The purpose of the study was five-fold:

1. To identify the trends, issues, challenges and unique issues facing municipal airports in Ontario;
2. To identify the socio-economic importance of municipal airports to the regional communities;
3. To identify the sustained viability of municipal airports in Ontario;
4. To determine the key short term and long term needs of municipal airports in Ontario; and,
5. To identify possible solutions (private and public sector) to address the key challenges and issues affecting the sustained viability of municipal airports in Ontario.

Approach

This study focuses on municipal airports in Ontario – essentially those public airports that serve local / municipal needs and provide a socio-economic contribution1 – regardless of ownership structure, although most are municipally owned. The study excludes National Airports System (NAS) airports, provincially owned airports, and privately owned airports

that serve private or recreational purposes only.

Data collection included a survey sent to 85 municipal airports in Ontario, site visits to 10 airports, and interviews with other key stakeholders (users, aviation organizations and air carriers), as well as a literature search.

The study was guided by a Steering Committee comprised of funding partners and key stakeholders (AMCO, MTO, MEDT, MNDM, MNR, FEDNOR).

In 2008, at AMCO’s annual convention in Sudbury, Ontario, AMEC presented their findings following a review of runway and pavement surfaces across Canada. While looking at these surfaces, AMEC also explained how problems in pavement and asphalt can be categorized and   how they can be fixed.

Approach

The scope of Airfield Pavement Condition Survey includes:

• Pavement History
• Condition Survey For Airfields in

                  - Northern and Southern Ontario
                  - Northern Ontario (18 airports)
                  - Southern Ontario (23 airports)

• Pavement Rehabilitation Strategies
• Costs

Since the federal government acquired the Pickering lands approximately
35 years ago, a number of aviation planning studies have been conducted
addressing the possible future development of an airport on the site. These
include the federal government’s Southern Ontario Area Airports Study
(SOOAS) published in 1995 and the Greater Toronto Airports Authority’s
(GTAA) Pickering Airport Draft Plan Report released in 2004, among others
that are discussed in this report.

In 2005, Transport Canada completed a preliminary due diligence review of
the previous studies, and identified the need for some additional work to
determine whether there is a future need for an airport on the Pickering
lands, and if so the timing required for development. Accordingly, in the
fall of 2005, the Minister of Transport announced that Transport Canada
would:

1. Coordinate further study regarding whether the airports serving the Greater Golden Horseshoe (GGH) area have the capacity to accommodate future air traffic demand.
2. Conduct a comprehensive due diligence review to determine the next steps for the Pickering lands.

As a significant part of the first item, Transport Canada retained the GTAA
to undertake the Needs Assessment Study - Pickering Lands. This

Air transport to, from and within Canada creates three distinct types of economic benefit. Typically, studies such as this focus on the "economic footprint" of the industry, measured by its contribution to GDP, jobs and tax revenues generated 

Excerpt from Oxford Economics

This study looks at several facts and figures, assessing the impact that airports, airlines, manufacturers, and other sectors contribute to the aviation industry of Canada.