Re-name Calgary International Airport
 

For those who do not know their Canadian history,

- Calgary Airport was named McCall Field.
- Edmonton Municipal Airport was named Blatchford Field.
- Winnipeg Airport was named Stevenson Field.
- Lethbridge Airport was named Kenyon Field.

And so on..Capt. Fred McCall is all but forgotten...so has pioneer bush pilot Capt. Fred J. Stevenson, and "Cowboy" Blatchford. Who remembers explorer and aviator Herbert Hollick-Kenyon? All admirable Canadian aviation figures.

But re-naming an airport after a living, very recently ex-Prime Minister??

Here is a link regarding a petition to re-name the Calgary International Airport "Stephen J. Harper International Airport":

Renaming Calgary airport after Stephen Harper ? or not ? sparks duelling petitions - Calgary - CBC News

Si on a propose Harper, Pourquoi pas Jean Chretien?

Airport names.
 

I have a better proposition, remove ALL the politicians names from our airports, its outrageus that the idiot who built Mirebelle in its location should have the airport he tried to shut down named after him {Dorval was known world wide as the Atlantic Ferry Hub} Also nameing Saskatoon after the moron who killed the Arrow, its a crime to have have an airport bear his name, By naming airports after these twits it makes us look like some banana republic, maybe thats what we indeed are?

This situation isn't unique to Canada. John Wayne never did anything for Orange County airport but complain about the noise. Ronald Reagan sure never did anything for Washington National. He did fire most of the air traffic controllers though and caused problems past today into the future.

Calgary Air (Farce) Port?


Not criticising YYC - I actually quite like the place, I just miss Royal Canadian Air Farce.........:sad:


Or how about Red Green Airport? :ok:

Petition against the renaming signed! :ok:

I just had a moment of panic and had to check.

Luckily CYSH is already taken by Smiths Falls. :E

Petition for renaming airport signed. :ok:

Maybe they could content themselves with a Steven Harper International Terminal? It has an appropriate acronym.

Now that is too funny! :ok:

IF and only IF it absolutely HAS to be renamed, I would suggest that the Ontario way of renaming bridges and major overpasses in honour of police officers who have been killed on active duty in the Province might be worth following.


Might be worth duplicating by renaming airports after RCAF personnel killed from now on whilst on active service.

And while we're at it, NO AIRPORT should be allowed to call itself XYZ INTERNATIONAL AIRPORT if it has no :mad: scheduled international flights!!!

er,

An International Airport is one that where an aircraft can clear Customs - nothing to do with scheduled flights.

.... and on that note, I can't wait until YQA gets a scheduled discount(gulfstream) service to EDI.


Well, you've got to hope.......:)

No issue here with renaming an airport for a prominent politician...as long as they did something noteworthy. Other than staying in office for far too long, Mr. Harper did not have any major contribution to the longevity of our country. Pearson is fine because at least the guy had a helping hand in creating the UN, NATO and won a Nobel Peace Prize for the Suez Crisis. But the other ones...blah.


I like the suggestion Donkey497 put forward; name it after someone who gave their life for our country during active military service - going back to the original name isn't half bad either.


In fact, maybe we should start a separate petition to ensure that all RCAF recipients of the Victoria Cross have an International airport named after them. I wonder how many signatories that would get???

For what it's worth, and as only an enthusiastic visitor to Canadian shores, I'm not counted amongst those who might have an active say in the matter, but, as I outlined above, I do think that naming a public edifice after someone who has been killed whilst on duty and in service of the wider community is a fairly permanent (in this somewhat impermanent world) recognition of their sacrifice.




.... and no, I don't think that being killed in the line of duty is part of the job spec for any line of work, no matter how hazardous.
But, before this thread heads for Jet Blast territory, I do think that it would be wholly appropriate to name a hospital, specialist treatment centre or other medical facility in order of any medical professional, irrespective of their role, who have likewise been unable to return home to their family at the end of a shift, whether through violence, perhaps infection or other unfortunate circumstance.


In closing, it is said that there are many who pass this way with no memorial to their having lived other than a world made better for their having passed this way, but to do this to the best of your ability may well take a long lifetime to make such an impact. It seems to me that naming a structure or facility in honour of someone whose life has been cut short seems appropriate, as this may have robbed them of their chance to make the world that better place.

If we insist on naming airports after political figures, then we should at the very least continue the tradition of waiting until they are deceased before bestowing such an honour. While Steve's political career may be six feet under, the man is still very much alive and no doubt his name will soon appear on the board of directors roster of at least one major oil company. Then maybe they can take the much more appropriate action of naming a pipeline or an oil tanker in his honour. :hmm:

The whole idea of naming an airport after a person is stupid.............it belongs to the city or town....."lester b pearson" airport doesn't mean crap to my kids and 50% of the population of toronto doesn't even know who he is........better to call it the "ming" dynasty airport or "mumbai" secondary airport.