First there was Air France flight 447, and then, Malaysia Airlines flight 370. They were there, and then they were gone. MH 370 made no distress call, there were no signs of technical malfunction or engine failure, and the weather was just fine. But, somewhere over the Andaman Sea, something had gone horribly wrong.

MacDonald Dettwiler and Associates (MDA) appears to be on a roll, not to mention an order backlog of around $3 billion, about $1 billion more than a year ago.

For those of you who might think the aviation industry lacks the glitz of a Hollywood gala, then you obviously haven’t experienced the electricity brought on by the introduction of a new aircraft. Such an experience becomes even more dramatic when that event takes place in an exotic city in the Middle East. Those lucky enough to get an invite to the early January introduction of the new Airbus 350 XWB with launch customer Qatar Airways in the capital city of Doha, experienced just such a spectacle.

Feb. 26, 2015, Melbourne, Aus. - Australian researchers have unveiled the world's first 3D-printed jet engine, a manufacturing breakthrough that could lead to cheaper, lighter and more fuel-efficient jets.

When NorOntair’s Dash 8-100 powered into the sky in December 1984, it marked one of the most important events in Canadian aviation history. Not only did the fledgling airline, a subsidiary of the provincial government’s Ontario Northland Transportation Commission, provide essential passenger service connecting the dots in remote Ontario locations, but it also debuted the PW100, one of the crowning jewels of Longueuil, Que.-based engine manufacturer Pratt & Whitney Canada (P&WC).

Oct. 27, 2014, Woodbury, N.Y. - General aviation and commercial transport aviation are very different in many respects, yet they share a common goal: improve the passenger experience.

Oct. 16, 2014, Botucatu, Brazil - The Ipanema agricultural airplane, powered by ethanol (hydrated alcohol) – EMB 202A, will celebrate its 10th anniversary since certification on Sunday, October 19.

Oct. 9, 2014, Hungtington Beach, Ca. - Boeing has completed environmental and performance qualification testing on the aircraft satellite communications antenna system it is developing for multipurpose satellite operator Al Yah Satellite Company (Yahsat) of the United Arab Emirates.

Oct. 9, 2014, Calgary - FLYHT Aerospace Solutions Ltd. presented its Automated Flight Information Reporting System (AFIRS) and FLYHTStream technologies at the National Transportation Safety Board’s (NTSB) public Emerging Flight Data & Locator Technology Forum in Washington, D.C. on October 7 to the NTSB acting Chairman Chris Hart.

Sept. 22, 2014, Ottawa - NAV CANADA has announced a plan by Aireon LLC to provide a global emergency tracking solution that will be available free of charge for all automatic dependent surveillance broadcast (ADS-B) equipped aircraft.

Sept. 18, 2014, Toronto - Flight Level Media Ltd. (FLM) and Panasonic Avionics Corporation have signed a five-year Software Applications License Agreement that supports the integration of FLM’s passenger applications for Panasonic’s in seat and wireless platforms.

Jan. 19, 2015, Rosemead, Ca. - Hermetic Seal Corporation has developed interconnection technology that meets the increasingly stringent temperature range and leak rates required for even the most highly demanding aerospace applications.

Dec. 5, 2014, Edmonton - Pelican Products, Inc. has introduced the new Pelican ProGear Voyager cases for the latest Samsung digital devices—the Samsung Galaxy Note 4, Galaxy Mega 2  and the Galaxy Alpha.

Dec. 5, 2014 - After the signature of its first contract with Air Méditerranée, the Titanium Seat, designed and produced by Expliseat, maintains its momentum and opens to the international market with a new contract signed in May 2014 with the Compagnie Africaine d’Aviation. The ultra-­‐light seats will fly on December 2014, on board the A320 fleet of the African company, leader on its market.

Nov. 20, 2014, Portland, Or. - Lightspeed Aviation has announced the launch of The Lightspeed Aviation Adventure Flight Bag collection. The collection includes two bags made of full-grain South American cowhide, and one made of ballistic polyester with full grain cowhide accents.

Nov. 17, 2014, Edmonton - To offer tough lightweight, safety-approved lighting options, Pelican Products, Inc., has introduced three new safety approved headlights.

Nov. 17, 2014, Kemp, Tx. - Larson Electronics has announced the release of a 4,000 watt skid mount five stage electric light mast. This tower features a rotating boom that allows for 360° of rotation, a removable mast head, and a cube frame with skid pockets with 4-corner pick eyes for easy transportation.

June 26, 2014, Portland, Or. - Lightspeed Aviation has announced the long-awaited launch of Zulu PFX, its new ANR aviation headset. The headset was first revealed at Oshkosh in 2013, and has continued in development since.

June 5, 2014, Sydney, Aus. - Altium Limited introduced WEBENCH Altium Connector, a collaborative effort between Altium and Texas Instruments (TI) to blend TI’s  WEBENCH power design and simulation tools with Altium’s EDA tool suite Altium Designer.

June 3, 2014, Westbury, N.Y. - The Spectroline OPTI-LUX 365 is a powerful LED leak detection flashlight that provides UV light for optimal fluorescent dye response. It’s ideal for all aviation fluid system applications.

June 2, 2014, Huntington Beach, Ca. - Scheyden Precision Eyewear has announced the addition of the C-130 model to its premium sunglass range.

May 20, 2014, Edmonton - Cold beverages won’t be getting warm anytime soon in the Pelican ProGear 20QT  Elite Cooler.

On a November morning in 2012, eight people boarded a Cessna 208B in Snow Lake, Man., bound for Winnipeg. The trip was expected to take a little over two hours, but barely one minute into the flight, tragedy struck. According to our investigation report released earlier this year, the aircraft was overweight, and its takeoff and climb performance was reduced by accumulated ice on the leading edges of its wings and tail, and it crashed into a nearby wooded area, killing the pilot and seriously injuring all seven passengers.

So what does it take to make your mark in the world of aviation and aerospace? It’s all about having a flexible, hardworking, “can do” attitude while being as resilient and proactive as possible. And if you really want to make your mark, copious quantities of passion for your chosen field goes a long way.

Jan. 23, 2015 - Wings and Helicopters Careers in Aviation 2015, is a one-stop resource to landing an exciting career in avation. It contains breif descriptions of several leading aerospace sectors, as well as valuable information on education and training. | READ MORE

A culture of safety in aviation is always evolving and it must be managed properly or there won’t be a solid Safety Management System (SMS).

As Canadian air transport continues to grow, Transport Canada (TC) has been plotting an opposite course. Budget cuts and attrition has left the regulator struggling to do more with less.

When most people think about the role of Transport Canada (TC) in Canadian aviation their minds go to the oversight aspect.

The appointment of Lisa Raitt as minister of transport last July was a plus for the aviation industry, according to Harvey Friesen, president of Bearskin Airlines and past chairman of the Air Transport Association of Canada (ATAC).

On May 25, 2012, a commercially operated de Havilland Beaver floatplane crashed into Lillabelle Lake in northern Ontario.

Three years after Transport Minister John Baird announced that certification and oversight of (aircraft) operators are the core responsibilities of Transport Canada (TC) and should not be conducted by the private sector

The Transportation Safety Board of Canada (TSB) recently released its report on an incident termed as a “risk of collision” that occurred at Vancouver International Airport (YVR) in April of 2011.

Many accident investigations by the Transportation Safety Board (TSB) in recent years have demonstrated that without flight recording systems, critical information that can ultimately help prevent accidents is not captured and available for analysis.

The New Year promises to be an interesting one for Canadian airlines. The two majors, WestJet and Air Canada, are coming off successful years, with high load factors and happy shareholders. It was such a good year in 2014, in fact, that at least two different groups (Canada Jetlines and Jet Naked) announced they are on the hunt for the capitol required to provide Canadians with the option of an ultra-low cost carrier (ULCC) flight experience, staking out the bottom of the market. I would have thought, however, that the “ultra-low cost” crowd had already been hovered across the border by the lure of dirt-cheap flights on antique aircraft.

The November announcement of a memorandum of agreement signed by Air Canada and Air China to stimulate growth in air traffic between the two countries could mean Montreal is a step closer to getting its long awaited non-stop Montreal-Beijing route.

Where is the price of oil headed over the next 12-months? The crystal ball remains cloudy. At the annual Global Airfinance Conference in Dublin, Ireland in January, duelling experts predicted the cost of oil could hover around the US$40 a barrel mark for at least the next couple of years, or creep up to US$100 a barrel by spring. There is enough room between the extremes to drive a fleet of tanker trucks through.

Bombardier’s airplane divisions certainly struggled through a challenging year in 2014. Programs such as the midsize Learjet 85 were delayed, the CSeries flight test program, now back in the air, was grounded following an engine failure, and plans to build Q400 turboprops in Russia are currently stalled.

It might seem supercilious to try to predict the future of an industry, especially 20 years out. There are so many inter-related factors at play: global and regional economics, technology breakthroughs, regulation, natural disasters, wars.

Without warning, the 2014 Ontario Budget introduced a stunning 148 per cent increase to the aviation fuel tax – from 2.7 cents to 6.7 cents per litre – to be phased in over four years.   Unfortunately, this decision is counterproductive and seriously impairs the aviation industry’s ability to do what it does best – create jobs, stimulate trade and tourism, and generate revenue for the Ontario government.

I was in Seattle recently for the one-day Passenger Experience Conference, which ran concurrently with the annual Aircraft Interiors Expo. And while I’m having trouble accepting that everything I do in life should be viewed as an “experience,” I will say that this was one of the most enjoyable and educational days I have ever experienced.

Air Canada is following in the footsteps of Porter Airlines by offering December-March service to Mont-Tremblant. But unlike Porter, which also offers summer service and flies out of Toronto Island Billy Bishop Airport, Air Canada is offering the service from its main hub at Lester B. Pearson.

In the November/December 2014 issue of Wings, we ran a cover story by yours truly entitled “Surveying the Landscape,” focusing on what Canadian air transport could look like in five years. The invisible thread running through the piece was how government policy blocks renewal industry renewal. This is not a criticism of any particular government. With the exception of overdue big ticket change such as opening domestic skies to limited competition in the 1950s (Diefenbaker), deregulation (Trudeau) and trans-border open-skies (Chrétien), successive governments have been satisfied tinkering at the margins of air policy, such as insisting airlines post the all in fare up front, saving customers from sticker shock once all taxes and fees are added. As part of a consumer agenda, it was pretty low hanging fruit.

It has been said you have to walk before you can run, which sometimes I think is a nice way of saying you’re not really sure of where you’re going, or you don't have a clear understanding of what it is you have to accomplish once you get there.

Three days in May saw a human whirlwind of activity touch down at Southport, outside Portage La Prairie, Manitoba.

Nov. 11, 2014, Al Ain, U.A.E. - AAR has announced it has been selected by AMMROC (Advanced Military Maintenance Repair and Overhaul Centre) LLC, the Abu Dhabi-based Joint Venture between Mubadala Development Company, Sikorsky and Lockheed Martin, to support in the design, outfitting and integration of key areas of AMMROC’s state-of-the-art facility in Al Ain, UAE.

Oct. 14, 2014, Farnborough, U.K. - Seventy four high flying engineering apprentices have been welcomed to British Airways this week, ready to begin their careers at one of the world’s leading airlines.

Oct. 6, 2014, Oslo, Norway - AAR’s Nordisk Aviation Products, in partnership with Airbus, has announced it has developed an AMV main deck cargo container exclusively for the A330-200F, A300-600 and A310-300 converted freighter.

Supply chains for the aerospace industry have become increasingly complex, challenging manufacturers of military and commercial aircraft to maintain control, consistency and predictability in the supply of primary assemblies.

The recovery in Canadian maintenance repair and overhaul (MRO) reported last year in Wings continues to take hold despite the Aveos set back.

Aviation maintenance, repair and overhaul (MRO) is on a rebound.

So, Matt, what are the best ways to innovate in tough market conditions? How do you continue to motivate and challenge staff to perform at top levels?”

There’s an old saying that if a job is worth doing, it’s worth doing well. For Peterborough, Ont.-based Flying Colours, quality is indeed an obsession – and cutting corners is not an option. Delivering top quality for money and creating happy clients is the number one priority.

Optimistic. This one word best describes how MRO (maintenance, repair and overhaul) operators and industry analysts are feeling about the future of the Canadian MRO market. There are a few key factors behind the sentiment according to Ray Jaworski, senior aerospace analyst with Forecast International.

Canadian MRO companies have been just as battered by the global recession as everyone else. But just how bad is it for these companies? “We are seeing a significant decline in sales in the AMO side of the business, and our manufacturing activity has all but ceased,”

When you discuss aircraft modifications and innovation, a Canadian name continually comes up around the world – Field Aviation. The company has set the standard in so many unique and special mission applications that it has become a leader in the field.

What would you risk to build a new business that you believed in, plus save the jobs of your friends and colleagues? For Alvin Gregorash and his wife Shirley, the answer was simple: They bet the farm.

Note: The total number of positions to be filled have not been identified at this time. The results of this competition will be used to create an eligibility list to fill any upcoming permanent vacancies that may be available in the listed locations during the next 18 months.

Canadian Owners and Pilots Association is accepting applications for the position of President & CEO.  COPA is a not-for-profit organization with over 17,000 members.

Crew Scheduler - IFS - Toronto-13983 Description Being part of Air Canada is to become part of an iconic Canadian symbol, recently ranked the best Airline in North America. Let your career take flight by joining our diverse and vibrant team at the leading edge of passenger aviation. 

Being part of Air Canada is to become part of an iconic Canadian symbol. Across the country and across the world, the Air Canada family brings people together.  Let your career take flight by joining our diverse and vibrant team at the leading edge of passenger aviation. Performing one of aviation's most important roles, flight dispatchers share with pilots the ultimate responsibility for a flight's safe commencement and completion under a Type A Operational Control System.

Air Canada Maintenance – Toronto-13846 Description Being part of Air Canada is to become part of an iconic Canadian symbol, recently ranked the best Airline in North America. Let your career take flight by joining our diverse and vibrant team at the leading edge of passenger aviation.

Open House Event in Mississauga AAA Canada is an on-site manufacturing company that offers specialized subcontracting services in aerospace industrialization and production. With more than 2,500 employees throughout the world and a leadership position in global markets, the AAA Group has established itself as a key international player in the aerospace sector.

Open House Event in Mississauga

Open House Event in Mississauga  

Open House Event in Mississauga

Open House Event in Mississauga

Open House Event in Mississauga

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