Winnipeg Airports Authority Keynote

Transcript

Barry Rempel:Okay, thanks, Peter. Already, you've had a great taste of some of the issues that are facing the industry. Of course, hidden behind some of even Peter's comments today are some of the really deep and serious issues and differing opinions that are going to be expressed. as we have these discussions going forward over the next couple of years. It's going to be a fascinating time. I should start also by thanking both Fred Meyer and Minister Carr, because they basically gave us— gave you our commercial already. I can probably now put some of that behind. Minister Carr talked a little bit about the funding that Winnipeg was granted here That is such a critical, strategically important piece for our region. One of the— I worked for an airline many years ago, and one of the things we talked about in the background, even in those days, was, well, that's great, but you can't get there from here. One of the things that that funding announcement will be helping our region do is to provide the infrastructure that will now help connect with the benefit of the free trade agreements that have been signed. So I want to thank, obviously, the federal government for participating with us in a very significant project. So with that, I really wanted to turn to just the welcome on behalf of our team at the Winnipeg Airports Authority. It is indeed a pleasure to have you in our city. and to be able to host this first-ever CAPA event in Canada. You know, I've attended many CAPA summits over the years, and I always found myself wondering, why doesn't this happen in Canada? Why not? It'd be a really important thing to do. CAPA, particularly, is renowned for having incredible speakers, timely topics, and I think, more importantly, for having these quality events that have true impact on the future of the industry and where we're collectively taking this. Well, guess what? It's here. I found myself thinking this weekend, you know, here we are, Canada, all grown up. We have a reigning US Open champion. We have our first-ever CAPA event. I'm not sure if those two are in the same league, but I have to say, I have had the privilege of working in this industry, aviation industry, for virtually my entire life. It is fascinating. That's probably a good way, the best way to put it. From the very miracle of flight itself, which we in this industry just take for granted already, to this incredible ballet that happens behind the scenes every day by all the partners in this room to get people and goods where they need to go. That doesn't happen by accident. I have to say that in working in the various aspects of this industry that I have, maybe, you know, I should probably tell you, my love of this industry actually goes back a little further even than when I first joined the airline many, many years ago. From literally as early as I can remember, there was an airplane in our family. My dad, in fact, got his private pilot's license at the very airport that I now work at. It's just, to me, sort of coming full circle. Over the years, I remember working with my father. We owned many, many different kinds of aircraft. over the years. I remember the first aircraft being, it was a Super Cub, for any of you who know what a J-3 is, Super Cub. Various aircraft, Aronca Sedans, Aronca Chiefs, all the way through to eventually the Cardinal RG that we had in the family. All of these aircraft we would be working on. In fact, I'll share just an aside here. There is a really good reason that they call that stuff that you paint on the wings and fuselage of fabric-covered aircraft, they call it dope. Some might here accuse me of that being the reason I'm so addicted to this particular industry. But, you know, it was an incredible experience growing up in that environment and getting the love for this industry, because I saw aviation As more than just a hobby. My dad also happened to be, in those days, he was a mechanic for Trans-Canada Airlines and then Air Canada. When I joined the industry, I joined the other guys, and so we had some fascinating discussions, but it was there that I actually learned that this industry is much, much more than just that. Thank you. You know, that's where I saw the power of what this industry can do. Its ability to create wealth, to do everything from creating jobs, enabling employment in broader industry, to frankly, in our case, putting even food on families' tables. That experience, I think, gave me kind of a unique appreciation for our industry. That's, to me, become my personal why. Some of you, many of you, probably have heard about Simon Sinek. Anybody seen Simon Sinek? If you haven't, look him up sometime. He's a— He's written a lot of books about it, It Starts With Why. He talks about how it's important that we be guided by knowing the reasons we are really doing something. It's not just about living our— it's not just about knowing our why, it's about living our why. He has a great, great saying, and I've used this a number of times in emails. even just talking with our own team. He says, people don't buy what you do, they buy why you do it. And by the way, what you do simply proves what you believe. I believe that wholeheartedly. Success comes from being led by our why, and it's through that lens that I obviously view our industry. Ultimately, our collective why is about serving people's needs, and our what is about fulfilling that promise by providing connectivity. And that connection can be defined in many ways. Many of you, as you came through the terminal building, I hope you probably noticed, we have a little hug rug at the bottom of the stairs. That is an evolution of our why. That's great. I have to tell you, if you ever need reminding someday about our why, why do we do this in industry, or if you're really having just a bad day, and just— I've done it myself— spend a little time just watching that Hug Rug. It doesn't take you long to remember exactly why we're in this industry. I have to say, this need for connectivity and our why is also extended to the thing I was just talking about on the cargo side of the business. In fact, it is the cargo side of our business that enables the way we live today. I've talked previously with groups of people and saying, you've seen Winnipeg. You've seen the landscape around here. We don't grow a lot of bananas. In fact, we don't grow a lot of wine. And when I really need some chocolate or some flowers or to bring a nice bottle of wine home, it's only enabled by our cargo industry. All this to say, I have to say that I believe we are in an exciting industry. We're living a legacy of those that came before us. Early aviation pioneers developed the technology that would change the way we live. Really, for the first time, we are now able to connect efficiently incredibly long distances, bringing points together, including some of the untapped regions of Canada's north. Globally, you know, there were incredible events. You know, I thought about things like the Chicago Convention, things we don't even think about a lot sometimes in our industry. When you look at that landmark moment, you can see that what was guiding people was finding a way to use aviation to bring people together. That was their why. This city, more than most, and you heard a little bit about that from Fred and Jim earlier today, our city, more than most, is linked and shaped by an incredible aviation legacy. It's a strange mix of Canadian politics, economics, and technology. Our own aviation pioneers, indeed, the airport today that you came through is named after Canada's father of commercial aviation, James Armstrong Richardson. That was a man who had a vision, who used his own personal wealth, his own personal assets, to create the first national carrier network in Canada. He saw the need, the opportunity, and he applied the technology to meet those needs. Western Canada Airways and Canadian Airways were then global leaders and the predecessor to some of the great companies that are still serving our country today, born right here in Manitoba. You heard both Minister Carr and Fred talk a little bit also about Winnipeg's own, what was Bristol Aerospace, originally MacDonald Brothers, Aircraft company founded right here in Winnipeg in the 1930s, now known as Magellan Aerospace. Unfortunately, Don Boitzen, one of our board members at the airport, can't be here today, but he was, or is, one of the folks from Magellan who could regale us with many stories of the history of that company. But more importantly, whether it goes back to the, you know, the float planes and building floats for those aircraft, Through the Black Brant rockets, and in fact, still in use today, even back from the 1970s, all the way through to the development of the— it was called the SRF, which was the portion of the Mars rover, all developed right here in Winnipeg. The F-35 development, all right here in Winnipeg. Now, they're doing it all this many years later because they actually get their why. They understand what it is they're doing and why and who it is they're serving. Similar story could be told for many of the other aerospace industries— industry companies here in Manitoba: Standard Aero, Boeing, Aerosip, Canadian Propeller, MicroPilot, one of the newer ones. Their commitment is why Winnipeg is the 3rd largest aerospace industry in Canada and the largest in the West. The vision of those pioneers, whether it's MacDonald Brothers or Richardson, James Armstrong Richardson, are the foundation of what we build on today. The stories we, here in this room, collectively weave over our time are simply the natural evolution of efforts of people that understood their why of what they did. And the legacy of what we are going to leave for those following us, I question sometimes, will it be the lesson that we learned from our predecessors? Will it be the lesson of understanding our why? We have a long way to go. We have come a long way. We have stood on the shoulders of others, but I know that each of us in this room know we can do more. We can impact the future. CAPA has, for us here today and tomorrow, put together an incredible agenda. When you look around the room, I have to say, it is one of the most impressive collections of Canadian aviation leaders I've seen in one place. We have before us an important opportunity to discuss and debate and develop the future of Canadian aviation. For those of you that know me, or have even just seen an email from me, you'll know that I have a tagline at the very end of my email. It says, we do not exist for ourselves alone. Those are my words, but it's really just a ripoff of some thinking from a number of other people, whose words are actually much longer and don't fit well at the end of an email. But particularly one that was influential in my thinking about these things and how we need to be working together as an industry was Calvin Coolidge. He had a statement, a quote. It said, no enterprise can exist for itself alone. It ministers to some great need. That's right. It performs some great service not for itself, but for others. Or failing therein, it ceases to be profitable and it ceases to exist. No one in this room exists on their own, but rather together we form a network that connects our world. That to me is our collective why, and I hope truly that it is going to guide us not just in the 2 days before us, but in the days to come. On behalf of the Winnipeg Airports team, and especially those that are gathered here, some of our board of directors here with us today, I want to thank you for coming to our conference. Welcome to Winnipeg, and I am truly excited to hear what you're going to say in the next couple of days and to learn from that discussion. Thank you. Thank you, Barry.

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