Welland Wilfred Phipps (July 23, 1922 – October 22, 1996), nicknamed Weldy and Angayuroluk, was a Canadian

military pilot An aircraft pilot or aviator is a person who controls the flight of an aircraft by operating its directional flight controls. Some other aircrew members, such as navigators or flight engineers, are also considered aviators because they are ...

and

prisoner of war A prisoner of war (POW) is a person held captive by a belligerent power during or immediately after an armed conflict. The earliest recorded usage of the phrase "prisoner of war" dates back to 1610. Belligerents hold prisoners of war for a ...

during

World War II World War II or the Second World War (1 September 1939 – 2 September 1945) was a World war, global conflict between two coalitions: the Allies of World War II, Allies and the Axis powers. World War II by country, Nearly all of the wo ...

, a pioneer bush pilot, inventor and a territorial level politician.

World War II

Phipps joined the

Royal Canadian Air Force The Royal Canadian Air Force (RCAF; ) is the air and space force of Canada. Its role is to "provide the Canadian Forces with relevant, responsive and effective airpower". The RCAF is one of three environmental commands within the unified Can ...

and became a fighter pilot in

. He was shot down and became a Prisoner of War for 2 years. He succeeded in making an escape from his POW Camp.

Aviation

Phipps moved to the

Northwest Territories The Northwest Territories is a federal Provinces and territories of Canada, territory of Canada. At a land area of approximately and a 2021 census population of 41,070, it is the second-largest and the most populous of Provinces and territorie ...

after returning home from the war. In 1953 and founded a business called Atlas Aviation, based in Resolute Bay. He invented a new type of balloon

tundra tire A tundra tire (UK: ''tundra tyre'') is a large low-pressure tire used on light aircraft to allow operations on rough terrain. A common variant of tundra tire is the bushwheel brand. These tires include an integral inner tube with the valve man ...

that allows an aircraft to land safely on tundra. The type of tire is known as the ''Weldy Special''. Atlas Aviation introduced the first regular scheduled airline service to Canada's most northern communities. Phipps introduced the first scheduled airline service to the communities of

Resolute Bay Resolute Bay is an Arctic waterway in the Qikiqtaaluk Region, Nunavut, Canada. Named after the Arctic exploration vessel , it is located in Parry Channel on the southern side of Cornwallis Island. The hamlet of Resolute is located on the nor ...

Grise Fiord Grise Fiord (; ) is an Inuit hamlet on the southern tip of Ellesmere Island, in the Qikiqtaaluk Region, Nunavut, Canada. It is one of three populated places on the island; despite its low population (144 residents at the 2021 Canadian census), ...

Arctic Bay Arctic Bay (Inuktitut syllabics: ᐃᒃᐱᐊᕐᔪᒃ, ''Ikpiarjuk'', "the pocket") is an Inuit hamlet located in the northern part of the Borden Peninsula on Baffin Island in the Qikiqtaaluk Region of Nunavut, Canada. Arctic Bay is located in ...

, and

Pond Inlet Pond Inlet () is a small, predominantly Inuit community in the Qikiqtaaluk Region of Nunavut, Canada, located on northern Baffin Island. To the Inuit the name of the place "is and always has been Mittimatalik." The Scottish explorer John Ross (R ...

. Their citizens have special memories of him. The Inuit named him "Angayuroluk", an affectionate nickname roughly translated as "poor older brother". He was fortunate enough to obtain the registration CF-WWP (his initials) for one of his first

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 A ...

s. On April 5, 1971, his wife, Frances Phipps, was recognized by the Guinness Book of World Records as the first woman to set foot on the North Pole, when she accompanied him on a flight to install a navigation beacon. Phipps delivered supplies to a number of notable arctic expeditions, including

Ralph Plaisted Ralph Summers Plaisted (September 30, 1927 – September 8, 2008) was an American explorer who, with his three companions, Walt Pederson, Gerry Pitzl and Jean-Luc Bombardier, are regarded by most polar authorities to be the first to succeed in a s ...

in 1967 and 1968. He retired from his aviation career in 1972. The Canadian aviation community recognized Phipps many achievements in aviation. He has earned him numerous recognitions, including the Member of the

Order of Canada The Order of Canada () is a Canadian state order, national order and the second-highest Award, honour for merit in the system of orders, decorations, and medals of Canada, after the Order of Merit. To coincide with the Canadian Centennial, ce ...

the Canadian Order of Flight,

Yukon Territory Order of Polaris The Order of Polaris is awarded by the Government of Yukon's Transportation Hall of Fame for meritorious service in Yukon in the field of aviation. The Order of Polaris was created by the Government of Yukon in 1973, to honour members of the Can ...

as well as being inducted to the Canadian Aviation Hall of Fame. In 1961, he was awarded the Trans-Canada Trophy (Mckee) for his work perfecting the balloon tires.

Political career

Phipps first ran in the by-election for the Eastern Arctic district in the Northwest Territories Legislature in 1966 but was defeated by

Simonie Michael Simonie Michael (; first name also spelled Simonee, alternative surnames Michel or E7-551; March 2, 1933November 15, 2008) was a Canadian politician from the eastern Northwest Territories (now Nunavut) who was the first Inuk elected to a legis ...

. He was later elected to the Northwest Territories Legislature to the High Arctic electoral district in the 1970 Northwest Territories general election. He served a single term in office before retiring in 1975.

Awards

*19?? – Order of Polaris *1961 – Trans-Canada McKee Trophy *1973 – Canadian Aviation Hall of Fame *1976 – Order of Canada (Member)

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Phipps, Welland 1922 births 1996 deaths 20th-century members of the Legislative Assembly of the Northwest Territories Canadian World War II pilots Bush pilots