Edmonton International Airport on track to welcome 10 million passengers by 2020

Edmonton leads the country in terms of rapid growth, driven by its oil, gas, and oil sands manufacturing and logistics industry valued at more than C$165 billion (HK$1.16 trillion). The city also increasingly draws more global leaders in other industries, becoming a hub for advanced medicine and biomedicine, food processing, biomedical and software development, among other dynamic sectors such as nanotechnology, being home to Canada's nanotech institute.

Growth at the Edmonton International Airport (EIA) has mirrored that of the Edmonton region. For the past three years, EIA has been a Canadian airport growth leader, now connecting 7 million passengers annually to more than 60 destinations throughout North America and overseas. Growth for last year and forecasts for this year continue to keep pace. And with every arriving and departing flight - the economic story of the city, region and much of Canada is told.

EIA's phenomenal growth is evidenced by the number of passengers it serves. Up 4.6 per cent from the previous year, the passenger figures were largely driven by trans-border travels to and from the United States, which increased by 7.7 per cent from 2012. Travellers across Canada also rose by about 4 per cent with more than 5.31 million, while overseas figures grew by 3.4 per cent.

Taking pride in this achievement is operator Edmonton Airports, a community-based, financially independent not-for-profit corporation that oversees EIA's passenger and air cargo operations.

"EIA is growing dramatically. In the last nine years alone, traffic has risen by about 70 per cent - leading the country as the fastest-growing major airport," says Tom Ruth, who joined EIA as president and CEO of Edmonton Airports last month.

Ruth's appointment follows the leadership of Reg Milley, who retired in January on the highest note possible, having successfully spearheaded a massive expansion of EIA. Ruth brings with him an extensive background in the airport and airline industry, most recently as president and CEO of the Halifax International Airport Authority.