Propair

Propair Inc.
IATA ICAO Callsign
- PRO PROPAIR
Founded 1954
Fleet size 12[1][2]
Headquarters Rouyn-Noranda, Quebec, Canada
Website www.propair.ca
Propair Beech 200 Super King Air

Propair Inc. is a charter airline with its headquarters on the property of Rouyn-Noranda Airport in Rouyn-Noranda, Quebec, Canada.[3] It operates charter and medevac flights. Its main base is Rouyn-Noranda Airport. It has a secondary base at Montréal-Pierre Elliott Trudeau International Airport.

History

In 1954, Émilien Pronovost purchased a bush aviation company, La Sarre Air Service, which was headquartered in Nord-du-Québec and operated in a territory that enjoyed a wealth of natural resources but few if any roads. A true pioneer of regional air transport, Émilien Pronovost grew his company by carrying workers, scientists and various prospectors attracted to the region. Over time, he was able to strengthen the company’s position due to an influx of passengers destined for hunting and fishing camps. Successively supported by his daughters Lise and Claude, then his sons Jean and Louis, Émilien Pronovost played a key role in the development of Québec’s largest construction site at the time, the Baie James Hydroelectric Project. After another ten years of growth, Jean and Louis purchased the company in 1981.

They also bought the company Air Fecteau, and amalgamated the two businesses to create Propair. With a fleet of around 40 aircraft, Propair was the largest bush aviation company in Eastern Canada, serving nearly the entire Québec territory. Once the region’s major projects were completed, and with the signing of the James Bay and Northern Quebec Agreement and its impact on hunting and fishing jaunts, Propair found itself with a larger fleet than needed to meet the demands of its traditional market. In addition, new roads had been built over time, greatly facilitating ground access to the territory. In order to adjust to this new reality, Propair disposed of its bush aviation assets and acquired aircraft designed for business air charters and air taxi, namely turboprop aircraft with pressurized cabins, better adapted to the fast-growing market it had chosen to target.

On 18 June 1998 a company Fairchild-Swearingen Metro II was involved in a crash that killed all eleven people on board. Propair Flight 420 departed Montréal International Airport - Dorval, Quebec, at about 0701 eastern daylight time en route to the Peterborough Airport, Ontario with nine passengers and two pilots. At 12 minutes after take-off, at 12,500 ft (3,810 m) above sea level, the crew radioed air traffic control indicating a hydraulic problem and requested a return to Dorval. At about 0719, while descending through 8,600 ft (2,621 m) ASL, the crew told ATC that the left engine was on fire and had been shut down. At about 0720 hours, the crew decided to proceed to Montréal-Mirabel International Airport instead and at 0723, the crew informed ATC that the fire was out. While on final for Runway 24 at Mirabel, the crew advised ATC that the left engine was once again on fire. On short final the left wing failed and all on board were killed when the aircraft impacted the ground.[4][5]

Services

Today, Propair mainly does air taxi and medevac flights in most part of Quebec, Ontario and north east United-States. Propair also offers support services (fuel, maintenance and cargo handling) at Rouyn-Noranda Airport and Montréal-Pierre Elliott Trudeau International Airport.

Fleet

The Propair fleet includes the following aircraft types (as of August 2016 ):[1][2]

Propair Fleet
AircraftNo. of AircraftVariantsNotes
Beechcraft King Air 9 1007-9 passengers, cargo, medevac[6]
Beechcraft 1900 2 1900C, 1900D 18 passengers, cargo,[7]
Grumman Gulfstream I1 G-15918 passengers, cargo[8]

References

  1. 1 2 Propair - Our Fleet
  2. 1 2 "Canadian Civil Aircraft Register: Quick Search Result for Propair". Transport Canada. Retrieved 2016-08-02.
  3. ↑ "Contact Us." Propair. Retrieved on November 4, 2010. "Rouyn-Noranda Headquarters 30, rue Pronovost Rouyn-Noranda airport Rouyn-Noranda (Québec) J9X 5B7 CA ." Address in French: "Rouyn-Noranda Siège social 30, rue Pronovost Aéroport de Rouyn-Noranda Rouyn-Noranda (Québec) J9X 5B7 CA "
  4. ↑ Transport Canada (22 June 2010). "Propair Accident-Mirabel International Airport - 18 June 1998". Retrieved 9 May 2012.
  5. ↑ Globe and Mail (18 June 1998). "Timeline: Notable plane-crash accidents in Canada". Globe and Mail. Retrieved 9 May 2012.
  6. ↑ Beechcraft King Air A100
  7. ↑ Beechcraft 1900C Airliner
  8. ↑ Grumman Gulfstream G159
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