Canadian Pacific Airlines built this modern float base on the waterfront of Yellowknife, Northwest Territories, Canada, in 1946 to serve as an office, staff housing, and mooring for its fleet of bush planes. Yellowknife was a very active aviation centre during the late 1940s as a result of renewed gold exploration after World War II. The aviation industry however was very tumultuous and many bankruptcies and mergers occurred throughout history, and many airline companies came to use this float base in Yellowknife, including: Canadian Pacific Airlines (1946–1949), Yellowknife Airways (1949–1951), Associated Airways Limited (1951–1956), Pacific Western Airlines (1956–1966), Northward Airlines (1966–1978), and Air Dogrib (1978–1980s).
In more recent years, the old float base was renovated into a micro brewery and pub known as Bush Pilot Brew Pub (1993-1997) and then as a private residence. The CPA float base was designated a City of Yellowknife Heritage Site in 1992. [1]
Canadian Pacific Air Lines was a Canadian airline that operated from 1942 to 1987. It operated under the name CP Air from 1968 to 1986. Headquartered at Vancouver International Airport in Richmond, British Columbia, it served domestic Canadian as well as international routes until it was purchased by Pacific Western Airlines and absorbed into Canadian Airlines International.
The Douglas DC-6 is a piston-powered airliner and cargo aircraft built by the Douglas Aircraft Company from 1946 to 1958. Originally intended as a military transport near the end of World War II, Douglas reworked it after the war to compete with the Lockheed Constellation in the long-range commercial transport market. Douglas built over 700, and many still fly in cargo, military, and wildfire control roles.
The de Havilland DH.89 Dragon Rapide is a 1930s short-haul biplane airliner developed and produced by British aircraft company de Havilland. Capable of accommodating 6–8 passengers, it proved an economical and durable craft, despite its outdated plywood construction.
Pacific Western Airlines Ltd (PWA) was an airline that operated scheduled flights throughout western Canada and charter services around the world from the 1950s through the 1980s.
A bush airplane is a general aviation aircraft used to provide both scheduled and unscheduled passenger and flight services to remote, undeveloped areas, such as the Canadian north or bush, Alaskan tundra, the African bush, or savanna, Amazon rainforest and the Australian Outback. They are used where ground transportation infrastructure is inadequate or does not exist.
The Grumman G-73 Mallard is a medium, twin-engined amphibious aircraft. Many have been modified by replacing the original Pratt & Whitney Wasp H radial engines with modern turboprop engines. Manufactured from 1946 to 1951, production ended when Grumman's larger SA-16 Albatross was introduced.
Erik Nielsen Whitehorse International Airport is an airport of entry located in Whitehorse, Yukon, Canada. It is part of the National Airports System, and is owned and operated by the Government of Yukon. The airport was renamed in honour of longtime Yukon Member of Parliament Erik Nielsen on December 15, 2008. The terminal handled 294,000 passengers in 2012, representing a 94% increase in passenger traffic since 2002. By 2017, this number had risen to 366,000. Air North is based in Whitehorse.
The Noorduyn Norseman, also known as the C-64 Norseman, is a Canadian single-engine bush plane designed to operate from unimproved surfaces. Distinctive stubby landing gear protrusions from the lower fuselage make it easily recognizable.
Air Queensland, formerly Bush Pilots Airways, was an Australian airline which operated from 1951 until 1988.
Transair was an airline based in Canada. It was purchased by Pacific Western Airlines in 1979. Transair's operational headquarters was located at the Winnipeg International Airport in Manitoba.
Bonanza Air Lines was a local service carrier, a US scheduled airline focused on smaller routes in the Western United States from 1949 until it merged with two other local service airlines to form Air West in 1968. Its headquarters was initially Las Vegas, Nevada, and moved to Phoenix, Arizona in 1966.
Maxwell William Ward was a Canadian aviator and founder of Wardair Airlines, at one time the third-largest air carrier in Canada.
The Fairchild F-11 Husky was a Canadian bush plane designed and manufactured in the post-Second World War era. Despite a promising design, a lack of a suitable powerplant hurt performance, and stiff competition from the de Havilland Beaver and de Havilland Otter designs meant the type never gained a solid foothold in the marketplace.
The de Havilland DH.90 Dragonfly is a 1930s British twin-engined luxury touring biplane built by the de Havilland Aircraft Company at Hatfield Aerodrome.
Canadian Airways Limited was a Canadian regional passenger and freight air service based in Winnipeg, Manitoba.
Invicta International Airlines Ltd was a charter airline based at Manston Airport in the United Kingdom. It operated non-scheduled passenger and freight services between 1965 and 1982.
Ernest Joseph Boffa was a pioneering Canadian bush pilot.
440 Transport Squadron is a unit of the Canadian Armed Forces under the Royal Canadian Air Force. It is part of 8 Wing and works closely with Joint Task Force (North) in Yellowknife, Northwest Territories.
The Hudson's Bay Company began a trading post in Yellowknife, Northwest Territories, Canada in 1938 at the height of the first gold rush in the region. Fire destroyed the original building in January 1945, and the HBC rebuilt and reopened this expanded trading post store and warehouse in November 1945. It served the Old Town waterfront of Yellowknife for several years. The post was primarily designed for prospector's bush orders during the gold boom years. With the opening of a modern downtown department store in 1947, the Old Town post catered almost exclusively to bush orders, fur trappers, commercial fishers, and prospector supplies. The store closed in 1960 when all HBC operations were centralized to the downtown location. Thereafter, the building was used only as a warehouse for HBC retail operations. The Bay retail stores were rebranded as Northern Stores Inc in 1987 and the warehouse was sold to Les Rocher who has owned it ever since.