Canadian North to resume service to Yellowknife this weekend

Canadian North passenger and cargo flights will resume in and out of Yellowknife on Sunday after being suspended for weeks. 

The evacuation of Yellowknife over wildfires last month meant flights from Nunavut's Kitikmeot region that normally go through the Northwest Territories capital were drastically reduced. 

People living in Gjoa Haven, Nunavut, said they saw flights go from seven times a week, to just two or three. 

Tony Akoak, the MLA for Gjoa Haven, said people in his community were frustrated over the reduced schedule. 

"People are not happy with it, they're even saying they wish there would be another airline coming up giving them competition so they could get more flights in," Akoak said. 

"Some people are getting their flights changed not once, not twice, but three times just to get out of the community," he added. 

For its part, Canadian North said the flights were reduced in order to dedicate resources to the evacuations in the Northwest Territories. 

Flight paths that once went through Yellowknife to get to the five Kitikmeot communities were rerouted to Iqaluit, on the other side of the territory. 

"We have to go from one end of Nunavut all the way to the other just to get to the hospital," Akoak said. 

Akoak said although his community is frustrated, he supports the decision to reroute flights. 

"I can understand how the airline is only operating to keep people safe." 

Akoak said the reduction also affected mail delivery to the community, as residents "weren't getting much mail anymore."

Medical travellers from the Kitikmeot are also going to Edmonton and Winnipeg instead of Yellowknife, according to Nunavut's Department of Health.

"It's a long haul for elders and children, especially," Akoak said. 

Grocery store shelves stayed stocked, with planes coming from southern Canada to bring in food to the local stores, Akoak said.  

Canadian North says it will be flexible with pets and requirements around bringing identification for passengers to Yellowknife, until the end of September. 

"We recognize that pets are an integral part of many families, so we're taking steps to ensure they're included in the return process as well,"  Aaron Speer, Canadian North's VP of flight operations, said in a statement. 

Yellowknife's evacuation order was lifted on Wednesday.