It’s been operating as an airfield helping to train aspiring pilots to fly since 1970 but now the owner of Les Cèdres Airport — a regional airport West of the Island of Montreal — is shuttering the business on May 22nd.
”Economically, there is just very little revenue in the flying business,” Richard Hoy, whose family has owned the airport since the early 1990s told Global News.
Hoy says his family was running a car auction on the property North of the airstrip as a way to financially support the airport but now he wants to repurpose the land.
His plan is to redevelop the property as a distribution centre with warehouses.
”The prime demand out there is for distribution. We’ve seen a lot of people shift to online shopping and that’s actually what most of the demand is for,” Hoy said.
READ MORE: Imminent shuttering of Montreal-area regional airport devastating to aviation community
Laurentide Aviation, a pilot school, has been training pilots since the early 1970s. Many of the aspiring pilots have graduated to become commercial pilots for major carriers such as Air Canada.
The owner of the pilot school is disappointed Les Cèdres is closing.
”At least 50 pilots, but maybe 100 to 150 students per year won’t be able to be trained here at Les Cèdres,” Yvan Albert, owner of Laurentide Aviation told Global News on Friday.
The mayor welcomes a new vocation for the land, which is almost 0.5 square kilometres in size, and is mostly zoned industrial.
”We’re always looking for new development, new industries, places for people to work,” Bernard Daoust, the mayor of Les Cédres told Global News.
All planes and Laurentide Aviation have until May 22nd to vacate the airport — bringing to end the long storied history of the iconic airfield.
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