Quebecair Fairchild F-27 turboprop airliner at Montreal Dorval in 1971
Quebecair began as Rimouski Airlines in 1947 and flew under that name until it merged with Gulf Aviation in 1953 under the name Quebec-Air. The aircraft in operation at the time were the Beech 18, the de Havilland Canada DHC-2 Beaver and the Douglas DC-3. Operations were mainly based in Quebec and Montreal was added in 1957. Eventually the latter city became the operating base for Quebecair.
In 1958 a fire in a hangar destroyed three DC-3s and Fairchild F-27 turboprop aircraft were then purchased to replace the destroyed aircraft. The F-27 propjets proved to be very successful. As operations increased, the company introduced a new, larger aircraft in the form of the Convair CV-540 turboprop, which were put on the main route between Montreal and Quebec. In later years, Quebecair also operated the Convair 580 turboprop.
During the 1960s, the company took over various airlines as Matane Air Service, Northern Wings, RoyalAir[2] and Northern Wings Helicopter in 1965.[3] The increase in operations brought the introduction of the first jet aircraft, the British Aircraft CorporationBAC One-Eleven, which were put into use on the Montreal - Toronto route in 1969.
The company took over Air Gaspé in 1973 and acquired more northern routes. In 1974 it bought two Boeing 707s for charter work and also Boeing 727-100 aircraft. It conducted charter flights to destinations in Florida, the Caribbean, Europe and Hawaii. Charter flights were discontinued in 1979 and the 707s were sold off. According to the February 1976 and November 1979 Official Airline Guides (OAG), Quebecair operated the Boeing 727-100 jetliner in scheduled passenger operations between Montreal, Quebec City and other destinations in Quebec and Newfoundland provinces.[4]
By 1981 the financial conditions in Quebecair had become difficult. All aircraft models except for the Fairchild F-27 turboprops and BAC One-Eleven jets were sold. This was a difficult time for Quebecair and other airlines. It did not introduce the Boeing 737-200 until 1983 when the 737s began replacing the BAC One-Elevens. The 111's were gone by 1985.
In 1984 Quebecair leased two Douglas DC-8-63s for transatlantic charter flights, but these stretched Super DC-8s were not operated very long and merged with Regionair.[5] According to the October 1985 Quebecair timetable, the airline was operating scheduled passenger flights on two international routes, being Montreal-Boston and Quebec City-New York City.
1985 was a very difficult year for Quebecair as the airline industry in Canada was restructuring. The financial situation at the carrier forced the Quebec government (which had owned the airline for several years) to sell the company to CP Air in July 1986. In continuing consolidation involving several other Canadian air carriers, Pacific Western Airlines notably purchased and took over CP Air, which then became Canadian Airlines International in 1987.[6]
Destinations
The 1980 route map lists the following Canadian destinations being served:
On December 14, 1972, Quebecair Flight 321 was hijacked by Larry Maxwell Stanford.[7] Stanford boarded the flight in Wabush, Newfoundland, and took control of the aircraft with a .22 caliber rifle. He forced the pilots to fly to Montreal, then to Ottawa, and finally back to Montreal. Stewardess Josette Côté Dishongh was credited with talking Stanford into releasing the passengers and then surrendering at Montreal after the 10-hour ordeal.
On February 19, 1979, Quebecair Flight 714, a Boeing 707-123B C-GQBH operating a flight from Toronto, caught a wind shear while on approach to Hewanorra international airport in St. Lucia. The windshear caused the aircraft to halt its descent while already over the threshold. The copilot who was flying at that time retarded the throttles, however at that very moment the aircraft had passed the windshear zone and the nose of the aircraft slammed into the runway and bounced twice, destroying the nose landing gear. There were no fatalities and minor injuries in this incident. The aircraft was damaged beyond repair and was written off.
^Staff writer; no by-line. (April 28, 2008). "Notorious hijacker to make Edmonton home". The Calgary Herald.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: multiple names: authors list (link)
Hengi, B.I. (2000). Airlines Remembered: Over 200 Airlines of the Past, Described and Illustrated in Colour. Midland. ISBN9781857800913.
External links
Wikimedia Commons has media related to Quebecair.
"Operators: Quebecair Rimouski Airlines". rzjets.
Staff writer; no by-line. "Quebecair Seeks to Fly into U. S.; Would Serve White Plains and Hartford-Springfield". New York Timed.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: multiple names: authors list (link) (Subscription required to view full article)
quebecair, other, uses, disambiguation, iata, icao, call, sign, quebecair, canadian, airline, that, operated, from, 1947, until, 1986, headquartered, saint, laurent, quebec, part, montreal, iata, icao, callsignqb, quebecaircommenced, operations1947ceased, oper. For other uses see QBA disambiguation Quebecair IATA QB ICAO QBA Call sign QUEBECAIR was a Canadian airline that operated from 1947 until 1986 Quebecair was headquartered in Saint Laurent Quebec now a part of Montreal 1 QuebecairIATA ICAO CallsignQB QBA QUEBECAIRCommenced operations1947Ceased operations1986Fleet sizeSee Fleet belowDestinations27HeadquartersSaint Laurent Quebec Canada Contents 1 History 1 1 Early years 1 2 Later years 2 Destinations 3 Fleet 4 Accidents and incidents 5 See also 6 References 7 External linksHistory EditEarly years Edit Early Quebecair Logo Quebecair BAC One Eleven at Montreal Dorval in 1971 Quebecair Fairchild F 27 turboprop airliner at Montreal Dorval in 1971 Quebecair began as Rimouski Airlines in 1947 and flew under that name until it merged with Gulf Aviation in 1953 under the name Quebec Air The aircraft in operation at the time were the Beech 18 the de Havilland Canada DHC 2 Beaver and the Douglas DC 3 Operations were mainly based in Quebec and Montreal was added in 1957 Eventually the latter city became the operating base for Quebecair In 1958 a fire in a hangar destroyed three DC 3s and Fairchild F 27 turboprop aircraft were then purchased to replace the destroyed aircraft The F 27 propjets proved to be very successful As operations increased the company introduced a new larger aircraft in the form of the Convair CV 540 turboprop which were put on the main route between Montreal and Quebec In later years Quebecair also operated the Convair 580 turboprop During the 1960s the company took over various airlines as Matane Air Service Northern Wings RoyalAir 2 and Northern Wings Helicopter in 1965 3 The increase in operations brought the introduction of the first jet aircraft the British Aircraft Corporation BAC One Eleven which were put into use on the Montreal Toronto route in 1969 Later years Edit 1970s Logo Boeing 737 200 at Wabush Airport in 1985 The company took over Air Gaspe in 1973 and acquired more northern routes In 1974 it bought two Boeing 707s for charter work and also Boeing 727 100 aircraft It conducted charter flights to destinations in Florida the Caribbean Europe and Hawaii Charter flights were discontinued in 1979 and the 707s were sold off According to the February 1976 and November 1979 Official Airline Guides OAG Quebecair operated the Boeing 727 100 jetliner in scheduled passenger operations between Montreal Quebec City and other destinations in Quebec and Newfoundland provinces 4 By 1981 the financial conditions in Quebecair had become difficult All aircraft models except for the Fairchild F 27 turboprops and BAC One Eleven jets were sold This was a difficult time for Quebecair and other airlines It did not introduce the Boeing 737 200 until 1983 when the 737s began replacing the BAC One Elevens The 111 s were gone by 1985 In 1984 Quebecair leased two Douglas DC 8 63s for transatlantic charter flights but these stretched Super DC 8s were not operated very long and merged with Regionair 5 According to the October 1985 Quebecair timetable the airline was operating scheduled passenger flights on two international routes being Montreal Boston and Quebec City New York City 1985 was a very difficult year for Quebecair as the airline industry in Canada was restructuring The financial situation at the carrier forced the Quebec government which had owned the airline for several years to sell the company to CP Air in July 1986 In continuing consolidation involving several other Canadian air carriers Pacific Western Airlines notably purchased and took over CP Air which then became Canadian Airlines International in 1987 6 Destinations EditThe 1980 route map lists the following Canadian destinations being served Gagnon Quebec Montreal Quebec Montreal Dorval Airport and Montreal Mirabel International Airport Quebec City Quebec Toronto Ontario Schefferville Quebec Wabush Newfoundland and Labrador Sept Iles Quebec Havre Saint Pierre Quebec Baie Johan Beetz Quebec Natashquan Quebec Kegaska Quebec Chevery Airport Quebec Churchill Falls Airport Newfoundland Harrington Harbour Quebec Tete a La Baleine Airport Quebec Bagotville Saguenay Quebec Blanc Sablon Quebec Port Menier Quebec Iles de la Madeleine Quebec Bonaventure Quebec Gaspe Quebec Rimouski Quebec Baie Comeau Quebec Saguenay Quebec Rouyn Noranda Quebec Val d Or Quebec And in the United States Boston Massachusetts New York City New YorkFleet Edit Quebecair operated BAC One Eleven One of the four Fairchild F 27 turboprops operated on shorter routes Jet aircraft Boeing 707 123B used for passenger charter services only Boeing 727 100 B727 025 model Boeing 737 200 British Aircraft Corporation BAC One Eleven Douglas DC 8 63 stretched Super DC 8 used for passenger charter services only Douglas DC 8 54F used to transport cargo only Fokker F28 FellowshipTurboprop aircraft Convair 540 Convair 580 de Havilland Canada DHC 6 Twin Otter Fairchild F 27 Hawker Siddeley HS 748Piston aircraft Beechcraft 18 Britten Norman BN 2 Islander Consolidated PBY Canso model amphibian aircraft Cessna T 50 operated by predecessor Rimouski Airlines Curtiss C 46 Commando used to transport cargo only de Havilland Canada DHC 2 Beaver de Havilland Canada DHC 3 Otter Douglas DC 3 also operated the C 47 model Douglas DC 4Accidents and incidents EditOn December 14 1972 Quebecair Flight 321 was hijacked by Larry Maxwell Stanford 7 Stanford boarded the flight in Wabush Newfoundland and took control of the aircraft with a 22 caliber rifle He forced the pilots to fly to Montreal then to Ottawa and finally back to Montreal Stewardess Josette Cote Dishongh was credited with talking Stanford into releasing the passengers and then surrendering at Montreal after the 10 hour ordeal On February 19 1979 Quebecair Flight 714 a Boeing 707 123B C GQBH operating a flight from Toronto caught a wind shear while on approach to Hewanorra international airport in St Lucia The windshear caused the aircraft to halt its descent while already over the threshold The copilot who was flying at that time retarded the throttles however at that very moment the aircraft had passed the windshear zone and the nose of the aircraft slammed into the runway and bounced twice destroying the nose landing gear There were no fatalities and minor injuries in this incident The aircraft was damaged beyond repair and was written off On March 29 1979 Quebecair Flight 255 a Fairchild F 27 tail number CF QBL flying from Quebec City to Montreal crashed after an engine exploded shortly after take off killing all three crew and 17 out of 21 passengers 8 See also EditList of defunct airlines of CanadaReferences Edit World Airline Directory Flight International March 30 1985 111 Retrieved on July 23 2009 RoyalAir Airline History Retrieved 24 May 2021 Quebecair The Canadian Encyclopedia Retrieved 27 September 2020 Feb 1 1976 Official Airline Guide OAG Regionair rzjets Retrieved 26 January 2020 Hengi page needed Staff writer no by line April 28 2008 Notorious hijacker to make Edmonton home The Calgary Herald a href Template Cite web html title Template Cite web cite web a CS1 maint multiple names authors list link Fairchild F 27 CF QBL Accident Thursday 29 March 1979 Aviation Safety Network Hengi B I 2000 Airlines Remembered Over 200 Airlines of the Past Described and Illustrated in Colour Midland ISBN 9781857800913 External links Edit Wikimedia Commons has media related to Quebecair Operators Quebecair Rimouski Airlines rzjets Staff writer no by line Quebecair Seeks to Fly into U S Would Serve White Plains and Hartford Springfield New York Timed a href Template Cite web html title Template Cite web cite web a CS1 maint multiple names authors list link Subscription required to view full article Sawyer Deborah C Quebecair Historica Canada Quebecair Photo Search Results Airliners net Portals Canada Companies Aviation Retrieved from https en wikipedia org w index php title Quebecair amp oldid 1114885421, wikipedia, 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