Going concern

James Cherry, FCA
President & CEO,
Aéroports de Montréal

Company profile: Since 1992, Aéroports de Montréal has been the local airport authority responsible for the management, operation and development of Montreal’s Dorval, now called Pierre Elliott Trudeau International, and Mirabel airports. With Cherry at the helm since 2001, ADM has been fulfilling its mandate to provide efficient, secure airport services and encourage economic development in the Montreal area. The public, nonprofit corporation, which generated $208 million in revenue in 2003, has 600 staff.

Hot factor: It’s been a tough few years for the travel industry, but ADM has bounced back. By August, passenger traffic was up 18% over the previous year, and about 10 million passengers were expected to pass through its doors by year-end. ADM is in the midst of a five-year $700-million expansion at Trudeau; in November, it opened a new international arrivals complex with a vast Canada Customs hall and baggage claim area. It will become one of the first North American destinations to which Air France will fly its new A380 airbus from Paris, beginning in early 2007.

Cool projects: Construction is underway on a new international jetty at Trudeau, with 10 new gates to accommodate the increase in passenger capacity. The project is expected to be completed in June. As well, ADM is looking at a new technology to provide travelers with self-service check-in kiosks to issue their own luggage tags.

In his own words: “We will have the best year [2004] the Aéroports de Montréal has ever had in terms of passengers, and we are back to the numbers before the crisis of September 2001.” 

Yvette Trancoso