North Star Air Celebrates with Sachigo Lake First Nation 

SACHIGO LAKE — North Star Air presented Sachigo Lake First Nation with a $853,978 cheque on July 3o, 2026 under a long-standing revenue-sharing agreement between the airline and the northern community. The presentation was a part of the week-long celebration in Sachigo Lake of the communities 50th year as a recognized First Nation in Canada.

North Star Air says the presentation brings the total amount returned through its revenue-sharing partnerships with First Nations across Northern Ontario to $15 million.

The milestone highlights a business model intended to ensure communities receive a direct financial benefit from airline activity generated by passenger travel, freight and other services.

Payment marks $15-million milestone

North Star Air’s revenue-sharing arrangements link community payments to sales generated through the airline’s operations involving its First Nation partners.

Under the model, a portion of qualifying revenue is returned to the participating community. North Star Air says the partnerships are also intended to support business development, employment and aviation training while respecting First Nation values, cultures and traditions.

The $984,000 payment to Sachigo Lake is not a government grant. It is a payment arising from the commercial relationship between the First Nation and the airline.

Barbecue and Community Celebration

There is a fairly long history of economic reconciliation between Sachigo Lake and North Star Air.

On Thursday, North Star Air hosted a community barbecue with delicious hotdogs, hamburgers and drinks for the community. The day included cake and cookies which the community and especially the children really enjoyed.

A partnership dating back more than a decade

Sachigo Lake was among North Star Air’s earliest First Nation partners. The community has had a strategic relationship with the airline since 2014, although company historical material traces its first revenue-sharing arrangements with Sachigo Lake and Muskrat Dam to the early 2010s.

The partnership was created to increase transportation options while returning a percentage of airline revenue to the community for future economic development.

North Star Air says the airline now has revenue-sharing relationships with a network of First Nations, including Cat Lake, Deer Lake, Eabametoong, Kashechewan, Marten Falls, Neskantaga, North Caribou Lake, North Spirit Lake, Poplar Hill, Sachigo Lake and Webequie.

The latest presentations have now moved the cumulative total to $15 million.

Why the agreement matters in Sachigo Lake

Sachigo Lake is an Oji-Cree First Nation approximately 425 kilometres north of Sioux Lookout and about 600 kilometres northwest of Thunder Bay.

The community depends on its airport for year-round access. A winter road provides a seasonal connection, but air transportation remains essential for passenger travel, food, mail, medical needs, construction materials and other priority freight throughout the year.

North Star Air provides scheduled passenger, cargo and charter services connecting Sachigo Lake with Sioux Lookout, Thunder Bay, Red Lake and other northern destinations. The airline also transports perishables, general freight, fuel and time-sensitive shipments.

That makes aviation different in Sachigo Lake than it is in most road-accessible Ontario communities. Flying is not simply a travel option. It is part of the community’s essential transportation and supply network.

A revenue-sharing arrangement allows some of the economic value created by that activity to remain in the community.

Depending on decisions made by Chief and council, such revenue could support community services, infrastructure, housing, recreation, economic development or other locally established priorities.

No specific allocation for the latest $984,000 payment was announced.

In the past Sachigo Lake has used the funds for building homes, and training young people in the community in the trades

Regional implications for Northwestern Ontario

The $15-million cumulative figure demonstrates the financial scale of commercial aviation relationships between northern First Nations and the companies serving them.

For Thunder Bay and Sioux Lookout, those relationships support their continuing roles as regional aviation, health-care, education, retail and cargo hubs. Travellers and goods moving between remote communities and southern centres also support airport employment, freight handling, maintenance, accommodations and other service industries.

For First Nations, revenue sharing represents one approach to moving beyond a conventional customer-and-service-provider relationship. Instead of all revenue leaving the community, an agreed portion is returned for community-directed use.

The model does not resolve wider concerns about the cost, reliability and availability of northern air transportation. However, it provides participating First Nations with a direct financial interest in the commercial activity created through their partnership with the airline.

The July 3th presentation recognizes both Sachigo Lake’s long relationship with North Star Air and the growing amount of airline revenue being returned to First Nation communities across Northern Ontario.