|
History
Lethbridge
has played a significant role in Western Canadian aviation
history. In the early part of the 20th century, a number of
ad-hoc sites were used to accommodate emerging aviation activities
in the region. The
Exhibition Grounds and later, the site of the Lethbridge Collegiate
Institute were the first sites in the city to receive aviation
activity. In the 1920's, the City of Lethbridge obtained a
license to operate a public aerodrome, south of the Exhibition
Grounds, on land which is now part of the Lakeview subdivision.
The latter served as a point of call on the Trans-Prairie
Air Mail Service and a staging point for air services from
the Prairies over the Rocky Mountains.
In 1938, the City relocated airport operations to its present
site. Originally named Kenyon Field, the airport consisted
of two hard-surfaced runways, connecting taxiways, runway
lighting and radio and meteorological services, allowing night
and day operations under all-weather conditions. Passenger
services were originally provided in the Trans-Canada Airlines
(TCA) hangar, currently operated by QL Aviation, which also
eventually housed the airport's control tower.  Regular
operations commenced in October 1938, and passenger services
started in April of the following year. The airport officially
opened on June 7, 1939.
Later that year, the Lethbridge Airport was put to use for
military purposes to support the Royal Canadian Armed Forces
war efforts. In 1940, a military flying training school was
established by the Department of National Defense (DND). The
airport was then leased to the Government of Canada for the
duration of the War and was operated as a dual civil and military
aerodrome for the duration of this period.
In 1947, the Department of Transportation converted the RCAF
mess hall, adjacent to the current Apron 11, into the airport's
Air Terminal Building (ATB), replacing the TCA passenger facility.
In 1948, TCA rerouted its main service to the West Coast through
Calgary, leading the city to decide against resuming airport
operations and leaving them under the responsibility of the
Department of Transportation (DOT).
Later in the 1960's, the AT13 was converted into a combined
operations-terminal building; and a new control tower was
built south of Runway 05-23. The DOT assumed full ownership
of the facility in 1968 and replaced the Air Terminal Building
with the current facility in 1979.
During the same period, the Lethbridge Airport also played
an important role in the development of Canada's regional
air carrier industry.Serving as a home base to Time Air, a
small regional carrier set up by Stubb Ross, a local pilot
and businessman, the airport eventually became Southern Alberta's
regional air service hub. Time Air initially provided service
within Southern Alberta with Beach 18, Short 330 and 340 aircraft
and eventually expanded its network to cover most of Western
Canada with F-27 and Dash-8 aircraft.  As
a result of industry deregulation and consolidation in the
late 1980's, the airline was sold to Pacific Western Airlines
and transformed into Canadian Regional Airlines. The carrier
subsequently played an increasing role as a feeder airline
to Canadian Airlines International's network and traffic focused
on the latter developing hubs, mostly at Calgary and Vancouver
International Airports. As a result, most of Time Air's operations
were gradually shifted to Calgary in the early 1990's, leaving
Lethbridge as a spoke to the Calgary hub. With declining aircraft
activity, the airport's control tower was decommissioned in
1994 and subsequently demolished.
The management structure of the airport changed significantly
in the 1990's with adoption of the National Airports Policy
(NAP) by the Government of Canada. Under the NAP, the Federal
Government relinquished ownership of regional and local airports
to regional and community interests. In accordance with the
provisions of this policy, the Lethbridge Airport was acquired
by the County of Lethbridge on January 1, 1997. The facility
has since been renamed the Lethbridge County Airport and is
currently operated as a County Department. Transport Canada
continues to ensure safety and security at Canadian airports
through appropriate policies, standards, airport certification
and regulations.
|
