Airtransit was a Canadian

airline An airline is a company that provides civil aviation, air transport services for traveling passengers or freight (cargo). Airlines use aircraft to supply these services and may form partnerships or Airline alliance, alliances with other airlines ...

that provided

short take-off and landing A short takeoff and landing (STOL) aircraft is a fixed-wing aircraft that can takeoff/land on short runways. Many STOL-designed aircraft can operate on airstrips with harsh conditions (such as high altitude or ice). STOL aircraft, including tho ...

(STOL) service between

Ottawa Ottawa is the capital city of Canada. It is located in the southern Ontario, southern portion of the province of Ontario, at the confluence of the Ottawa River and the Rideau River. Ottawa borders Gatineau, Gatineau, Quebec, and forms the cor ...

and

Montreal Montreal is the List of towns in Quebec, largest city in the Provinces and territories of Canada, province of Quebec, the List of the largest municipalities in Canada by population, second-largest in Canada, and the List of North American cit ...

. A subsidiary of

Air Canada Air Canada is the flag carrier and the largest airline of Canada, by size and passengers carried. Air Canada is headquartered in the borough of Saint-Laurent in the city of Montreal. The airline, founded in 1937, provides scheduled and cha ...

(then a

Crown corporation Crown corporation () is the term used in Canada for organizations that are structured like private companies, but are directly and wholly owned by the government. Crown corporations have a long-standing presence in the country, and have a sign ...

), the airline operated from 1973 to 1976 before closing due to poor business.

History

In 1970, the

Science Council of Canada The Science Council of Canada (SCC) was a Canadian governmental advisory board existing from 1966 to 1993. It originally had 25 scientists and senior civil servants, later expanded to 40 natural and physical scientists, with the civil servants remov ...

recommended that the government of Canada immediately invest in industrial development of the aviation industry, including construction of aircraft, navigation aids, and regulation of air traffic. The government began these projects shortly after the Science Council's report. A subsidiary of

called Airtransit was founded by the government in 1973.

Transport Canada Transport Canada () is the Ministry (government department), department within the Government of Canada responsible for developing regulations, Policy, policies and Public services, services of road, rail, marine and air Transport in Canada, tra ...

developed the airline as a "

pilot program A pilot experiment, pilot study, pilot test or pilot project is a small-scale preliminary study conducted to evaluate feasibility, duration, cost, adverse events, and improve upon the study design prior to performance of a full-scale research ...

" to test the feasibility of a link between the

Victoria STOLport Victoria STOLport was a STOL, short take-off and landing aerodrome near downtown Montreal during the mid-1970s. The STOLport had been constructed on the former parking lot for Expo 67. The airport operated a two-year STOL demonstration service, ...

and

Ottawa/Rockcliffe Airport Ottawa/Rockcliffe Airport or Rockcliffe Airport , a former military base, is a non-towered airport located on the south shore of the Ottawa River, northeast of Downtown Ottawa, Ontario, Canada. The airport is the home of the Canada Aviation and S ...

, using an eleven seat

De Havilland Canada DHC-6 Twin Otter The de Havilland Canada DHC-6 Twin Otter is a Canadian STOL (Short Takeoff and Landing) utility aircraft developed by de Havilland Canada in the mid-1960s and still in production today. Built by De Havilland Canada from 1965 to 1988, Viking ...

, and later the

De Havilland Canada Dash 7 The de Havilland Canada DHC-7, popularly known as the Dash 7, is a turboprop-powered regional airliner with short take-off and landing (STOL) performance. Variants were built with 50–54 seats. It first flew in 1975 and remained in producti ...

. The service quickly ran into spending issues. Budget cuts at Air Canada, slow development of the Dash-7, noise concerns from citizens in Ottawa and Montreal, and inadequate infrastructure at Victoria STOLport forced Transport Canada to prematurely cancel the project in 1976. Airtransit_ticket

Destinations

Fleet

Originally used as

bush plane A bush plane is a general aviation aircraft used to provide both scheduled and unscheduled passenger and flight services to remote, undeveloped areas, such as the Canadian north or bush, Alaskan tundra, the African bush, or savanna, Amazon rainf ...

s, the Twin Otters used by Airtransit were modified specifically for

business travel Business travel is travel undertaken for work or business purposes, as opposed to other types of travel such as leisure trips or daily commuting between one’s home and workplace. It typically involves travelling - often by air, rail, or roa ...

lers on short distance trips. The aircraft were equipped with oversized

disc brake A disc brake is a type of brake that uses the #Calipers, calipers to squeeze pairs of #Brake pads, pads against a disc (sometimes called a

rake Rake may refer to: Common meanings * Rake (tool), a horticultural implement, a long-handled tool with tines * Rake (stock character), a man habituated to immoral conduct * Rake (poker), the commission taken by the house when hosting a poker game ...

rotor) to create friction. There are two basic types of brake pad friction mechanisms: abrasive f ...

s and

traction control A traction control system (TCS), is typically (but not necessarily) a secondary function of the electronic stability control (ESC) on production motor vehicles, designed to prevent loss of traction (i.e., wheelspin) of the driven road wheels. TCS ...

as well as spoilers for the wings, a

de-icing system De-icing is the process of removing snow, ice or frost from a surface. Anti-icing is the application of chemicals that not only de-ice but also remain on a surface and continue to delay the reformation of ice for a certain period of time, or pre ...

for the

propeller A propeller (often called a screw if on a ship or an airscrew if on an aircraft) is a device with a rotating hub and radiating blades that are set at a pitch to form a helical spiral which, when rotated, exerts linear thrust upon a working flu ...

blades, emergency brakes, protection against engine fire, and autopilot in case of damage. The cabin had eleven seats and fifteen windows, as well as one toilet, a

cloakroom A cloakroom, known as a coatroom and checkroom in North America, is a room for people to hang their coats, cloaks, canes, umbrellas, hats, or other outerwear when they enter a building. Cloakrooms are typically found inside large buildings, ...

and air conditioning.

References

{{Defunct airlines of Canada Defunct airlines of Canada

History

Destinations

Fleet

See also

References