Buffalo Airways

Buffalo Airways is a family-run airline based in Yellowknife, Northwest Territories, Canada, established in 1970. Buffalo Airways was launched by Bob Gauchie[3][4] and later sold to one of his pilots, Joe McBryan (aka "Buffalo Joe"). It operates charter passenger, charter cargo, firefighting, and fuel services, and it formerly operated scheduled passenger service. Its main base is at Yellowknife Airport, with two other bases at Hay River/Merlyn Carter Airport and Red Deer Regional Airport. The Red Deer base is the main storage and maintenance facility.[5] The airline was also the subject of the History television reality series Ice Pilots NWT.

Clothing company, television show, and media

In 2007, Buffalo Airways began producing a clothing line that included T-shirts, hoodies, and hats. With the introduction of the

Accidents and incidents

Buffalo Airways has nine accidents listed by the Aviation Safety Network, none of which had any fatalities.[43] In addition to the Aviation Safety Network, there are two more reported incidents that were investigated by the Transportation Board of Canada. The Transportation Safety Board of Canada (TSB) is an independent agency that advances transportation safety by investigating occurrences in the marine, pipeline, rail, and air modes of transportation.

On 26 June 1994, flight BFL526, a Douglas C-47A (C-FROD), crashed on approach to Fort Simpson Airport, Northwest Territories due to fuel exhaustion. The aircraft was on a cargo flight from Trout Lake Airport. There were two crew on board at the time; both were injured and the aircraft was a write-off.[44][45]

On 24 July 2001, flight TANKER602, a Consolidated PBY-5A Canso (C-FNJE) caught a wing tip in Sitidgi Lake (about 25 NM north of Inuvik) while fire fighting and crashed into the lake. Another aircraft landed on the lake and picked up the two crew. The aircraft was pulled out of the water; the engines and other valuable parts removed. The hull, which was left at the lake, was later retrieved by Fairview Aircraft Restorations Society and taken to Fairview, Alberta, where it is undergoing restoration.[46][47][48][49]

On 28 August 2002, flight BFL928, a Douglas C-54E (C-GQIC), landed short of the runway at Diavik Airport. The right wing came off the aircraft, which travelled 1000 ft down the runway. The aircraft caught fire and was a write-off. The two crew escaped with minor injuries.[50][51]

On 1 August 2003, a Douglas C-54G (C-GBSK) touched down short of the runway at the Ulu mine strip. The landing gear collapsed and the wings separated from the fuselage. The wings then caught fire and the fuselage veered off the right side of the runway. The four crew were unhurt, but the aircraft was written off.[52][53]

On 25 May 2004, flight BFL326, a loaded Curtiss C-46D (C-FAVO), was seriously damaged at Yellowknife Airport while taxiing for departure. The company reported the tail wheel went off the threshold of runway 09 (now runway 10) while turning to align with the active runway for take-off, sinking into a soft gravel area in a 90° position from centreline. The crew applied power to try and free the stuck aircraft which resulted in a sideways loading of the tailwheel bulkhead at station 720, causing structural failure at the tail wheel to fuselage attachment points as well as buckling of the main fuselage between station 615 and 633. The incident caused the runway to remain closed for about six hours until the aircraft could be repaired sufficiently to allow safe removal. Although the aircraft was substantially damaged, it was subsequently repaired and returned to active service using a section cut from a derelict airframe of Everts Air Cargo Express, Fairbanks, Alaska; 42-96578 - N4860V[54][55][56][57][58][59]

On 5 January 2006,[60] flight BFL1405, a Douglas C-54G (C-GXKN), had departed Norman Wells Airport when the number two engine caught fire and stopped. The crew attempted to put out the fire but were not successful. While feathering the number two propeller, number one also feathered, leaving them with only two engines. They returned to Norman Wells and performed an emergency landing, but the aircraft left the runway and ploughed through the snow. The four crew were unhurt, but the aircraft was written off and the nose was later used to repair another C-54. The fire was caused by a fuel leak.[61][62]

On 29 December 2006, flight BFL129, a Douglas C-54A (C-GPSH), suffered a nose gear collapse following a runway excursion while landing on an ice strip at Carat Lake near Jericho Diamond Mine. The aircraft's nose dropped over an embankment at the end of the runway, damaging the nose section. The aircraft was transporting 9000 L of diesel in fuel cells, and some of these broke loose, spilling some of the fuel. The nose section, which could not be salvaged, was repaired in July 2007 with the nose section from C-54 C-GXKN.[63][64]

airline	Buffalo Airways
aoc	5319‡R1R‡
iata	J4
icao	BFL‡R2R‡
callsign	BUFFALO‡R2R‡
hubs	Yellowknife Airport
fleet size	66 (63 + 2 + 1)
parent	Buffalo Airways Limited
founded	13 May 1970
headquarters	Hay River, Northwest Territories, Canada
key people	Joe McBryan (President)
secondary hubs	Hay River/Merlyn Carter Airport
website	http://www.buffaloairways.com/

Clothing company, television show, and media

Buffalo Air Express

Firefighting

Buffalo School of Aviation

Destinations

Fleet

KG330 (C-GWZS)

Air Operator Certificate

Accidents and incidents

See also

External links

References