Wasaya Airways
Wasaya Airways LP is a First Nations-owned domestic airline with its headquarters in Thunder Bay, Ontario, Canada. Its main hubs are the Thunder Bay International Airport and the Sioux Lookout Airport; It also offers a charter and cargo service from a base in Red Lake Airport and Pickle Lake Airport. In 2003, Wasaya Airways bought the rights to serve remote First Nations communities from Bearskin Airlines. The airline also supplies food, clothing, hardware and other various supplies to 25 remote communities in Ontario.
History
Established in 1989 as Kelner Airways, it was renamed Wasaya in 1993. The new name comes from the Oji-Cree language, which means "it is bright" in English, in reference to the brightness of the rising Sun.Over the years, the airline has grown from a floatplane operation to a charter and scheduled passenger service airline.
Its inflight magazine Sagatay is published in conjunction with Wawatay Native Communications Society.
In October 2010, the company purchased a De Havilland Canada Dash 8 to bolster its fleet.
Destinations
Scheduled services
Wasaya Airways serves the following destinations in Ontario:- Bearskin Lake First Nation, owner community
- Deer Lake First Nation
- Fort Severn First Nation, owner community
- Kasabonika Lake First Nation, owner community
- Keewaywin First Nation, owner community
- Kingfisher First Nation, owner community
- Kitchenuhmaykoosib Inninuwug First Nation , owner community
- Muskrat Dam Lake First Nation, owner community
- Nibinamik First Nation,, owner community
- North [Spirit Lake First Nation]
- Pickle Lake, freight hub
- Pikangikum First Nation, owner community
- Poplar Hill First Nation
- Red Lake, hub
- Sandy Lake First Nation, owner community
- Sioux Lookout, hub
- Thunder Bay, hub
- Wapekeka First Nation, owner community
- Wunnumin Lake First Nation, owner community
Fleet
Accidents and incidents
- On 11 September 2003, a Cessna 208B Grand Caravan operating as Wasaya Airways Flight 125 crashed near Summer Beaver, killing all eight persons on board. The flight originated in Pickle Lake and was scheduled to land at Summer Beaver Airport, but the airplane crashed and burned northwest of the runway. The Transportation Safety Board of Canada was unable to determine the cause.
- On 12 June 2012, a Wasaya Airways Hawker Siddeley HS 748 caught fire while unloading JET A-1 jet fuel at Sandy Lake Airport in Northwestern Ontario. No injuries were reported. The aircraft burned to the ground, and only the left wing and nacelle survived.
- On 11 December 2015, Wasaya Airways Flight 127, a Cessna 208B Grand Caravan, while en route from Pickle Lake Airport to Angling Lake/Wapekeka Airport, crashed approximately north northeast of Pickle Lake Airport. The pilot was the sole occupant and was killed in the crash. The probable cause for the accident was flying in known or forecast icing conditions although the aircraft was prohibited from doing that, and a high take-off weight that increased the severity of degraded performance when the flight encountered icing conditions.