Hamilton is also receiving guaranteed annual payments, increased revenue sharing, and annual community investments. Pictured: Hamilton Airport. Photo Credit: Hamilton International Airport/Facebook.
Tradeport International Corporation, which has managed Hamilton International Airport since 1996, will be investing $400 million to “develop and expand” the airport.
The investment is part of a 49-year lease extension between the City of Hamilton and Tradeport, that will see the organization continue to manage the airport.
The deal is being called “historic” by the city.
Tradeport is a wholly owned subsidiary of Vantage Group, a global airport development company which is involved in airports such as Chicago Midway International and John F. Kennedy International Airport in New York City.
A press release says that the $400 million investment will aim to “transform the airport’s infrastructure, including expanding and enhancing passenger terminal buildings, upgrading cargo facilities, enhancing taxiways and aprons, and achieving Net Zero Carbon by 2030.”
Hamilton International Airport is already the third largest cargo airport in Canada after Toronto’s Pearson International Airport and Vancouver International Airport but is the largest overnight express cargo airport in the country.
The investment supports Hamilton’s supply chain and will also create jobs.
In addition to the $400 million investment, the City of Hamilton is also receiving guaranteed annual payments, increased revenue sharing, and annual community investments.
Ron Foxcroft, the Board Chair for TradePort, said, “TradePort’s investment in Hamilton International is great for Hamilton. We are more than just an airport – we are a job creator and strong economic contributor.”
“This agreement stands to evolve our city’s airport into the future with ambitious deliverables by 2073,” he concluded.
In the time that TradePort has managed Hamilton International Airport, they have facilitated $452 million in investments, contributing more than $1.5 billion in industry activity and creating more than 4,720 jobs.
Cathie Puckering, Vantage Group Vice President and Head of their Canadian Network, added, “In Hamilton and across Vantage Group’s network, our airports are proven and thriving economic engines for local and national economies.”
“This significant $400 million investment will position us to accommodate and expand passenger and cargo service, deliver safe, efficient cost-effective operations, enhance the customer experience with innovative solutions and technology, and operate sustainably.”
While the airport sees considerable cargo traffic from companies such as Amazon, Canada Post, Cargojet, DHL, Purolator, Prime Air, and UPS, there have been less options for domestic travellers lately.
Low-cost airline Swoop was flying out of Hamilton to Abbotsford, Charlottetown, Deer Lake, Edmonton, Halifax, Moncton, St. John’s, and Winnipeg domestically in addition to several international locations before they shut down in Fall 2023.
Lynx Air, another low-cost airline, started flying out of Hamilton to Calgary, Halifax, and Vancouver in 2022, but shut down in February 2024.
Nevertheless, Hamilton Airport saw “continued growth” in passenger air travel in 2023 when 820,011 passengers used the airport.
That number was the second highest in the airport’s history, trailing only 2019, before the pandemic, where 955,000 passengers used the airport.
Currently, in terms of passenger travel at the airport, WestJet flies regularly to Calgary, Alberta and seasonally to Orlando, Florida.
The other major airline providing service out of Hamilton Airport right now is Play Airlines which operates flights to Europe.
Based in Hamilton, he reaches hundreds of thousands of people monthly on Facebook, Instagram, TikTok, and Twitter. He has been published in The Hamilton Spectator, Stoney Creek News, and Bay Observer. He has also been a segment host with Cable 14 Hamilton. In 2017, he received the Chancellor Full Tuition Scholarship from the University of Ottawa (BA, 2022). He has also received the Governor General’s Academic Medal. He formerly worked in a non-partisan role on Parliament Hill in Ottawa.
