Inland Air has purchased North Pacific Seaplanes as the two Prince Rupert seaplane companies come under the same umbrella.
Bruce Macdonald of Inland Air said the two companies coming together boils down to the economy.
“This has been a couple of years in the making. It is no secret that the economy has been bad in the north and we’re two companies competing for the same dollar where there just isn’t enough dollars to go around,” he said, adding that it was a mutual decision between himself and the owners of North Pacific Seaplanes.
“North Pacific Seaplanes is a great company, they have been here for 20 years, and Inland Air has been operating since 1981, so we’re going to take the good from both companies, leave the bad behind and move forward… In the end it is going to be good for everyone.”
Gene Storey of North Pacific Seaplanes, which operates seaplane service to Haida Gwaii and the surrounding villages, agrees that the economy dictated the need for the two companies to become one.
“The northern economy has been in the dumps for the last while, so it makes sense that Inland Air would purchase some of our assets and continue to operate our services,” he said, adding that he expects most of the staff of North Pacific Seaplanes will continue to work for Inland Air.
“We are hopeful that Inland Air will be successful in carrying on the operations of North Pacific Seaplanes.”
Employees at North Pacific Seaplanes were told of the sale on Monday, which has an effective date of April 1, 2013. Macdonald said there is still much to do to ensure a smooth transition.
“There is going to be a lot of hard work ahead and there are some changes that need to happen. We have some duplication in some areas and will look to consolidate that,” he said.
Financial details of the sale were not disclosed.
