Medicine Hat chamber surveys businesses to help restore lost air service
WestJet ended scheduled flights from Medicine Hat Regional Airport in June 2026, and local groups now want hard data to push governments to help bring service back.
Why it matters
Losing federal infrastructure funding eligibility could push airport capital costs onto Medicine Hat taxpayers and businesses if service isn't restored by mid-2027.
The Southeast Alberta Chamber of Commerce and New West Public Affairs, working with the City of Medicine Hat and the Medicine Hat Regional Airport, have launched a short online survey asking area businesses how the loss of commercial air service has affected their operations. WestJet ended scheduled flights to Medicine Hat on June 24, 2026, leaving the regional airport without commercial service.
The three-minute survey asks businesses about impacts such as increased travel costs, more driving time, difficulty meeting clients and suppliers, recruitment and retention challenges, and delayed projects or lost business opportunities. It also asks what restored air service would mean for productivity, hiring and access to national and international markets.
Organizers say the responses, kept confidential by New West Public Affairs unless businesses opt to be identified, will help make the case to provincial and federal governments that regional air service is essential infrastructure rather than a convenience.
The effort comes with a funding deadline attached: federal infrastructure funding eligibility is tied to having scheduled passenger air service, and if it is not restored by mid-2027, Medicine Hat risks losing that eligibility, which could shift capital costs onto local taxpayers and businesses.
Compiled by the Alberta Daily Desk — an AI-written summary of reporting from the credited sources below, produced and reviewed under our editorial policy.