By Kelly Louiseize
Time is of the essence in the corporate world.
When people need to be in Timmins in the morning, then Thunder Bay in the afternoon, they look to Voyageur Airways for their air taxi services.
“Lots of times customers want to get back as soon as possible,” says Cori Cousineau a spokesman for Voyageur.
Voyageur is a charter passenger air carrier with access to all points in Northern Ontario, eastern Quebec, and northern United States with operations in Africa, East Timor and the Sudan.
Through charter contracts the company can fly practically anywhere in the world. Working on the case-by-case basis Voyageur applies for air clearance from countries the passengers need to do business in. Most contracts are in relation to humanitarian support. Canadian Voyageur employees fly into the overseas destination for two months, then have two-months off.
Passengers using any of the aircraft in the fleet can avoid busy terminal buildings, check in lines, baggage checks with the help of experienced charter coordinators. Each coordinator will help customers pick the airport that best suits their agenda, providing a variety of hotel names, car rentals and catering services.
“We will fly wherever (the customer) wants,” Cousineau says.
The company’s fleet consists of six de Havilland Dash 8 Series 300 that carries 50 passengers, five de Havilland Dash 7 with a 48 person load and 11 Beechcraft King Air A100s nine passenger planes. Voyageur has one-50 passenger Canadair Regional Jet made by Bombardier. Each aircraft can be deployed throughout Canada in a wide and varied range of charter operations. On the ground handling and terminal services including aircraft baggage preparation provide full support service for their customers.
Based out of North Bay since 1968, the company is 95 per cent passenger focused with five per cent of its activity on cargo transport. Cousineau says the company can accommodate any passenger by providing in-flight catering services depending on their needs.
He expects the company will usher in a new era of opportunities with the opening of the James Bay Coast to the mining community.
A Special Mission Aircraft equipped to meet the exploration requirements for geophysical surveying has been modified by Fugro Airborne Surveys and is constantly in use, Cousineau says.
Equally as busy is the aeromedical services, a de Havilland Dash 7 aircraft plane that helps to transfer one or more patients throughout Ontario and New Brunswick. The majority of the bases are operated with pilots and paramedics on site 24-hours-a day. Most calls are high priority, time sensitive in nature and require the utmost care by all persons involved according to the company website.
Voyageur has grown to more than 290 employees. Part of the business includes the maintenance, repair and overhaul shop with a crew inspecting aircraft for corrosion, aging, structural modification and import/export air-worthy certification. Equally important is the parts division that provides aircraft owners with service and on-time delivery of replaceable units. They hold Transport Canada approval for the distribution of aeronautical products.
