Kamloops Airport. (Photo via Colton Davies)

The Kamloops Airport limped through the summer months, according to the mayor.

Speaking to fellow Thompson-Nicola Regional District board members today, Ken Christian says passenger volumes were down 90 per cent in June and July and 82 per cent in August.

He says the goal at the start of the year was to have 350,000 passengers go through YKA, but says because of the pandemic it “will be lucky to see 40,000.”

“Back and forth to Toronto seems to be not too bad, and there seems to be a market for regional travel, so here to Vancouver, here to Calgary. Those aircraft are operating at a reduced capacity, but they are going relatively full to that limit right now. But we only have five flights a day, where we used to be in and around 15,” he said.

Christian says staff at YKA have been laid off but a specific number is not clear.

“This is very bleak times for the airline industry. Unfortunately, that then spills into the tourism industry, and particularly those tourism operators that were dependent upon international travel to any extent are really suffering, as a result of that,” he added.

Christian also points out there’s very little demand for people from the western Canada to the Maritimes, and he referenced WestJet pulling more than 100 flights in Atlantic Canada starting Nov. 2, a move that was announced yesterday.

He says YKA and other airports are working with airlines to try and rebuild their flight schedules.