Night trips in Saint-Hubert | Chrono failed to get a reprieve

The court must still consider the case on its merits at a later date. Chrono Aviation wants to overturn a Transport Canada decision confirmed last month. He is prohibited from using a Boeing 737-200 – a 45-year-old plane that is considered very noisy – to take off at night.

“Chrono Aviation has not demonstrated that the inconvenience it might suffer outweighs the public interest in reducing the noise associated with the nighttime takeoffs and landings of its Boeing 737-200 aircraft,” Judge Sebastien Grammond wrote in his decision issued Friday.

The company claimed that Transport Canada was “jeopardizing” the future of a large mining complex and that its decision was the result of a process that “suffered from a lack of justification and transparency.”

Since 2019, Chrono has operated nightly connections with Puffin Land twice a week — a $100 million contract — to transport iron miners there. The company says take-offs must take place at night for logistical reasons to ensure the continued operation of the mining complex.

The carrier uses a Boeing 737-200 because it is the only aircraft capable of landing on a gravel runway. Judge Grammond believes there are alternative options for Chrono, such as Mirabel or Quebec airports.

“For nearly two years, Chrono has constantly repeated that the ban on night flights would force it into bankruptcy,” the judge said. Now, repeating a statement does not make it true; With this being repeated by others, no. »