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Bearskin Lake Air Service LP, operating as Bearskin Airlines, is a regional airline based in Sioux Lookout, Ontario, Canada. It operates services in northern Ontario and Manitoba. Its main bases are Sioux Lookout Airport (YXL) and Thunder Bay International Airport (YQT), with a hub at Greater Sudbury Airport (YSB). == History == The airline was established in 1963 by bush pilot Otto John Hegland and started operations in July 1963 from its base at Big Trout Lake, Ontario (but was named after Bearskin Lake where Hegland had a general store). It started out by providing only charter services to the remote First Nations reserves in northern Ontario, using bush planes equipped with floats in the summer and skis in the winter. In 1977, it began its first regular scheduled flights between Big Trout Lake and Sioux Lookout.〔Bearskin Airlines, ''Bear Country: Special 45th Anniversary Issue'', 2008, ISBN D702544〕 From then on, other scheduled flights were progressively added, first to Thunder Bay, followed by Kenora and Winnipeg. This was also the period when the Government of Ontario began constructing new airfields that would make the northern communities accessible year-round. Therefore, in the late 1970s to the early 1980s, Bearskin made the transition of bush planes to wheeled commuter planes.〔 Following the collapse of NorOntair in 1996, Bearskin picked up over two thirds of that carrier's routes, thereby adding scheduled service to all the major northern Ontario cities. Three years later, it expanded operations to destinations in northern Manitoba. In 2003, it sold its routes and assets servicing northern First Nations communities to Wasaya Airways. This marked as a break with its bush flying background to focus on becoming a regional carrier.〔 It was owned by Harvey Friesen (President), Cliff Friesen (Executive Vice-President), Karl Friesen (Vice President of Operations), Rick Baratta (Vice President of Finance) and Brad Martin (Director of Operations), but in 2010 it was sold to Exchange Income Corporation (EIC) for $32 million. EIC also owns Calm Air, Perimeter Aviation, and Keewatin Air. Bearskin has 240 employees.〔 As of April 1, 2014, all service at Region of Waterloo Airport (YKF) and Ottawa Airport (YOW) was cancelled, affecting seven routes and significantly decreased the flight operations. The company indicated that a softening mining sector and high tech sectors (such as BlackBerry) were to blame for cutting the routes. Additional factors included the introduction of new competitors (such as Porter Airlines).〔(【引用サイトリンク】url=http://www.northernontariobusiness.com/Industry-News/transportation/2014/03/Bearskin-drops-flights-to-Ottawa,-K-W.aspx )〕 The company indicated it's refocusing on northwestern and northeastern routes in Northern Ontario.〔(【引用サイトリンク】url=http://www.cbc.ca/news/canada/kitchener-waterloo/bearskin-airlines-cancels-all-trips-between-waterloo-region-and-ottawa-1.2585557 )〕 Bearskin is a major provider of flights for Hope Air, a charity that organises free non-medical emergency flights for people in financial need, particularly from remote communities.〔http://hopeair.org/supporters/CommercialAirlines.aspx〕 抄文引用元・出典: フリー百科事典『 ウィキペディア（Wikipedia）』 ■ウィキペディアで「Bearskin Airlines」の詳細全文を読む スポンサード リンク
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