From 1953, Max Ward had been very successful with his northern
air services company, Wardair Ltd., and had decided to expand
in 1962 by offering chartered passenger services. Charter
services were a more feasible venture to undertake as regular
airline services in Canada were protected by federal regulation
and remained mostly in the control of Trans Canada Airlines.
In 22 June 1961, Wardair Ltd. changed its name to Wardair
Canada Ltd., signalling a new business spirit of expanding
charter service. To realize this new vision, Max Ward leased a
four- engine Douglas DC-6 from Canadian Pacific Airlines. On 10
May 1962, Wardair began its first chartered passenger service in
southern Canada with a return trip from Calgary to Ottawa booked
by the Alberta School Patrol Band.
Wardair was not going to limit itself to chartered service
within Canadian borders. On 22 June 1962, Wardair flew its first
charter flight overseas from Edmonton to Copenhagen, Denmark,
transporting 88 war brides to visit their relatives in Europe.
These charter flights of Wardair’s first DC-6 were the
beginning of a significant success story in Canadian civil
aviation history. |