Wardair

Wardair Canada was a privately run Canadian airline, founded by Max Ward in 1952 under the name Wardair Ltd, before formally changing its name to "Wardair Canada" in 1976. The airline was acquired by and folded into Canadian Airlines in 1989.

Wardair
IATA ICAO Callsign
WD WDA WARDAIR
Founded1952
Ceased operations1989 (acquired by Canadian Airlines)
Frequent-flyer programdefunct (formerly Reward)
Alliancenone
Fleet size30+
Destinations26
HeadquartersEdmonton, Alberta, Canada
Key peopleMax Ward
WebsiteNone

History

In 1946 Maxwell W. Ward founded the Polaris Charter Company in Yellowknife, NWT. In 1952 the airline was formed as Wardair and operations began on 6 June 1953 using a single engine de Havilland Canada Otter. In 1962 it entered the trans-atlantic charter market and changed its name to Wardair Canada Ltd. On 1 January 1976 the name was changed to Wardair Canada (1975) Ltd and yet again on 10 June 1977 to Wardair International Ltd.[1]

Wardair provided domestic service in Quebec, Manitoba, Ontario, British Columbia and Alberta, as well as international service to Europe, the United States, and several Caribbean and South American countries. On March 31, 1989, the Canadian Transportation Agency approved the sale of Wardair to Canadian Airlines International.

Wardair had its roots in the air charter business in the Yukon and the Northwest Territories. From a modest start as Polaris Charter Company in the mid 1940s operating small biplanes such as the de Havilland Fox Moth[2] (model DH-83C) with service as a passenger and cargo charter company, the airline expanded into the more populous regions of Canada and was transformed into a holiday charter airline, from 1962 onwards. Wardair was not a discount airline but an airline providing good service at lower-than-average prices. They were known for high quality meals and friendly staff. "Steak & Champagne" flights was a popular advertising tag line in the 1980s, and won various awards from magazines for their service (Holiday Which? magazine charter airline of the year 1985, and scheduled carrier of the years 1986 and 1987). Flight attendants served food on Wardair branded Royal Doulton china on tray-table tablecloths on the passenger tray. The seats featured generous pitch.

This Wardair Boeing 707, seen at London's Gatwick Airport, served the airline from 1969 until 1978.

The operations from the early 1950s were small bush-type runs based in Edmonton, Alberta. and Yellowknife, NWT. Wardair's first large aircraft was a four engine Douglas DC-6B propliner, leased in summer 1962, which started the airline's emphasis on charter flights — to Europe in summer and to Mexico, California, etc. in winter. In 1966, the airline began operating its first jet, being a Boeing 727-100 (which was Canada's first Boeing 727 and was used to operate flights to and from Europe with a refueling stop en route[3]). The Boeing trijet was followed by the first intercontinental Boeing 707 (thus allowing non-stop flights to Europe) in 1968, and the first Boeing 747 jumbo jet in 1973. Although initially centred on Edmonton, many long-haul flights were relocated to concentrate on Vancouver and Toronto as primary destinations, while Edmonton would continue to connect other major Canadian cities. Nonetheless, Edmonton continued to operate as a major transatlantic hub for Wardair, with flights to Prestwick, London Gatwick, Amsterdam and Frankfurt. Honolulu, Hawaii became a significant winter destination, while London Gatwick Airport began becoming a major summertime destination with direct flights from Vancouver, Edmonton, Calgary, Winnipeg, Ottawa and Toronto.[4]

In 1970, the mainline fleet consisted of two 707s and one 727. By 1980 the fleet had grown to include four 747s and two intercontinental McDonnell Douglas DC-10-30 wide body jetliners. Wardair was a small but steadily growing company. In 1987, building on a fleet of seven jets, Wardair undertook a major expansion, ordering 38 jet aircraft including 14 Airbus A310s, 12 McDonnell Douglas MD-80s (MD-88 model) and 12 Fokker 100s which represented an exponential expansion of operations that would ultimately prove to be financially unsustainable. The MD-80 and 100 jetliners were never delivered or operated by the airline.

Only the first 12 Airbus A310s had been delivered —the remaining A310s as well as all of the MD-88 and 100 deliveries were cancelled after the takeover.[5]

The airline added scheduled passenger service to its charter service flights in 1986. Rapid expansion, problems with their computer booking system, and failure to attract business customers, who had developed customer loyalty to frequent flier programs on competing airlines, led the airline into financial difficulties, ultimately resulting in Wardair Canada being sold to Canadian Airlines (which operated as Canadian Airlines International) in 1989.

Destinations
Wardair DC-10 at landing

Wardair served the following destinations at various times during its existence:

Domestic

International

Scheduled service destinations in 1989

According to its 1989 scheduled service route map, Wardair was serving the following destinations with scheduled passenger flights:[6]

  • Amsterdam, the Netherlands
  • Birmingham, England, United Kingdom
  • Calgary, Alberta, Canada
  • Edmonton, Alberta, Canada
  • London, England, United Kingdom - Gatwick Airport
  • Manchester, England, United Kingdom
  • Montreal, Quebec, Canada - Dorval Airport and Mirabel Airport
  • Paris, France
  • Prestwick, Scotland, United Kingdom
  • Puerto Plata, Dominican Republic
  • Ottawa, Ontario, Canada
  • San Juan, Puerto Rico
  • Toronto, Ontario, Canada
  • Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada
  • Winnipeg, Manitoba, Canada

Charter service destinations in 1989

According to its 1989 charter service route map, Wardair was serving the following destinations with charter passenger flights:[7]

Historical Fleet

Fleet in 1970
Wardair Canada fleet in 1970 [9]
Aircraft Total Orders Notes
Boeing 707-320 (B707-311C & B707-396C) 2 0
Boeing 727-100 1 0
Bristol Freighter 3 0
de Havilland Canada DHC-3 Otter 1 0
de Havilland Canada DHC-6 Twin Otter 2 0
Douglas DC-6B 1 0
Total 10 0
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See also

References
  1. Endres, Gunter G (1982). World Airline Fleets 1983. Feltham: Aviation Data Centre. p. 68. ISBN 0946141029.
  2. http://www.airliners.net, photo of Wardair de Havilland DH-83C Fox Moth
  3. http://www.airliners.net, photos of Wardair Boeing 727-100 in Europe
  4. http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-wqEbTab8bbc/Tfn3F8hGgHI/AAAAAAAAAD0/lUez4PCMads/s1600/Wardair+Route+Map+Apr+79.jpg
  5. jp airline-fleets international 89/90
  6. http://www.departedflights.com, 1989 Wardair scheduled service route map
  7. http://www.departedflights.com, 1989 Wardair charter service route map
  8. http://www.airliners.net, photo of Wardair DHC-7 Dash 7 at Yellowknife, NWT
  9. "1970 - 0559 - Flight Archive". flightglobal.com. Retrieved 22 June 2016.
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