The Canadian government has launched two new contribution funding programs to help the country’s airports recover from the effects of the Covid-19 pandemic:
- The Airport Critical Infrastructure Program (ACIP) will provide close to CA$490m (US$404m) to financially assist Canada’s larger airports with investments in critical infrastructure related to safety, security or connectivity;
- The Airport Relief Fund (ARF) will provide almost CA$65m (US$53m) in financial relief to targeted Canadian airports to help maintain operations.
In addition to launching these two new funding programs, the government announced that Transport Canada’s Airports Capital Assistance Program (ACAP) is receiving a funding top-up of CA$186m (US$153m) over two years. The ACAP is an existing contribution funding program that provides financial assistance to Canada’s local and regional airports for safety-related infrastructure projects and equipment purchases.
Canada’s minister for transport, Omar Alghabra, commented, “Canada’s airports are major contributors to our country’s economy and play a key role in sustaining the social and economic well-being of our communities and our local airport workers. These programs will help ensure that, as Canada works toward recovery and travel restart post-pandemic, our airports remain viable and continue to provide Canadians with safe, reliable and efficient travel options, while creating and maintaining well-paying jobs in the airport sector.”