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A
Website Dedicated to the People and History of Pacific Western
Airlines
This website is created and managed by the former employees
of Pacific Western Airlines. The target audience is
that membership. If you have any contributions or
comments, please
submit them to the Webmaster.
We also wish to say thanks to our many generous contributors.
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April 29, 2009 - We returned from a fabulous
trip to the Land Down Under, had a birthday party with a
friend in Adelaide and spent the rest of the time in Palm
Cove next to the Great Barrier Reef. Marvelous
journey, Air Canada was incredible and it was so great to
see some familiar crew. Our Captain on the B777
came from PW and is scheduled to retire next
month.
April
12, 2009
This picture is the cockpit of AC735 that was adapted for an
advertising promotion in the late 1970's. Very
creative and thanks Mel Crothers.
April
5, 2009 - An e-mail from a loyal customer.
I'm not an ex-employee with Pacific Western
Airlines, but an avid and dedicated fan. I just wanted to
say thank you for having such a fantastic site and in my
opinion it's a great way to keep our PWA still going. I'm a
huge collector of PWA merchandise and am wondering if
anybody has any models or clothing available for purchase.
When I was 3 I first flew Pacific Western out of YXD to YYC.
It was a flight I will never forget. In my opinion PWA set a
standard that unfortunately has never been repeated in the
airline industry. You'll never here some nice easy listening
music on your taxi in to the terminal or the classic
workhorse, which is fading fast out of our Canadian skies:
the Boeing 737-200. Pacific Western was the west. I'm having
a hard time finding a 767-275 model. If anyone knows where I
can find one please let me know. My name is Chris and I can
be reached via e-mail.
Thank you for your website and for letting our little ones
know what a real airline used to be.
March
21, 2009 - AC739
From Ian Broni PC Pilots Ireland www.pcpilotsireland.com
I just thought you might like to know that former Canadian 737-275 C-GAPW has found a new home in life - after having been scrapped it's nose section was sold off and ended up back in Canada before finally finding a new home in Shannon, Ireland, with Atlantic AirVenture as a Boeing 737NG simulator. Have a look at
http://www.atlanticairventure.com
and look under Simulators. I have attached two photo's taken within the last week after I went have flight in her new role - the first is myself (on the left) along with Terry McGee and we both run a flight simulation group based in Ireland with members worldwide - including Canada.
***** From Webmaster - A nice story and a
special thanks to Ian and their people
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March 9, 2009
It has been 30 years since the PWA - TZ Merger (Jan - Feb
1979)
...... The Great West Connection..
...... Now Approaching: The Great West Connection (Starting up February 4th).
...... Up to 35% off Clan Gatherings on the Great West Connection (Economizer Fare).
...... The Great West Connection.
...... Join Us On the Great West Connection.
...... Connect the Dots on the Great West Connection.
Thanks for the tip N. Burton
Feb 18, 2009
PWA people will use any excuse to have a party and our excuse this time
is that our Boeing 737, Fleet No. 745, is 30 years old this week. So
the Alberta Aviation Museum invites all PWA people, and our friends from
other airlines who are supporting our Boeing, to have coffee and a slice
of birthday cake on Saturday, February 21st, from 1000 to 1300, at the
Alberta Aviation Museum.
We will be running the APU for a few minutes about 1100. If you are not
a member of the Museum (and why aren't you?) admission is FREE! Just
check in at the front desk and come to the back of the hangar.
Capt Terry Champion - Retired
If you have pictures
of this event please send them to the webmaster
Three pictures
of Stranaer Aircraft as provided by Terry Baker of the AC
Netletter via John Anderton. The aircraft are believed
to have entered the fleet through the purchase of Queen
Charlotte Airlines. Also a DeHavilland Beaver and an
Avro York. The York was a civilian version of the Avro
Lancaster - a successful WW-II bomber. The York
carried 56 passengers over a range of 3000 miles.
The last picture
is C-GAPW - very nice from D. Dertien.
This is a picture sent by D.
Dertien of 732 landing on a wet runway in Campbell
River.
Feb
9, 2009
I was surprised and delighted to come across the
Pacific Western Web site. I flew as a Steward
and Purser on PWA for a number of years (1970 to
1975). I recall bouncing around on the Convair,
the Electra, B737, B727 and the B707. I have
many wonderful memories (and stories) of those days.
I was so lucky to have flown with this airline and to
have gotten to know so many wonderful folks who worked
there. I would gladly go back to those wonderful
days. Your site has brought back these memories
for me.
Thank you and those who support this wonderful PWA
site - keep up the good work.
Richard A Price
Remarketing Director
Channel Development
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While you are visiting, you may want to play the Pacific
Western Airlines Song.
Oct 10,
2008
Kamloops Curling
I was just having a browse through the website and thought this may be a communication opportunity for the organizing committee of the Airline Bonspiel in YKA. Yes, it's still going strong.
We are about to celebrate our 29th Annual Airline Mixed Funspiel in YKA again in March of 2009. Here is the link to our website
http://www.ykabonspiel.ca
We have modified things a little and opened the spiel up to many new folks but our goal is still fun and friendship. If you were able to add this link to your website it would help us immensely. It's so easy to lose touch with the old gang these days so we activity pursue any communication medium we can find in order to spread our news.
Many thanks for your help
Kind regards John Calvert
Oct
17, 2008
We have had some
excellent aircraft scans sent by D. Dertien, S. Russell and
D. Kennedy. Enjoy!
Sep
16, 2008
See the newest Transair Aircraft and
it is still flying.
May
2008
Our pages were
referenced in the Air Canada Netletter twice and thank you for
that. We have updates on marine life on the reef,
See the people section and
get your name in now. As
of May 14, 2008, you will find 311 former employees with
9053 years of service.
See the section called Traces.
Topics for this section include people, events,
and projects that took place during the life of Pacific Western Airlines
that have left Traces in history. We have topics on on
America
West Airlines, Quicket and A/C 732. We need your contributions,
please send them to the webmaster. Peter
Lema has provided us with
Intro To Flight with a followup from Mel Crothers.
Pacific
Western Airlines - Boeing 767-200 over Abbotsford BC
Pacific
Western Airlines - Boeing 707 over the Rocky Mountains
Pacific Western Airlines - Boeing 707-320C at YVR
Pacific Western Airlines Boeing 737 on Final YVR
Transair Tigermoth
B737
- GOPW
Jan
2008
Stu Russell sent some interesting information on the Lockheed
L-188 Electra. PWA operated 4 of these in the 1970's.
These aircraft really proved their worth in Arctic
Operations. A variant of the Electra is flown by
several Armed Forces as an offshore patrol aircraft.
Nordair used the Electra for ice patrol. Here is a
Wikipedia link that tells the whole story.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Lockheed_L-188_Electra
These aircraft were registered to PWA
MSN 1127 - N7141C /
NATIONAL AIRLINES / PWA CF-ZSR --- TAIL 181 - opt as a COMBI
MSN 1128 - N7142C / NATIONAL AIRLINES / PWA CF-ZST ---- TAIL 182 - opt as a COMBI
MSN 1035 - N5001K / WESTERN AIRLINES / PWA
CF-PWG -
TAIL 183 - opt as FULL PAX
MSN 1064 - N5003K / WESTERN AIRLINES / PWA CF-PWQ - TAIL 184
- opt as a TANKER (Check out this picture)
A/C
183 was very a comfortable passenger aircraft with a large U
shaped lounge in the AFT. The nickname for the tanker A/C
184 was the Silver Bullet .
This photo of AC183 parked at YXD from Capt. H.
Dominy
Boeing
767-200
A recent Air Canada
Pionairs newsletter announced that Air Canada took
delivery of their first B767 on Oct 30 1982.
A little research found that Pacific Western Airlines
took delivery of their first B767 shortly afterward on March
4, 1983 and the second on April 23, 1983.
Pacific Western was encumbered by route regulation
and designated as a regional western airline and the route
network of the day was not a good fit.
This aircraft was not suitable to fly the very successful Airbus schedule.
Flying nonstop to Toronto or Montreal was
forbidden. The
airline came up with a somewhat successful multi-tiered fare
structure and started service over prairie cities.
The two aircraft were later purchased by Air Canada
and provided many more years of service.
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History
of the Airline
Pacific Western Airlines was a
pioneer in the aviation history and known for its ability to profitably operate short haul air routes. The
company had a proud culture of highly motivated young employees who
saw great things in their futures. The company raised profits
and reserves and eventually formed Canadian Airlines in 1987.
It came
to pass that Air Canada took over the entities that Pacific Western
Airlines had created.
Pacific Western Airlines was founded
by Russ Baker, in Fort St. James, B.C., in 1946.
With a leased Beech bi-plane, Mr. Baker provided air service to
remote mining camps and logging operations in the North, delivering
men and materials to isolated destinations.
The Company was known as Central British Columbia Airways Ltd. and,
from the beginning, had a reputation for on-time service, knowledge
and ingenuity.
It was in 1949 that Central B.C. Airways was commissioned to do
aerial surveys for the giant aluminum and power complexes at
Kitimat and Kemano in the rugged mountainous backcountry of British
Columbia. During the development of this project, Central B.C.
Airways handled 95% of the air support, consisting mainly of heavy
industrial freight and workers.
Between 1949 and 1952, the Company acquired seven other smaller
flying services. With each acquisition, the Company expanded its
base of operations, providing the much needed manpower and equipment
necessary to maintain a rapidly expanding air service. These
companies included Associated Air Taxi, Kamloops Air Service,
Skeena Air Transport, Whitehorse Flying Services and Port Alberni
Airways.
In 1953, the Company adopted the name Pacific Western Airlines, the
beginning of another important era. Additional companies were
acquired, such as Queen Charlotte Airlines in 1955, giving the
Company a foothold in scheduled services, and Associated Airways in
1955, leading to a vital contract in the construction of the Distant
Early Warning line in Canada’s north.
In 1958, Russ Baker died but the airline he founded with his Beech
bi-plane in 1946 was thriving.
A year later, in 1959, Pacific Western was part of the largest
single transfer of scheduled services in Canadian aviation history.
In that year, Canadian Pacific Airlines released licensed routes
from Edmonton to 18 points in Northern Alberta and the Northwest
Territories. With this transfer, in addition to its existing routes,
Pacific Western was licensed to provide scheduled air services over
approximately 7,000 miles throughout Western and Northern Canada.
At this point in time, the Company acquired a reputation for
innovation and aggressiveness by developing several unique services
for freight customers and passengers alike.
The Calgary-Edmonton Airbus was inaugurated in 1963, with passengers
carrying their luggage to the aircraft and depositing it on the ramp
for loading. A ticket agent on board a 66-seat DC-4 would then
collect the fare during the 55-minute flight.
When the Airbus first started, it was estimated that it would take
ten years to move one million passengers. That goal was reached in
less than eight years.
1964 marked the introduction of another unique service known as
Inclusive Tour Charter programmes. This was another first for
Canada, with excursion flights from Vancouver to Grand Cayman
Islands. Later in the same year, Pacific Western pioneered group
charters across the Atlantic, mainly to the United Kingdom.
In 1966, in anticipation of a regional air policy for Canada,
Pacific Western began placing orders for jet and jet-prop equipment.
The regional policy became a reality in 1968, and the Company was
able to add many more ports of call to the already long list of
destinations in Western Canada. Services at this point stretched
from the Pacific Northwest to the Arctic Archipelago.
Boeing 707 equipment was added to the fleet in 1967, and Inclusive
Tour programmes were introduced to Mexico and Hawaii in the winter,
with several European destinations for the summer. The addition of a
cargo model Boeing 707 meant that livestock and perishables could
now be carried all over the world, and the name Pacific Western
became synonymous with “World Air Cargo”. The Company aircraft
visited more than 90 countries during this period of time.
Pacific Western operated a world wide Boeing 707 cargo and passenger
charter program until the last aircraft was sold in 1979.
In 1967, Pacific Western became the first commercial operator of the
Lockheed Hercules freighter. The Hercules were initially acquired to
support Canada’s extensive search for energy and minerals in
Northern Canada. Then, following the Spring ice break-up, the
Hercules would rejoin the main cargo fleet in world-wide operations.
Diverse cargoes included everything from 21,000 kilos of dimes to
20,000 kilos of Christmas cake, and a shipment of electronic
equipment to the People’s Republic of China, the first commercial
air shipment to that country.
In November 1968, the Company introduced “jet service” on its
scheduled route system with the delivery of its first Boeing 737.
Pacific Western was the first Canadian carrier to order the 737
aircraft. The “Stampeder Service” linking Alberta and B.C. began
on December 17, 1968.
Another transfer of licensing authority from CP Airlines to Pacific
Western provided the Company with routes throughout the Interior of
B.C. in 1969, and the acquisition and control of B.C. Airlines in
1970 enabled the Company to supply expanded air service to routes in
the B.C. Interior and on the coast.
With equipment such as the DC-4, DC-6, Convair 640, Lockheed
Electra, Boeing 727 and Boeing 737, Pacific Western provided
scheduled air service throughout B.C., Alberta and the Northwest
Territories.
As the 1970’s progressed, the airline’s equipment varied and the
Company began a fleet rationalization programme, concentrating on
the 117-seat Boeing 737 as the backbone of the mainline fleet. By
the late 1970’s, the Company operated an all-jet mainline fleet.
In 1974, the Alberta Government assumed ownership of Pacific Western
Airlines to assure the development of the North and Western Canada,
returning the airline to the private sector in 1983.
In 1978, the Company acquired the regional carrier Transair Ltd. of
Winnipeg. In February 1979, in an agreement with the Canadian
Transport Commission, Transair ceased all scheduled operations east
of Winnipeg and Calgary/Edmonton via Regina and Saskatoon,
Saskatchewan. This linked the Pacific Western/Transair systems,
completing the first step to eventual merger. On December 1, 1979,
all operating licenses and routes were transferred to Pacific
Western Airlines and Transair ceased as a regional carrier.
Like Pacific Western, Transair was comprised of several companies.
Their history dated back to 1947 with the founding of Central
Northern Airways. In 1956, a merger between Central Northern Airways
and Arctic Wings created the name Transair. The most significant of
various amalgamations during the years took place in 1969 when
Transair and Midwest Airlines combined their operations to form a
diversified regional carrier serving prairie Canada to Toronto and
the Arctic.
By 1986 Pacific Western was the largest airline in Western Canada,
carrying over 3 million passengers per year. In ’86, joint
marketing agreements were signed with local service carriers –
Calm Air of Thompson, Manitoba and Time Air of Lethbridge, Alberta,
under the Pacific Western Spirit Program. Pacific Western employed
nearly 3,000 people throughout Western Canada and Ontario.
Organizational changes in 1986 established a formal structural
relationship between the holding Company, Pacific Western Airlines
Corporation, and the airline operating company, Pacific Western
Airlines Ltd.
On December 2, 1986, PWA Corporation announced its intention to
purchase Canadian Pacific Air Lines for $300 million, effective
February 1, 1987.
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04/30/2009 |
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