Kennebec Lake airstrip owner worries about trespassers, and safety

Jeff Green | Sep 22, 2021

Sean Binkley is a mortgage broker from Kingston, and an amateur pilot. In 2019, with a couple of his friends, he bought the former Baker property on the north shore of Kennebec Lake. The property includes a cottage and a large cabin, and it also has a 2,000-foot long private air-strip that remains in use.

“The airstrip is used by me and my partners to come and go, and by others who contact us and ask if they can use it,” said Binkley.

The strip is not a registered aerodrome but it is known in the flying community and is used.

“People have to let us know they are coming, and it does not have lights so it is primarily for day use,” said Binkley.

Since buying the property, Binkley and his partners have developed good relationships with the local community, he said.

“We love it here, can't wait to fly or drive in whenever we can.”

But there has been a problem with people trespassing on the property and using the runway for recreational purposes, which is a safety concern.

“The road approaching the strip is marked private, but people do come in.”

Binkley said he has seen people walking their dog, and running along the airstrip which would be a problem if a plane came in for landing at the same time. But what he is really concerned about is drag racing.

He has seen tire tracks on the runway, and even chunks of asphalt have been broken off. He installed a camera and there have been vehicles racing on the runway late in the night.

“If a plane lands and hits a chunk of asphalt the wrong way it can be dangerous, even deadly, '' Binkley said.

”Whoever is doing this should know what they may be causing.”

It is also against federal law, the federal Aviation Act, to cause damage to, trespass onto and to cause damage to runways, so anyone who decides to go on a joyride on the runway risks more than a simple provincial trespassing offence.

“We have reported to the police and they are investigating, but we want people to know this is a dangerous thing to do,” said Binkley. “We hope whoever is doing it will realise they are risking serious charges and could be causing serious damage to aircraft or worse.