Calgary International Airport II

[Tobuz]

An overly harsh assessment, I think

Yes, the ITB had its fair share of design problems — and most were reportedly top-down demands from the then-CEO. (Ie the underground tunnel to parking that nobody uses, the decision to make a call-to-gate terminal in a “wait-at-gate” world, the afterthought of connections to/from the A concourse.)

Was (is) it perfect? No. But I don’t think there was ever any delusional grandeur. YYC never, ever pitched A380s or new airlines flying here because we were getting a new building. No airline decides on a route or an aircraft based on what the terminal looks like, and every airport person on the planet knows that. It’s based 100% on the economics of the the route. Nobody from YYC ever said anything like that.

And the “rip-off ITB”, as you call it, was absolutely needed. The old terminal was operating beyond its capacity. And any cross-border flier who used the old B concourse can speak to what an utterly horrible experience it was.

(Now, could they have done without that $4mm parking tunnel that nobody uses, and that has no easy access to the departures level? Absolutely.)

The new leadership is spot-on, I think, with their main focus on improving the passenger experience. It’s what they should do — passengers (along with airlines) are their key customers. (And the passenger experience in the months following the ITB opening took a hit, especially for connecting WS passengers.)

But Sartor hasn’t pitched any grandeur or delusions when he layed out the direction.