ATTAWAPISKAT – There has been added help provided to Attawapiskat. On December 3rd, Pilatus Centre Canada and GlobalMedic organized a relief trip to the community located on the shores of James Bay. The goal was to transport winter coats and emergency relief experts to Attawapiskat First Nation. The relief trip also was a demonstration of the company’s PC-12 aircraft and its viability in the north.
“No Canadian should be without shelter, food or water. We were happy to donate the use of one of our company PC-12’s, as well as send two members of our management team, to play a small part in bringing relief to the residents of Attawapiskat, “said Robert Arnone, President and Chief Executive Officer of Pilatus Centre Canada. Stan Kuliavas, Director of Sales at Pilatus Centre Canada traveled with the GlobalMedic team and the relief supplies. “Today we landed on a 3,500-foot gravel runway covered in ice and snow and the PC-12 had no issues with the surface.”
According to John Tory, VP Operations at Pilatus Centre Canada and pilot of the relief trip, “Unimproved strips are not an operational challenge for the PC-12.”
Background from the company: Pilatus Centre Canada is the Exclusive Canadian Distributor for the Pilatus PC-12 Aircraft. Together with the manufacturer, Pilatus, the company brings to Canada this Swiss manufactured marvel of precision workmanship. Pilatus Centre Canada, part of the Kelner Group, was founded by Frank Kelner in 1997. The “Kelner” name has been synonymous with Canadian Aviation for nearly 30 years. In addition to transporting millions of pounds of freight and passengers to and from many remote or under-serviced communities, the Kelner Group was the first commercial operator in the world to fly commercial single engine (IFR) (SEIFR) with passengers.