By Skies Magazine | January 13, 2023 Estimated reading time 3 minutes, 16 seconds.
A small commuter airline based out of British Columbia has made the difficult decision to cease operations for the time being. Cascadia Airways confirmed in a statement on Jan. 11 that it has been “negatively affected by higher overall costs” during the past year, and it has become “unsustainable” for the company to continue its operations.
Formerly KD Air, the airline relaunched operations as Cascadia Air at the start of the Covid-19 pandemic. It shared that its recent decision to cease operations was extremely difficult, as it not only impacts its nearly dozen employees, but “the communities we have served.”
However, Cascadia Air remains hopeful that it could one day reopen its doors, stating that it is working to “find a way to resume providing our services in the future.”
The airline was offering daily scheduled services and private charters to Vancouver, Pitt Meadows, Abbotsford, Chilliwack, Penticton, Vernon, Campbell River, Tofino, and Haida Gwaii, British Columbia. A few months after the World Health Organization declared a global pandemic in 2020, Cascadia Air began providing “rapid emergency air delivery” services to remote communities in the province. The airline was also a go-to for residents who were displaced during natural disasters.
“The traumatic weather events (fires and floods) during the past few years have demonstrated the need for a service such as ours,” said Cascadia Air.
The airline entered the Vernon market just six months ago, becoming the only carrier to offer scheduled service to Vernon Regional Airport (CYVE). In August 2022, Cascadia Air said the new route had a positive start, and was proving more successful than its Penticton route.
According to the Canadian Civil Aircraft Register, Cascadia Air has a fleet of four Piper PA-31-350 Navajo Chieftains, one Piper PA-32-260 Cherokee Six, and one Beech King Air C90.
