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Aircraft Repair Ltd.

Aircraft Repair Ltd.When Aircraft Repair Ltd. opened in 1936, its purpose was to service planes from Wilfred Leigh Brintnell’s Mackenzie Air, but the demand for aviation services skyrocketed when war broke out in 1939. Edmonton became a focal point of the allied forces as a strategic location between the continental United States and Alaska, and as a site for the British Commonwealth Air Training Plan. American troops and their families poured in, and Edmonton's airport became one of the busiest in North America, seemingly overnight.

Aircraft waiting to be repairedAircraft from Canada and the United States in need of servicing and repair began to arrive at Aircraft Repair’s small location; so fast that it was not long before more space and money was desperately needed. The Canadian government stepped in to fund the construction of three hangars at Repair’s new location in Blatchford Field.

Bellancas under constructionThroughout the war, Brintnell employed over 2,500 people, in three shifts around the clock. The bustling business was incorporated into Northwest Industries in 1943. A true aviation innovator, a year after peace was declared, Brintnell was awarded the Order of the British Empire for his role in the British Commonwealth Air Training Plan.

 

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