Air Ontario Inc. was a regional

Canadian Canadians (french: Canadiens) are people identified with the country of Canada. This connection may be residential, legal, historical or cultural. For most Canadians, many (or all) of these connections exist and are collectively the source of ...

airline An airline is a company that provides civil aviation, air transport services for traveling passengers and freight. Airlines use aircraft to supply these services and may form partnerships or Airline alliance, alliances with other airlines for ...

headquartered in

Sarnia Sarnia is a city in Lambton County, Ontario, Canada. It had a 2021 population of 72,047, and is the largest city on Lake Huron. Sarnia is located on the eastern bank of the junction between the Upper and Lower Great Lakes where Lake Huron fl ...

then

London London is the capital and largest city of England and the United Kingdom, with a population of just under 9 million. It stands on the River Thames in south-east England at the head of a estuary down to the North Sea, and has been a majo ...

Ontario Ontario ( ; ) is one of the thirteen provinces and territories of Canada.Ontario is located in the geographic eastern half of Canada, but it has historically and politically been considered to be part of Central Canada. Located in Central Ca ...

. In 2002, Air Ontario became

Air Canada Jazz The atmosphere of Earth is the layer of gases, known collectively as air, retained by Earth's gravity that surrounds the planet and forms its planetary atmosphere. The atmosphere of Earth protects life on Earth by creating pressure allowing for ...

History

Great Lakes Airlines Great Lakes Airlines was an American regional airline operating domestic scheduled and charter services. Corporate headquarters were in Cheyenne, Wyoming, with a hub at Denver International Airport. As of November 2013, Great Lakes Airlines ...

was formed in 1958, becoming Air Ontario Ltd. in 1983 and Air Ontario Inc. in June 1987. By 1975, GLA was in trouble and was purchased by a partnership which included James Plaxton, who brought in to the capital the DeLuce family when he merged it with their

Austin Airways Austin Airways was a passenger airline and freight carrier based in Timmins, Ontario, and one of the oldest in Canada. Code Information *ICAO Code: *IATA Code: AAW *Call Sign: History Established as Capreol and Austin Air Services was one of Ca ...

operation. In 1986,

Air Canada Air Canada is the flag carrier and the largest airline of Canada by the size and passengers carried. Air Canada maintains its headquarters in the borough of Saint-Laurent, Montreal, Quebec. The airline, founded in 1937, provides scheduled and ...

and

Pacific Western Airlines Pacific Western Airlines Ltd (PWA) was an airline that operated scheduled flights throughout western Canada and charter services around the world from the 1950s through the 1980s. It was headquartered at Vancouver International Airport in Ri ...

split 49% of the shares. In 1987, Air Canada and Austin split the shares in a 3:1 ratio upon its Canadian incorporation. As a wholly owned subsidiary of

, Air Ontario's operation as an Air Canada Connector

code sharing In communications and information processing, code is a system of rules to convert information—such as a letter, word, sound, image, or gesture—into another form, sometimes shortened or secret, for communication through a communication ...

partner increased substantially in the intra-

marketplace with Air Canada's decision in February 1990, to discontinue Mainline service to North Bay,

Sudbury Sudbury may refer to: Places Australia * Sudbury Reef, Queensland Canada * Greater Sudbury, Ontario (official name; the city continues to be known simply as Sudbury for most purposes) ** Sudbury (electoral district), one of the city's federal e ...

Timmins Timmins ( ) is a city in northeastern Ontario, Canada, located on the Mattagami River. The city is the fourth-largest city in the Northeastern Ontario region with a population of 41,145 (2021). The city's economy is based on natural resource ext ...

and

Windsor Windsor may refer to: Places Australia * Windsor, New South Wales ** Municipality of Windsor, a former local government area * Windsor, Queensland, a suburb of Brisbane, Queensland **Shire of Windsor, a former local government authority around Wi ...

. Route expansion from

Toronto Island Airport Billy Bishop Toronto City Airport is a regional airport located on the Toronto Islands in Toronto, Ontario, Canada. It is often referred to as Toronto Island Airport and was previously known as ''Port George VI Island Airport'' and ''Toronto ...

nonstop to both

Montreal Montreal ( ; officially Montréal, ) is the List of the largest municipalities in Canada by population, second-most populous city in Canada and List of towns in Quebec, most populous city in the Provinces and territories of Canada, Canadian ...

and

Ottawa Ottawa (, ; Canadian French: ) is the capital city of Canada. It is located at the confluence of the Ottawa River and the Rideau River in the southern portion of the province of Ontario. Ottawa borders Gatineau, Quebec, and forms the core ...

soon followed, along with the addition of new routes into the

United States The United States of America (U.S.A. or USA), commonly known as the United States (U.S. or US) or America, is a country primarily located in North America. It consists of 50 states, a federal district, five major unincorporated territorie ...

. In December 2000, Air Ontario was amalgamated into

. In January 2001, a newly merged carrier called Air Canada Regional Inc. was established. A wholly owned subsidiary of Air Canada, this company combined the individual strengths of four regional airlines—

Air BC Air BC was a Canadian regional airline headquartered in Richmond, British Columbia, Canada. It later became part of Air Canada Jazz. This regional airline primarily flew turboprop aircraft but also operated jets as well as an Air Canada Connecto ...

Air Nova Air Nova was an airline based in Enfield, Nova Scotia, Canada that became part of Air Canada Regional in 2001. In 2002 the merger of Air BC, Air Ontario, Air Nova and Canadian Regional Airlines was finalised with the launch of a new name and ...

, Air Ontario, and

Canadian Regional Airlines Canadian Regional Airlines was an airline headquartered in Calgary International Airport in Calgary, Alberta, Canada. It is now part of Air Canada Jazz. Former code data *IATA code: KI *ICAO code: CDR *Callsign: Canadian Regional History ...

. Consolidation of these four companies was completed in 2002 and was marked by the launch of a new name and brand—

Fleet

De Havilland Canada DHC-8-102 Dash 8, Air Ontario AN0091364

As of 2001, the Air Ontario fleet comprised the following turboprop aircraft: * 41 – de Havilland Canada DHC-8-100 * 7 – de Havilland Canada DHC-8-300 Total aircraft in fleet in 2001: 48 The airline also previously operated

Convair 580 The Convair CV-240 is an American airliner that Convair manufactured from 1947 to 1954, initially as a possible replacement for the ubiquitous Douglas DC-3. Featuring a more modern design with cabin pressurization, the 240 series made some inroa ...

turboprop and

Fokker F28 Fellowship The Fokker F28 Fellowship is a twin-engined, short-range jet airliner designed and built by Dutch aircraft manufacturer Fokker. Following the Fokker F27 Friendship, an early and commercially successful turboprop-powered regional airliner, Fokker ...

jet aircraft. The Convair 580 was initially operated in Air Canada Connector service along with the Dash 8 while the F28 was the only jet aircraft type ever flown by Air Ontario.

Destinations in 1984

Air Ontario was operating

turboprops (later replaced by

in 1989) as an independent air carrier with scheduled passenger service to the following destinations in the Canadian provinces of Ontario and Quebec as well as to two destinations in the

in 1984:

—

London International Airport London International Airport is located northeast of the city of London, Ontario, Canada. In 2018, the airport handled 514,685 passengers, and, in 2011, was the 20th busiest in Canada in terms of aircraft movements, with 94,747. Air Canada E ...

—

Ottawa Macdonald–Cartier International Airport Ottawa/Macdonald–Cartier International Airport or Macdonald–Cartier International Airport (french: L'aéroport international Macdonald-Cartier) is the main international airport serving Ottawa, Ontario, Canada, and its metropolitan area kno ...

—

Sarnia Chris Hadfield Airport Sarnia Chris Hadfield Airport is located east northeast of Sarnia, Ontario, Canada. Opened in 1958 for scheduled flights, the airport was renamed in honour of Canadian Space Agency astronaut and Sarnia native Chris Hadfield in 1997. The air ...

—

Sudbury Airport Sudbury Airport or Greater Sudbury Airport is an airport in the Canadian city of Greater Sudbury, Ontario and is located northeast of the downtown area, on Municipal Road 86 between the communities of Garson and Skead. Although in many conte ...

Toronto Toronto ( ; or ) is the capital city of the Canadian province of Ontario. With a recorded population of 2,794,356 in 2021, it is the most populous city in Canada and the fourth most populous city in North America. The city is the ancho ...

—

Toronto Pearson International Airport Lester B. Pearson International Airport , commonly known as Toronto Pearson International Airport, is an international airport located in Mississauga, Ontario, Canada. It is the main airport serving Toronto, its metropolitan area, and the surro ...

Quebec Quebec ( ; )According to the Canadian government, ''Québec'' (with the acute accent) is the official name in Canadian French and ''Quebec'' (without the accent) is the province's official name in Canadian English is one of the thirtee ...

Montréal Montreal ( ; officially Montréal, ) is the second-most populous city in Canada and most populous city in the Canadian province of Quebec. Founded in 1642 as '' Ville-Marie'', or "City of Mary", it is named after Mount Royal, the triple-p ...

—

Montréal Dorval International Airport Montreal ( ; officially Montréal, ) is the second-most populous city in Canada and most populous city in the Canadian province of Quebec. Founded in 1642 as '' Ville-Marie'', or "City of Mary", it is named after Mount Royal, the triple-p ...

Cleveland, OH Cleveland ( ), officially the City of Cleveland, is a city in the U.S. state of Ohio and the county seat of Cuyahoga County. Located in the northeastern part of the state, it is situated along the southern shore of Lake Erie, across the U.S. ...

—

Cleveland Hopkins International Airport Cleveland Hopkins International Airport is an international airport in Cleveland, Ohio, United States. It is the primary airport serving Greater Cleveland and Northeast Ohio, the largest and busiest airport in the state, and the 43rd busiest a ...

Hartford, CT Hartford is the List of capitals in the United States, capital city of the U.S. state of Connecticut. It was the seat of Hartford County, Connecticut, Hartford County until Connecticut disbanded County (United States), county government in 19 ...

—

Bradley International Airport Bradley International Airport is a public international airport in Windsor Locks, Connecticut, United States. Owned and operated by the Connecticut Airport Authority, it is the second-largest airport in New England. The airport is about halfw ...

Destinations in 1992

Air Ontario was operating Air Canada Connector service via a

agreement with

to the following destinations in Canada and the

in 1992; by 1995, Air Ontario had added nonstop Air Canada Connector service between Toronto and Baltimore and was operating all flights system-wide with

de Havilland Canada DHC-8 Dash 8 The De Havilland Canada DHC-8, commonly known as the Dash 8, is a series of turboprop-powered regional airliners, introduced by de Havilland Canada (DHC) in 1984. DHC was later bought by Boeing in 1988, then by Bombardier in 1992; then by ...

turboprop aircraft.http://www.departedflights.com, April 2, 1995 Official Airline Guide OAG), Toronto and Montreal flight schedules

Manitoba Manitoba ( ) is a Provinces and territories of Canada, province of Canada at the Centre of Canada, longitudinal centre of the country. It is Canada's Population of Canada by province and territory, fifth-most populous province, with a population o ...

Winnipeg Winnipeg () is the capital and largest city of the province of Manitoba in Canada. It is centred on the confluence of the Red and Assiniboine rivers, near the longitudinal centre of North America. , Winnipeg had a city population of 749,6 ...

—

Winnipeg James Armstrong Richardson International Airport Winnipeg James Armstrong Richardson International Airport (commonly known as Winnipeg International Airport or Winnipeg Airport) is a Transport Canada designated international airport located in Winnipeg, Manitoba, Canada. It is the seventh b ...

—

* North Bay —

North Bay/Jack Garland Airport North Bay Airport or North Bay/Jack Garland Airport in North Bay, Ontario, Canada is located at Hornell Heights, north-northeast of the city. It is located adjacent to Canadian Forces Base North Bay, operational since 1951 (as RCAF Station Nor ...

—

* Sault Ste. Marie — Sault Ste. Marie Airport *

—

Thunder Bay Thunder Bay is a city in and the seat of Thunder Bay District, Ontario, Canada. It is the most populous municipality in Northwestern Ontario and the second most populous (after Greater Sudbury) municipality in Northern Ontario; its population ...

—

Thunder Bay International Airport Thunder Bay Airport is an airport in the city of Thunder Bay, Ontario, Canada. With 108,130 aircraft movements in 2012, it was the fourth busiest airport in Ontario and the 16th busiest airport in Canada. During the same year, more than 761,0 ...

— Timmins/Victor M. Power Airport *

Billy Bishop Toronto City Airport Billy Bishop Toronto City Airport is a regional airport located on the Toronto Islands in Toronto, Ontario, Canada. It is often referred to as Toronto Island Airport and was previously known as ''Port George VI Island Airport'' and ''Toronto ...

—

Windsor International Airport Windsor International Airport is located in the southeast portion of the city of Windsor, Ontario, Canada. The airport serves a mixture of scheduled airline flights and general aviation, and is a popular point of entry into Canada for private an ...

—

Baltimore, MD Baltimore ( , locally: or ) is the List of municipalities in Maryland, most populous city in the U.S. state of Maryland, fourth most populous city in the Mid-Atlantic (United States), Mid-Atlantic, and List of United States cities by popula ...

—

Baltimore/Washington International Thurgood Marshall Airport Baltimore/Washington International Thurgood Marshall Airport , commonly referred to as BWI or BWI Marshall, is an international airport in the Eastern United States serving mainly Baltimore, Maryland and Washington, D.C. With Dulles Interna ...

—

Newark, NJ Newark ( , ) is the most populous city in the U.S. state of New Jersey and the seat of Essex County and the second largest city within the New York metropolitan area.Newark Liberty International Airport Newark Liberty International Airport , originally Newark Metropolitan Airport and later Newark International Airport, is an international airport straddling the boundary between the cities of Newark in Essex County and Elizabeth in Union Count ...

Accidents and incidents

*On 1 November 1988,

Douglas C-47A The Douglas C-47 Skytrain or Dakota (RAF, RAAF, RCAF, RNZAF, and SAAF designation) is a military transport aircraft developed from the civilian Douglas DC-3 airliner. It was used extensively by the Allies during World War II and remained in ...

C-FBJE crashed into Pikangikum Lake on a domestic cargo flight from

Red Lake Airport Red Lake Airport is located north of Red Lake, Ontario, Canada. Red Lake Airport is located south of the community of Cochenour, Ontario. The airport serves as a point of call for air carriers offering scheduled passenger service, and an op ...

Pikangikum Airport Pikangikum Airport is located northeast of the First Nations community of Pikangikum, Ontario, Canada Canada is a country in North America. Its ten provinces and three territories extend from the Atlantic Ocean to the Pacific Oce ...

. Two of the three people on board were killed. *On March 10, 1989,

Air Ontario Flight 1363 Air Ontario Flight 1363 was a scheduled Air Ontario passenger flight which crashed near Dryden, Ontario, on 10 March 1989 shortly after takeoff from Dryden Regional Airport. The aircraft was a Fokker F28-1000 Fellowship twin jet. It crashed aft ...

, a

Fokker F28-1000 Fellowship The Fokker F28 Fellowship is a twin-engined, short-range jet airliner designed and built by Dutch aircraft manufacturer Fokker. Following the Fokker F27 Friendship, an early and commercially successful turboprop-powered regional airliner, Fokker ...

twin jet, registration C-FONF, crashed near

Dryden, Ontario Dryden, originally known as New Prospect, is the second-largest city in the Kenora District of Northwestern Ontario, Canada, located on Wabigoon Lake. It is the least populous community in Ontario incorporated as a city. The City of Dryden had a ...

immediately after take-off en route from Dryden to

with this flight having previously departed from

. The aircraft crashed after only forty-nine seconds after liftoff from the

Dryden Regional Airport Dryden Regional Airport is located northeast of Dryden, Ontario, Canada. Airlines and destinations Accidents and incidents *On March 10, 1989, Air Ontario Flight 1363, a Fokker F28-1000 Fellowship The Fokker F28 Fellowship is a twin-engi ...

because it was not able to achieve enough altitude to clear the trees beyond the end of the runway due to ice and snow on the wings. This caused the death of 21 of 65 passengers and 3 of 4 crew members. Some of the survivors were able to escape from the plane on their own but the others were carried to safety. The accident happened because the APU (auxiliary power unit) did not work, so the crew had to keep one of the engines running at Dryden. However, the necessary

de-icing Deicing is the process of removing snow, ice or frost from a surface. Anti-icing is the application of chemicals that not only deice but also remain on a surface and continue to delay the reformation of ice for a certain period of time, or preve ...

was only authorised if both the main engines are stopped. Air Ontario's policies forbid de-icing if one of the engines was running due to the possibility of the fumes being sucked into the air conditioning system and harming those in the cabin. Furthermore, if the pilots had shut down the engines, with no APU and with Dryden airport not having the equipment required to restart the engines, the plane would have been stranded. This situation was exacerbated by an extended wait on the taxiway while priority was given to an incoming Cessna. However, it is possible that de-icing would not have prevented this accident, as the type of fluid commonly used at the time was not intended for long wait times. Additionally, the de-icing process would be completed at the terminal, and not on the runway, reducing the time that the fluid would be effective after application. Recommendations made in the accident report included use of better de-icing fluid, more frequent maintenance of Air Ontario's planes, and de-icing directly on the runway, as well as prioritizing planes that had been de-iced due to the narrow window remaining for take-off.

References

External links

Air Ontario
(Archive)
Air Ontario
history page at ''

'' {{Authority control Air Canada Defunct airlines of Canada Airlines established in 1987 Airlines disestablished in 2001 Companies based in London, Ontario 1987 establishments in Ontario 2001 disestablishments in Ontario Former Star Alliance affiliate members