Last year, when wildfire raged in the hills surrounding Athens, firefighting planes made by Canadian aircraft manufacturer De Havilland came to the rescue. Now nearly two dozen more are on the way to Greece and other European countries — made with parts manufactured right here in North Saanich.
Commonly called scoopers, these planes can lift water out of lakes, rivers and oceans to drop on nearby fires. Now a new, state-of-the art scooper is about to join the 162 Canadian-made aircraft already in operation globally.
The twin-engined DHC-515 has an improved drop system and avionics suite, compared to the DHC-415 that is currently in use, allowing pilots to scoop and release water faster and more precisely. The air-conditioning system will also outperform those in earlier models. “It’s anywhere from 35 to 50 degrees in the cockpit,” says Neil Sweeney, the manufacturer’s vice-president of corporate affairs. “Having a really strong air-conditioning system allows [the pilots] to fly their missions longer.” Otherwise, he adds, “In terms of the performance of the aircraft, it’s pretty much the same.”
Canada has long been a leader in building these amphibious aircraft. They were first manufactured by Canadair, then Bombardier and now De Havilland Canada, which is making parts for these planes at the former Viking Air plant in Saanich. It will then ship those components to its Calgary plant, where another team will assemble the aircraft.
There is so much demand for the new scooper, De Havilland recently doubled its Saanich workforce to 300 and has implemented an in-house training academy designed to get workers on the floor quickly.
There have already been 22 orders for the new plane, 12 of them for Europe’s civil protection body, RescEU. It will split the order evenly between six member states that have been the worst affected by wildfires: Spain, France, Greece, Italy, Portugal and Croatia. Greece and Spain have each purchased an additional five aircraft at a reported cost of $392 million for seven DHC-515s.
European partners will receive the planes in time for the start of the 2028 fire season. Says Sweeney: “We believe our aircraft will help mitigate … the impact of the wildfires and help countries around the world protect communities and the environment.”
