Prince George one step closer to landing what could be world's first cannabis store in an airport terminal

Passengers flying through a small airport in Prince George, B.C., may soon be able to buy cannabis for their carry-on.

Copilot, a cannabis company based in Langley, B.C., launched by two American-based entrepreneurs, is proposing to build what it calls the first cannabis store in the world to be located inside an airport terminal in the northern city.

On Monday night, Prince George city council voted unanimously for the project to pass its public hearing stage. It still requires final approval from the city, likely this spring.

"There are [cannabis] stores in Canada and the U.S. that are close to the airport, but there is not a single store that we know of that's operating within the confines of an airport," Copilot co-founder Owen Ritz told CBC News.

The Prince George Airport Authority is on board with the project it calls "pioneering." 

"If you think back to years ago, there was no liquor stores in airports and now there is liquor stores in airports all across the country," said Gordon Duke, CEO of the Prince George Airport Authority. "So this is an evolution."

"Yes, it's new, and we all may have our personal opinions on the wisdom of legalizing cannabis. It doesn't change the fact that it is a legal product allowed to be retailed with robust regulatory requirements," said Duke.

Ritz said his company's goal is to make travel "less stressful and more enjoyable."

If the proposal takes flight, the airport will build a cannabis consumption spot close to the designated smoking area in a parking lot, said Chrisie Berry, the airport authority's manager of community relations. 

Copilot says it won't sell cannabis to flight crews or airport staff who are on duty.

The proposed store is slated to be built close to airport security screening, in a space that currently offers massage chairs, desks and vending machines. 

Within Canada, domestic travellers can legally carry 30 grams of cannabis, but it's illegal to carry drugs over an international border.

Airlines can also deny boarding to passengers who are visibly intoxicated.

In an email to Prince George city council in January, Wade Erickson, an airline pilot with 30,000 hours of flying time, said intoxicated travellers can put airplane crews and passengers at risk. 

As well, Erickson said the proposed name of the Copilot store was "extremely disrespectful and derogatory to the entire aviation profession.... It would be no different than calling the store 'Cop Cannabis' or 'Mayor Munchies.' " 

Coun. Kyle Sampson said council's job was to vote on appropriate land use, but also encouraged the applicants to reconsider the proposed name.

"We're hearing kind of unanimously from the airline industry that they're offended by this, and I think that you might need to do some more consultation on that," he said. 

The company says while this was the last major regulatory approval required, Prince George and B.C. will still need to formally approve the project. 

If  approved, construction could start as early as April.