- Icon Aircraft of Vacaville, California filed this week for protection under Chapter 11 of the U.S. bankruptcy code, meaning it can continue to operate with protection from debtors while it seeks to reorganize. The company says it is seeking a buyer. “We plan to continue to produce and sell aircraft and provide first-rate service, training and support to our customers,” CEO Jerry Meyer said in a press release. The company cites pandemic-related supply chain issues as one of the factors among its financial challenges. The amphibious LSA aircraft was recently selling for north of U$200,000.
- Although Nav Canada has not provided an update recently on the advancement of remote-control towers, the technology continues to advance. With recruitment of air traffic controllers in as dire a state as that for pilots, Nav Canada is looking at ways of controlling air traffic at remote airports where getting controllers to take up residence can prove very challenging, especially in situations where a controller’s spouse or partner has career considerations of their own. See this week’s feature video for more on this topic.
- The Canada Aviation and Space Museum (CASM) has pulled the veil off a new exhibit this week (April 4) titled “The Cold War”. Aircraft featured in the exhibits include the Avro CF-100 Canuck, the Canadair Sabre 6 and the McDonnell CF-101 Voodoo just to name a few. Other exhibits include a replica of a nuclear fallout shelter and a digital tour of a DEW Line Station in the Yukon.
- Canada Post has issued a commemorative envelope to honour the 100th anniversary of the RCAF, which occurred earlier this week on April 1. The envelope is ‘cancelled’ in Borden, Ontario, symbolic of the military branch’s birthplace at RCAF Station Borden (later CFB Borden). Learn more about it, and availability for purchase from, Canada Post.
- WestJet Encore pilots earlier this week (April 2) voted overwhelmingly to strike if necessary, should their employer not reach a negotiated settlement with the pilots by April 17, according to a press release from their union, the Air Line Pilots Association International (ALPA). “Without drastic improvement on our next contract, there will be little stopping WestJet Encore pilots from continuing to seek better employment opportunities elsewhere,” stated Captain Carin Kenny, chairwoman of the WestJet Encore ALPA Master Executive Council.
- Meanwhile, PAL Aerospace pilots have filed a ‘Notice of Dispute’ and ‘Request for Conciliation Assistance’ with the Federal Mediation and Conciliation Service in their attempt to obtain a collective agreement with their employer. Efforts to this end have been ongoing since March, 2021. The PAL pilots are also affiliated with ALPA.