Abbotsford’s aerospace industry is always on the ascent, and on May 8 City Council’s Business Spotlight Series gave us a look inside one of the local companies that keeps that sector soaring: Conair Aerial Firefighting.
For more than 50 years Conair has been a global leader in aerial firefighting. They provide the planes, personnel, maintenance and training to support government agencies fighting wildfires with the help of the world’s largest privately-owned fixed-wing fleet of specialty aircraft. And while Conair operates in Canada, the United States, Australia and beyond, half of Conair Group’s 500 employees are right here in Abbotsford.
Mayor Siemens and Councillors Warkentin, Gibson, Driessen, Loewen and Ross, as well as City staff, participated in the tour, which was led by Conair Vice President of Business Development Jeff Berry. We learned all about the company’s history, how aerial firefighting works, as well as the logistics of running an aerial firefighting business.
As a City Council we are continuing to foster a vibrant, diversified local economy, with a focus on key sectors like aviation and aerospace, along with agriculture and advanced manufacturing.
Abbotsford is part of the largest aerospace hub on the continent with Washington State, home to a world-class fixed/rotary-winged aerospace cluster, and our City-owned Abbotsford International Airport has been one of Canada’s fastest-growing passenger volume airports in Canada over the past 10 years.
The tour took us through Conair’s hangars, where we got to see their airtankers being built piece-by-piece. We also got a look inside their unique training facilities where pilots practise in specialized Flight Training Devices, exact replicas of Conair’s cockpits, to fight simulated fires.
As a long-time innovator in the industry, Conair has developed 16 new aircraft types of their own and converted more than 200 individual aircraft for the airtanker and firefighting markets. The latest addition to their fleet is Dash 8-400AT, which can hold 10,000 litres of water or fire retardant. They also make the Dash 8-400MRE for governments, a multi-role airtanker which also serves as transport for passengers, supplies and critically-ill patients.
It’s always inspiring to learn more about the innovative, world-leading businesses that call Abbotsford home. In British Columbia we know how devastating wildfire season can be, and it makes us proud to know that a local business has aircraft in the skies responding to these fires and keeping us safe.
Abbotsford City Council
