Transair was an

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 ...

based in Canada. It was purchased by

Pacific Western Airlines Pacific Western Airlines (PWA) was an airline that operated scheduled flights throughout western Canada and charter services around the world from the 1950s through the 1980s. In 1987, PWA purchased Canadian Pacific Air Lines, and the merged a ...

in 1979. Transair's operational headquarters was located at the Winnipeg International Airport in Manitoba.

History

Transair had its origins as Central Northern Airways (CNA) in April 1947, based in Manitoba, Canada. In 1956 it merged with Arctic Wings to form Transair Ltd. The first scheduled route to be operated was from

Winnipeg Winnipeg () is the capital and largest city of the Provinces and territories of Canada, Canadian province of Manitoba. It is centred on the confluence of the Red River of the North, Red and Assiniboine River, Assiniboine rivers. , Winnipeg h ...

to Red Lake using a

Lockheed Model 14 Super Electra The Lockheed Model 14 Super Electra was an American civil passenger and cargo aircraft built by the Lockheed Aircraft Corporation during the late 1930s. An outgrowth of the earlier Model 10 Electra, the Model 14 was also developed into larger, ...

. The company had a mixed fleet of

Curtiss C-46 Commando The Curtiss C-46 Commando is a low-wing, twin-engine aircraft derived from the Curtiss CW-20 pressurized high-altitude airliner design. Early press reports used the name "Condor III" but the Commando name was in use by early 1942 in company p ...

Avro Anson The Avro Anson is a British twin-engine, multi-role aircraft built by the aircraft manufacturer Avro. Large numbers of the type served in a variety of roles for the Royal Air Force (RAF), Fleet Air Arm (FAA), Royal Canadian Air Force (RCAF), R ...

Avro York The Avro York was a British transport aircraft developed by Avro during the World War II, Second World War. The design was derived from the Avro Lancaster heavy bomber, several sections of the York and Lancaster being identical. Due to the impo ...

, de Havilland DH-89 Dragon Rapide,

, Bristol 170, and smaller

Cessna Cessna () is an American brand of general aviation aircraft owned by Textron Aviation since 2014, headquartered in Wichita, Kansas. Originally, it was a brand of the Cessna Aircraft Company, an American general aviation aircraft manufactu ...

Noorduyn Norseman The Noorduyn Norseman, also known as the C-64 Norseman, is a Canadian single-engine bush plane designed to operate from unimproved surfaces. Distinctive stubby landing gear protrusions from the lower fuselage make it easily recognizable. Intro ...

, and

Waco Waco ( ) is a city in and the county seat of McLennan County, Texas, United States. It is situated along the Brazos River and I-35, halfway between Dallas and Austin. The city had a U.S. census estimated 2024 population of 146,608, making i ...

aircraft. In 1955 CNA took over Arctic Wings and with the merger the name was changed to Transair in 1956. With expansion came the

Douglas DC-3 The Douglas DC-3 is a propeller-driven airliner manufactured by the Douglas Aircraft Company, which had a lasting effect on the airline industry in the 1930s to 1940s and World War II. It was developed as a larger, improved 14-bed sleeper ...

and

Douglas DC-4 The Douglas DC-4 is an American four-engined (piston), propeller-driven airliner developed by the Douglas Aircraft Company. Military versions of the plane, the C-54 and R5D, served during World War II, in the Berlin Airlift and into the 1960 ...

in 1957. As Transair continued to grow, more routes were awarded and

Douglas DC-6B The Douglas DC-6 is a piston-powered airliner and cargo aircraft built by the Douglas Aircraft Company from 1946 to 1958. Originally intended as a military transport near the end of World War II, Douglas reworked it after the war to compete wi ...

s and

Douglas DC-7C The Douglas DC-7 is a retired American transport aircraft built by the Douglas Aircraft Company from 1953 to 1958. A derivative of the DC-6, it was the last major piston engine-powered transport made by Douglas, being developed shortly after t ...

s were introduced to the fleet. By 1964, the airline was serving both

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 ...

and

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 ...

in eastern Canada with scheduled weekly passenger flights operated with DC-4 aircraft to

Churchill, Manitoba Churchill is a subarctic port town in northern Manitoba, Canada, on the west shore of Hudson Bay, roughly from the Manitoba–Nunavut border. It is most famous for the many polar bears that move toward the shore from inland in the autumn, leadi ...

located on

Hudson Bay Hudson Bay, sometimes called Hudson's Bay (usually historically), is a large body of Saline water, saltwater in northeastern Canada with a surface area of . It is located north of Ontario, west of Quebec, northeast of Manitoba, and southeast o ...

via a stop in Winisk, Ontario. Namc YS-11A CF-TAM Transair TOR 27

Also in 1964, Transair was operating scheduled passenger flights with

Vickers Viscount The Vickers Viscount is a retired British medium-range turboprop airliner first flown in 1948 by Vickers-Armstrongs. A design requirement from the Brabazon Committee, it entered service in 1953 and was the first turboprop-powered airliner. T ...

turboprop airliners with service between Winnipeg and

Dauphin, Manitoba Dauphin () is a city in Manitoba, Canada, with a population of 8,368 as of the 2021 Canadian Census. The community is surrounded by the Dauphin, Manitoba (rural municipality), Rural Municipality of Dauphin. The city takes its name from Lake Daup ...

Flin Flon, Manitoba Flin Flon (pop. 5,185 in 2016 census; 4,982 in Manitoba and 203 in Saskatchewan) is a mining city, located on a correction line on the border of the Canadian provinces of Manitoba and Saskatchewan, with the majority of the city located within ...

and

Lynn Lake, Manitoba Lynn Lake is a town in the northwest region of Manitoba, Canada, approximately from Winnipeg. The town is the fourth-largest town in Manitoba in terms of land area. It is centred on the original urban community of Lynn Lake. The town was named ...

. By 1965 the airline had commenced international charter flights using its

s and

DC-7C The Douglas DC-7 is a retired American transport aircraft built by the Douglas Aircraft Company from 1953 to 1958. A derivative of the DC-6, it was the last major piston engine-powered transport made by Douglas, being developed shortly after ...

s propliners. In 1968 it began to operate feeder flights for

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 ...

and CP Air with the introduction of

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

NAMC YS-11 The NAMC YS-11 is a turboprop airliner designed and built by the Nihon Aircraft Manufacturing Corporation (NAMC), a Japanese consortium. It was the only post-war airliner to be wholly designed and manufactured in Japan until the development of t ...

turboprop aircraft. Another turboprop airliner operated by Transair was the

Hawker Siddeley HS 748 The Hawker Siddeley HS 748 (formerly Avro HS 748) is a medium-sized turboprop airliner originally designed and initially produced by the British aircraft manufacturer Avro. It was the last aircraft to be developed by Avro prior to its absorptio ...

. Transair acquired Winnipeg-based Midwest Airlines in 1969. In April 1973, Transair, then Canada's fourth largest airline, hired Rosella Bjornson as its first female First Officer. Bjornson flew the

Fokker F28 The Fokker F28 Fellowship is a twin-engined, short-range jet airliner designed and built by Dutch aircraft manufacturer Fokker. Following the Fokker F27 Friendship, an early and commercially successful turboprop-powered regional airliner, Fokk ...

jet. She was the first woman member of the Canadian Air Line Pilots Association. International expansion brought the introduction of jet aircraft in the form of the

Boeing 737-200 The Boeing 737 is an American narrow-body aircraft produced by Boeing at its Renton factory in Washington. Developed to supplement the Boeing 727 on short and thin routes, the twinjet retained the 707 fuselage width and six abreast seating ...

in May 1970. The 737-200 jetliner was used to provide charter flights to Florida, the Caribbean and Mexico, and also operated scheduled passenger services in Canada. In 1972 the

Fokker F28 Fellowship The Fokker F28 Fellowship is a twin-engined, short-range jet airliner designed and built by Netherlands, Dutch aircraft manufacturer Fokker. Following the Fokker F27 Friendship, an early and commercially successful turboprop-powered regional air ...

twinjet was introduced into scheduled service on Canadian routes followed by the intercontinental version of the

Boeing 707 The Boeing 707 is an early American long-range Narrow-body aircraft, narrow-body airliner, the first jetliner developed and produced by Boeing Commercial Airplanes. Developed from the Boeing 367-80 prototype, the initial first flew on Decembe ...

a year later. The

Boeing 707-320C The Boeing 707 is an early American long-range narrow-body airliner, the first jetliner developed and produced by Boeing Commercial Airplanes. Developed from the Boeing 367-80 prototype, the initial first flew on December 20, 1957. Pan Am be ...

was used strictly for charter flights, primarily to international destinations. By 1976 the scheduled route network extended throughout Canada from Toronto in the east to Whitehorse in the west with charter flights being operated to Europe, Mexico, the

Caribbean The Caribbean ( , ; ; ; ) is a region in the middle of the Americas centered around the Caribbean Sea in the Atlantic Ocean, North Atlantic Ocean, mostly overlapping with the West Indies. Bordered by North America to the north, Central America ...

Hawaii Hawaii ( ; ) is an island U.S. state, state of the United States, in the Pacific Ocean about southwest of the U.S. mainland. One of the two Non-contiguous United States, non-contiguous U.S. states (along with Alaska), it is the only sta ...

Florida Florida ( ; ) is a U.S. state, state in the Southeastern United States, Southeastern region of the United States. It borders the Gulf of Mexico to the west, Alabama to the northwest, Georgia (U.S. state), Georgia to the north, the Atlantic ...

and other destinations in the U.S. According to the February 1976 edition of the North American

Official Airline Guide OAG is a global travel data provider with headquarters in the UK. The company was founded in 1929 and operates in the United States, Singapore, Japan, Lithuania and China. It has a large network of flight information data including schedules, ...

(OAG), Transair was operating daily scheduled service with either Boeing 737 or Fokker F28 aircraft direct between Toronto (YYZ) and Winnipeg (YWG), with intermediate stops in Sault Ste. Marie (YAM), Thunder Bay (YQT) and Dryden (YHD). One stop, direct jet service was flown as well six days a week from Toronto to Winnipeg via Thunder Bay. Another scheduled route flown by Transair with the Boeing 737 jetliner at this time from Winnipeg served the

Resolute Bay Airport Resolute Bay Airport is located at Resolute, Nunavut, Canada, and is operated by the government of Nunavut. It is the second northernmost aerodrome in Canada to receive scheduled passenger airline service; Grise Fiord Airport, which is serve ...

(YRB) in far-northern arctic Canada. Resolute is located approximately 1,700 kilometers (1060 miles) from the North Pole and is the second-northernmost destination in Canada to receive scheduled passenger airline service (Griese Fjord is slightly farther north.) Also, according to the OAG at this time, Transair was operating scheduled jet service with the Boeing 737 and/or Fokker F28 between its Winnipeg hub and Churchill (YYQ), Flin Flon (YFO), Gillam (YGX), Lynn Lake (YYL), The Pas (YQD), Thompson (YTH) and Yellowknife (YZF), with Whitehorse (YXY) being added by that spring. In 1973 The Airport in Dryden Ontario had a gravel strip. The route to Dryden was serviced by the 737-200. In 1977

bought most of the shares of Transair. Considerable financial losses then led to a reduction in flight operations. As losses continued, the licences and routes were transferred to Pacific Western Airlines on 1 December 1979 and Transair ceased to exist.

Destinations in 1976

According to the May 25, 1976 Transair route system map, the airline was operating scheduled passenger service to the following destinations in Canada. Also in 1976, Transair was operating scheduled jet service with the

and/or

into those destinations noted in bold typeface: * Baker Lake * Chesterfield Inlet * Churchill * Coral Harbour * Dryden * Eskimo Point * Flin Flon * Gillam * Hall Beach * Kenora * Lynn Lake * Norway House * Rankin Inlet * Red Lake * Repulse Bay * Resolute * Sault Ste. Marie * The Pas * Thompson * Thunder Bay * Toronto * Whale Cove * Whitehorse * Winnipeg - ''Hub and airline headquarters'' * Yellowknife According to the

(OAG), by early 1979 Transair had begun operating direct one stop, no change of plane

jet service between

and

Calgary Calgary () is a major city in the Canadian province of Alberta. As of 2021, the city proper had a population of 1,306,784 and a metropolitan population of 1,481,806 making it the third-largest city and fifth-largest metropolitan area in C ...

and also between Winnipeg and

Edmonton Edmonton is the capital city of the Provinces and territories of Canada, Canadian province of Alberta. It is situated on the North Saskatchewan River and is the centre of the Edmonton Metropolitan Region, which is surrounded by Central Alberta ...

(via

Edmonton International Airport Edmonton International Airport , officially branded YEG Edmonton International Airport since 2022, is the primary air passenger and air cargo facility in the Edmonton Metropolitan Region of the Provinces and territories of Canada, Canadian pro ...

) with these flights making an en route intermediate stop at either Regina or

Saskatoon Saskatoon () is the largest city in the Provinces and territories of Canada, Canadian province of Saskatchewan. It straddles a bend in the South Saskatchewan River in the central region of the province. It is located along the Trans-Canada Hig ...

Fleet

Transair operated the following aircraft at various times during its existence: Jet aircraft *

''(flown on charter services)'' *

(B737-2A9 model) *

Turboprop aircraft * Armstrong Whitworth AW.660 Argosy *

(series 724 model) Piston aircraft *

* Bristol 170 Freighter * Consolidated PBY-5A *

de Havilland Dragon Rapide The de Havilland DH.89 Dragon Rapide is a 1930s short-haul biplane airliner developed and produced by British aircraft company de Havilland. Capable of accommodating 6–8 passengers, it proved an economical and durable craft, despite its outd ...

(includes

C-47 The Douglas C-47 Skytrain or Dakota ( RAF designation) is a military transport aircraft developed from the civilian Douglas DC-3 airliner. It was used extensively by the Allies during World War II. During the war the C-47 was used for troo ...

model) *

* Vultee PBY flying boat * Waco YKC-S

Accidents and incidents

*On 7 October 1970,

Douglas C-47 The Douglas C-47 Skytrain or Dakota ( RAF designation) is a military transport aircraft developed from the civilian Douglas DC-3 airliner. It was used extensively by the Allies during World War II. During the war the C-47 was used for troo ...

CF-TAR was reported to have been written off.

References

External links