Hopes To Lure Asian Cargo Traffic

Hoping to attract Asian cargo flights currently stopping in Alaska, airport officials in Prince George, British Columbia are proposing a $30 million runway expansion project expanding the main runway to 11,400 feet, allowing it to accommodate large cargo jets.

"Essentially it allows us to refuel cargo flights to Asia from the US," said Jim Blake, chair of the Prince George Airport Authority, a non-profit entity that assumed control of the airport in 2003.

Alaskan airport officials told the Fairbanks (AK) Daily News-Miner they "aren't worried" about any potential competition. "There's a lot of airports that talk about doing this, but a lot of times it doesn't happen," said Angie Spear, Business Development Manager at Fairbanks International Airport.

Ted Stevens Anchorage International Airport is one of the busiest cargo operations in the world, handling almost six billion pounds of freight in 2006 alone thanks to intercontinental flights making their fuel stops there.

While business is booming at ANC, the much-sought after international cargo flights have steadily decreased at Fairbanks International Airport during recent years. That traffic is now pretty much limited to Russian charter planes on missions to supply Eielson Air Force base or making fuel stops.

As funding for both airports are connected to a single system, the fate of Fairbanks is often dependent on the overall health of Anchorage.

The Prince George project is just the most recent in a long line of potential competitors for an expected increase in Chinese and Taiwanese cargo flights coming through the area.

Local airport officials say they are confident in maintaining their current service levels.

The expansion was initiated as a way to attract tourism flights, but has since evolved into a cargo operation to make the project more economically viable, according to Prince George Airport Manager Stieg Hoeg.

At an economic forum in Prince George last fall, Prince George was presented as a "future gateway" between Asia, North America and Europe that would compete with Alaska.

Prince George has more stable fuel deposits, a lower risk of inclement weather issues as well as offering less congestion than Alaska's two major airports, according to the report.

Officials at FAI and ANC disagree.

As ANC director, Mort Plumb says, "Anchorage is in a net import position" for fuel, and the airport has a "99.9 percent success rate for weather," and "never diverting a flight" for snow in the 12 years he's been in charge.

Hoeg says he doesn't believe Prince George Airport can compete with Alaska for Europe to Asia flights, but it might be able to entice pilots with another option on South America to Asia flights.

"We don't look at this as a competitive venture," Hoeg said.

As it better understands the scope of its project, YXS has humbled its grandiose claims a bit, Hoeg said, saying his goal with the expansion is to provide "complimentary service" to pilots.

An expanded Prince George runway could add more than 1,500 new flights each year.

"We would only need to capture a percentage of the growth in the industry to be viable," Blake said.

So far, the airport authority has received about $11 million; the plan is to start work on the expansion this fall.

(Photos courtesy of Prince George Airport Authority)

FMI: www.pgairport.ca/yxs/, www.dot.state.ak.us/anc/index.shtml, www.dot.state.ak.us/faiiap/