DRYDEN — The City of Dryden and the Town of Fort Frances are taking the first steps to find a way to maintain air passenger service at the two communities' airports.
They've partnered with a private-sector company to develop a strategy in the wake of the recent announcement that Bearskin Airlines will drop scheduled service to Dryden, Fort Frances and Kenora in May.
The two municipalities revealed Wednesday that they're working with the Loomex Group, a company that manages several Ontario airports including the ones in Dryden and Greenstone, in addition to offering a suite of airport planning and development services.
In an effort to determine the demand for passenger service within their markets, they're inviting the general public and the business community to fill out an online questionnaire.
Topics include the primary reasons for air travel, expected frequency of trips, preferred destinations, and the relative importance of price, reliability and flight frequency.
There's a separate section for business travellers.
Individual responses will be kept confidential, as the results will be aggregated to evaluate the overall market needs and expectations.
The survey will stay active until Feb. 29.
