First Air aiming high with Ottawa airport expansion plan

First Air, an Inuit-owned airline that serves Nunavut and the Northwest Territories, is looking to expand its operation out of the Ottawa International Airport. 

The company just submitted an application to the federal government's National Trade Corridors Fund asking for funding to increase warehouse and refrigeration capacity at its cargo facilities in Ottawa.

The project would include modernizing technology aimed at reducing shipment delays and spoilage.

To help make this happen, the Ottawa Airport Authority has proposed a realignment of Alert Road to facilitate the expansion of First Air's maintenance warehouse.

First Air is asking the federal government for half of the project's $17.5-million cost. Construction would begin this year and continue into 2021.

First Air is also asking the federal government for funding for an expansion project at its Iqaluit cargo facilities. 

The company says it expects the demand for cargo shipment to increase by 28 per cent over the next five years, and wants to make sure there's capacity at both ends of its shipping route to support that growth.