About First Air
Media Kit
First Air Facts
With 66 years of flying experience, First Air is the leading airline in Canada’s Arctic, providing scheduled service between 30 northern communities and connections to Ottawa, Montreal, Winnipeg and Edmonton.
Here are the essential facts:
Operations
- Scheduled air service connects 30 communities in Canada’s Arctic.
- Over $40 million annually is contributed to Canada’s northern economy.
- Charter services are provided worldwide.
- Over 225,000 passengers and 25 million kilograms of cargo (most flights carry both freight and passengers) are transported every year.
- Sales are approximately $190 million each year.
Fleet
- 3 Boeing 737-200 combi
- 4 Boeing 737-200 – All passenger
- 1 Boeing 767-223 Super Freighter
- 2 L382G Super Hercules
- 9 ATR 42
- 2ATR 72
Infrastructure
- More than 1000 employees, over 450 of whom live in the Arctic
- Major maintenance facilities are located in Ottawa, Edmonton, Iqaluit, and Yellowknife.
Ownership
- First Air is wholly owned by the 9,000 Inuit of northern Quebec, through Makivik Corp., created to invest proceeds of the 1975 James Bay and Northern Quebec Agreement.
- Makivik Corporation, a non-profit company, purchased First Air in 1990.
- The Inuit of northern Quebec have invested $50 million in equity and subordinated debt in First Air.
- Makivik, headquartered in Kuujjuaq, PQ, also owns Air Inuit Ltd., which has served Nunavik (northern Quebec) since 1978.
Media inquiries should be directed to:
Jennifer Alldred, Manager Marketing Communications
Tel: 613-254-6395 or Email: jalldred@firstair.ca
