Airport approach procedures coming to North Spirit Lake

North Spirit Lake is scheduled to receive GPS instrument approach procedures by April 2012.
“NAV Canada has been taking steps to increase the number of airports with instrument approaches,” said Ron Singer, a NAV Canada spokesman, in an e-mail reply. “Instrument approach procedures are scheduled to be published for two additional northern Ontario airports this April. A GPS instrument approach for Keewaywin and North Spirit Lake will be in place this April.”
NAV Canada is a private company that operates Canadian airport navigation systems.
Singer said 31 of the 35 approaches in northern Ontario currently have GPS instrument approach procedures, which use GPS signals from a satellite to guide airplanes in to an airport for a more efficient landing.
North Spirit Lake had been calling for “an approach sensor” since the airport was built 17 years ago.
“We need that (airport approach sensor) here,” said North Spirit Lake Chief Rita Thompson Jan. 18. “What does it take — a tragedy to hear us? It’s frustrating.”
A Keystone Air Piper PA 31 Navajo aircraft crashed on the ice about one kilometre short of the community’s airport while attempting to land on Jan. 10 during a snowstorm. One person survived the crash.
Thompson and North Spirit Lake Deputy Chief Cameron Rae suggested airlines call ahead before taking off to find out what the weather conditions are in the community.
“We don’t have any approach sensors; I think it should be a policy that they phone somewhere in North Spirit and ask about the weather and make sure the weather is good,” Thompson said.
“If you can’t see across the little bay here, then you have no business trying to fly in.”
Thompson said the community’s struggle to get appropriate levels of funding would be easier if Prime Minister Stephen Harper visited to see what life is like on the ground.
“I wish he could come to our communities and really see what it is like,” Thompson said. “We try really hard to use what they give us.”
For example the chief noted that North Spirit Lake had only one phone for use by everyone in the community up until 1999, and no roads for much of her childhood.
“They had Internet even before they had telephones,” said Thompson, who returned to the community in 2000 after living in Winnipeg for many years. “People want to come home too but we have no housing for them to move into.”