As part of its agreement with Canada’s federal government for the purchase of a fleet of up to 16 Boeing Poseidon maritime patrol aircraft, the aerospace giant has agreed to invest $61 million in British Columbia.
Forty-eight million dollars of that will go to build a research and development capacity at Boeing’s existing facility in the Vancouver suburb of Richmond.
“They will provide project management tools, and they will build on analytics to optimize aircraft maintenance, sustainability and performance, both for crewed and un-crewed aircraft,” said newly minted Boeing Canada president Al Meinzinger, a former commander of the Royal Canadian Air Force.
Also benefiting from Boeing’s investment is COTA Aviation, an Indigenous-owned organization based in Parksville on Vancouver Island. COTA will receive $13 million to establish an aerospace manufacturing training facility with a capacity to train 10 specialized technicians a year.
“Workers will be trained to operate modern and advanced manufacturing equipment, including robot automation, and COTA is going to assist Indigenous learners with work placement at the end of their program,” said Defence Minister Bill Blair at Boeing’s Richmond facility on Wednesday (August 7).
Blair also said that further announcements of investments by Boeing in B.C. would be forthcoming.
“It is gratifying to see Boeing’s B.C. investments in such vital areas, [such as] information technology support and Indigenous-focussed training,” said Cathy Press, chairwoman of the British Columbia Aviation Council. “Often overlooked, both these areas are critical for the future health of aerospace in our communities.”
Boeing’s announcement in B.C. follows earlier investment announcements last April of $17 million for an aviation learning centre in Saskatchewan and last May of $240 million for a global advanced air mobility facility in Quebec.