I recorded in with binaural microphones so it should sound pretty rad with headphones. Looking for any suggestions for cool locations around Manitoba. Thanks !

Thompson is preparing to open the doors on a brand new airport terminal building that's been decades in the making.

The terminal is not yet open for passengers, but CBC was given a tour earlier this month of northern Manitoba's largest airport's newest building, which will bring a more spacious, modern complex to the city.

The current terminal for Thompson's airport is about 14,000 square feet. The new building is more than 40,000 square feet, constructed on a new site southwest of the existing terminal.

The building itself is almost complete. The arrival and departure areas are built, and TV screens showing flight times and advertisements were in and turned on during CBC's tour. Automated messages about luggage even played over the public address system.

"It's taken over 20 years for us to get here," said James Lindsey, the president and CEO of the Thompson Airport Authority, which operates the terminal.

"This is a really important piece of infrastructure for the north, in terms of the connectivity that it provides and the economic opportunity that the airport creates by connecting the north."

Though planning began nearly two decades ago, construction on the new terminal began after the COVID-19 pandemic and has continued since, with the project being delayed due to material and staff shortages.

"What we're going to have, more than anything, is just space to allow passengers to spend the time that they have here in the terminal building," Lindsey said.

Thompson Mayor Colleen Smook has seen the new terminal, and thinks it will help improve the way people see the northern Manitoba hub city.

"It's a phenomenal place. It showcases Thompson at its finest," said Smook.

Thompson's airport is already among Manitoba's busiest, and connects many communities that lack all-weather roads.

"Thompson's already a hub for the north," said Smook. "We have approximately 30-plus communities that we fly out to, and more than even just the passengers, we have a huge freight hub."

Enhanced security

The current terminal is more than 50 years old and has needed replacement for decades. It's too small for current demand and doesn't offer much for amenities or security.

The building was also built on unsteady ground — a mix of permafrost and soil, and the building has partially sunk. Because of the distance from the city, water for the facility has to be trucked in.

The new terminal is bigger and will include more retail and restaurant space. Geophysical scans done of the area indicate it's built on a spot where it shouldn't sink.

A new terminal also meant adding infrastructure, including a new water treatment plant and lagoon. There also wasn't any cellphone service or internet at the build site, and with materials often sent up from Winnipeg, about 650 kilometres south, supply chains were tough to uphold.

That distance "makes it difficult for us to get labour, for us to get materials and equipment and things like that on site," Lindsey said.

Land near the new terminal has been levelled and will be ready for future development.

The new terminal will have more stringent security and screening.

Several First Nations leaders have said that contraband including drugs and alcohol — which is banned on many First Nations — have come north through air travel.

"The airlines will be screening to a higher level, in order to remove that contraband," said Lindsey.

"It's important that we provide the equipment and opportunity for them to screen to that level in order to keep their communities safe."

A full Canadian Air Transport Security Authority security station will be part of the terminal, along with enhanced security and scanners, paid for by Perimeter Aviation, which flies to Thompson, and Manitoba Keewatinowi Okimakanak, which represents northern Manitoba First Nations, using funding received through grants. There will also be a new bag screener.

Smook said the old terminal was limited in terms of security, but the new one was built with more checks in mind.

"With this, everybody is going to go through that scanner," the mayor said. "It's definitely going to be a boon for all the people that are heading north."

The extra screening may not entirely halt contraband, but "it will definitely cut down the bootlegging, the drugs and that," she said.

Though final touches are still needed, like some furniture and allowing the airlines to move in operations, the terminal is expected to open to the public in late August.

"We're really excited about what the future is going to look like," said Lindsey.

WATCH | New airport terminal nears public opening: https://www.cbc.ca/player/play/video/9.7277516

By: Eric Westhaver · CBC News

Published: Jul 21, 2026 5:00 AM CDT | Last Updated: 19 minutes ago

Voters go to the polls today in a provincial byelection in northern Manitoba.

The riding of The Pas-Kameesak was previously represented by NDP member Amanda Lathlin, who died in March.

There are four candidates running for the seat, including Jennifer Flett for the NDP, Edna Nabess for the Progressive Conservatives and Dan Quesnel for the Manitoba Liberal Party.

Former Progressive Conservative leadership candidate Wally Daudrich is also in the race, running under the Keystone Party banner.

Daudrich moved to the Keystone Party after the Tories blocked him from running for the party in the next general election in the riding of Turtle Mountain.

The governing NDP currently hold 33 seats in the Manitoba legislature, the PCs have 20, the Liberals hold one and there are two independent members.

By: The Canadian Press

Published: July 21, 2026 at 9:39AM EDT

Dude cleans up the Transcona Trail while making dumb jokes