear how that decision was made, adding to the confusion.

Longstanding issue

The lack of firefighting services at the airport has been an ongoing issue for years. Transport Canada pulled the services back in 2020, citing Wabush’s low passenger volume as the reason.

In 2024, then-Labrador MP Yvonne Jones announced firefighting services would be returning by early 2025. 

Firefighting service returning to Wabush airport

The Independent reached out to Transport Canada several times to ask for details on the Oct. 21 incident, but the department has not provided them. In an Oct. 22 email a spokesperson said restoring emergency services at the airport is in the works.

“The Wabush Airport has long facilitated cargo flights, medical transport and small aircraft, but temporarily could not accommodate larger passenger flights,” Transport Canada said in the email. “Fire protection services have resumed as of [Oct. 22] allowing the airport to resume accommodating those larger passenger aircrafts.”

“Under the Canadian Aviation Regulations (CARs), certified airport operators are required to provide aircraft rescue and firefighting (ARFF) services when the annual number of passengers enplaned exceeds 180,000,” the statement from Transport Canada continues. “The required ARFF service level is determined based on the volume of traffic and the type of aircraft served, and must be maintained in accordance with the Airport Standards incorporated by reference in the CARs.

“Transport Canada is working to increase the level of fire protection service offered at Wabush Airport to align with the increasing volume of traffic and the type of aircraft flying in and out of Wabush.”

The Independent reached out to Earle, the incoming PC provincial government, and the Wabush Airport itself, but did not receive responses by the time of publication.

During the airport’s closure provincial NDP leader Jim Dinn called on Premier-designate Tony Wakeham take action on the matter. “We just heard the Tories talk about how important Labrador is, how important access to healthcare is, how important it is that we support our workers,” he said in a news release. “So, let’s make sure they stand by what they said and begin to develop a plan to ensure this does not happen again.”