Economic Impacts
Goose Bay’s industry is the Base and its product is flight training. The Base currently employs close to five hundred civilians and one hundred military personnel. Those participants who fly at 5 Wing Goose Bay contribute approximately $70 million to the local and provincial economies and support a large number of government and service sector jobs.
In 2001 the number of sorties (flights) by our training participants at 5 Wing totaled 6394, while the Base has the capacity to handle a total of 18, 000 sorties. As a result, 5 Wing Goose Bay is open to business and can accommodate the training demands of the worlds air forces.
Sorties for the 2001 Flying Season
In 1997 the Base was privatized and the contract was awarded to SERCo. A United Kingdom based company, SERCo has been in the business of providing support services to air force bases throughout the world for more than 40 years. In 2002 SERCo employed 414 permanent employees and 23 temporary employees.
Our training participants contribute greatly to the local economy through the secondary service industry. It is estimated that civilian and military employees spend over two-thirds of their disposable income at businesses in the local area.. Popular items for short term occupants to Goose Bay include clothing, sports paraphernalia, and souvenirs. Those military personnel who stay in the area for longer periods of time (usually 3 to 5 years) contribute significantly to the local economy through larger item purchases such as vehicles.
The creation of the Base was the economic stimulus for stores opening in Goose Bay and subsequently it became a government service area. There are as many (if not more) indirect jobs created from revenues from our training participants as there are jobs directly related to servicing the Base. The training programs are both directly and indirectly responsible for the creation of hundreds of jobs in all sectors of the economy.
Number of Military, Civilian and Serco Employees 1999 - 2002
A study conducted by the Institute for Environmental Monitoring and Research concluded that:
Low level flying activities at 5 Wing Goose Bay accounts for 1,480 person-years of employment (direct, indirect, and induced) in Labrador which is a 9% increase over 2000 figure of 1,350; adds $72.63 million (direct, indirect, induced) to Gross Domestic Product (GDP) which is a 6.5% increase over the 2000 figure of 67.9 million, and contributes $26.80 million to government revenues which is a 20% increase over the 2000 figure of $21.45 million.
Thus it is not an understatement to say that the Base remains the most important economic driver to the economy of Happy Valley - Goose Bay and the Province as a whole.
If you would like to find out more about our provincial economy you can visit the Government of Newfoundland and Labradors Economy Website at http://www.economics.gov.nf.ca/E2002.asp