News
Infamous Gimli Glider up for auction
Feb. 22, 2013, Blenheim, Ont. - It gained notoriety when it dropped in unexpectedly at a former air base-turned-drag strip north of Winnipeg.
February 22, 2013 By The Canadian Press
Now, a former Air Canada Boeing 767 – dubbed the Gimli Glider – is up for auction, but it could cost the buyer a lofty chunk of
dough to snap up the infamous piece of Manitoba history.
The plane became famous when a fuel conversion error between metric and imperial units led to the aircraft running out of gas
more than 12,000 metres up in July 1983.
The powerless Edmonton-bound flight glided to the strip near Gimli, forcing spectators at a drag event to scramble for safety,
but no one was hurt.
The aircraft returned to service and flew regularly until it was retired in 2008 and was later housed in California.
Collector Car Productions in Blenheim, Ont., which is holding the auction, says the aircraft's owners are expecting to get from $2.75 million to $3 million for the jet when it goes on the block in April.
Terry Lobzun, a company spokesman, says the plane is flyable but the buyer would have to jump through some hoops to get it back into service.
