Northwest Territories and Nunavut. With-
out the aid of First Air, life can become
very difficult for Canada’s northerners.
“It’s so important that if we were not to
fly, within a few days there will not be
much food left in the communities,” Fri-
esen said. First Air delivers much-needed
supplies and transports passengers for
routine medical examinations and more
exigent circumstances like surgeries. Non-
stop flights to and from Ottawa, Montreal
and Edmonton, amongst other large urban
centres, help sustain life in the North. The
airline transports 230,000 passengers ev-
ery year in addition to 22 million kilograms
of cargo and mail.
“We’re very devoted to what we do.We’re
reliable in providing scheduled services and
people count on us. Our customers know
that we are literally the lifeline for many of
the Northern communities. There’s a lot of
trust and mutual respect and I think that’s
what makes a real difference,” First Air’s
Vice President Commercial, Bert van der
Stege, said.
As the oldest airline in Canada still operat-
ing under its original name, the year 2016
marks the 70th anniversary of the compa-
ny, and despite having a competitor on vir-
tually every route they fly, First Air stands
out amongst the crowd with their long his-
tory of dependable service.
APRIL 2016
H
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