A busy flight training airport on the outskirts of Montreal is closing on May 22 leaving Laurentide Aviation, a major flight school, without a home. l’Aéroport Les Cèdres is privately owned and is reportedly up for sale for as much $150 million. “They can see the lure of more money, selling this to condos and houses,” Bernard Gervais, vice-president of communications of Aviateurs Québec, told Global News. Gervais said losing the airport will put a big dent in availability of flight training in the Montreal area.
The owner of the flight school, Yvan Albert, said the closure has a big impact. “I feel sad, not only for our flying school but also for students, young people that want to become a pilot and also for the old community of aviation in Quebec and in Canada also,” Albert told Global. “It’s the only (local) airport where we can have full training for becoming a pilot,” Albert said. Transport Canada told Global there’s nothing it can do to prevent the closure of a private airport. “Transport Canada does not interfere in decisions related to airport closures, nor does it intervene in closures. The decision to close an airport rests with the owner.”