CanWest Aerospace founder Tom Jackson reached a crossroad in 2004, when he moved back to Canada after spending years as a contractor for helicopter companies in Central and South America.
Jackson grew up in British Columbia, in and around the hangars where his father, Ron, worked as an aircraft mechanic for Okanagan Helicopters. He wanted to find his way back home, and saw two options: Either work for a large helicopter company and buy into its corporate culture, or start his own business and build a family-oriented culture that put people first.
“I wanted to kind of get back,” said Jackson, who is also president and director of maintenance for CanWest Aerospace. “I was really missing what the industry used to be like.”
Jackson decided to launch his own company out of a 350-square-foot space in an industrial park in Langley, British Columbia, and steadily built it into one of North America’s premier independent maintenance, repair and overhaul (MRO) operations.
Today, CanWest Aerospace has more than 40 employees, with a global clientele that relies on its unparalleled expertise, exceptional quality, and commitment to exceeding customer expectations.
But the same family-oriented culture that Jackson set out to create at the beginning–one that values people more than profits–has remained at its core.
“The employees that worked at Okanagan back in the day were one of their biggest assets,” said Jackson.
“They really put a lot of time and effort and energy into that, and that’s what made that company so successful. I take that exact same business model and run it here, because it’s all I know.”
CanWest Aerospace is a global leader in MRO, offering support to many of the most common light, medium, and heavy rotorcraft, including the Airbus Helicopters AS350, EC120 and B0-105; the Bell Helicopter B206, B206L, B204, B205, B212, B214, B407, B412, CH146 and UH series; the Sikorsky S-61 series, S-76, S-64, S-70, UH-60, UH-3H, SH-3D and CH-124; the Leonardo Helicopters AW139; and the MD Helicopters MD500.
The company provides airframe inspections; maintenance and repair of customized composites and sheet metal; airframe structural repair; modifications; scheduled and unscheduled inspections; and 24/technical support.
CanWest staff pride themselves on being legacy aircraft experts, offering overhauls, repairs and updates for aircraft components, avionics, instruments, and structures. The result is legacy rotorcraft that are not only as good as new–they’re arguably better.
“We can do a tremendous amount to these airframes to both extend their lives and modernize them, such as adding glass cockpits and other aviation advancements,” said Jackson.
“Our goal is not only to keep these proven aircraft flying, but also to bring them up to modern standards so they can fly safely and effectively for decades to come.”
Modernizing an aircraft can cost a quarter of the price of a new helicopter, said Jackson. And given the quality that CanWest Aerospace provides, there’s no reason to overlook it as an option.
“Customers save by not having to retool their shops, buy new parts and ground equipment, as well as by not having to retrain their staff,” he said.
“Also, legacy models that have been tested over time tend to be more stable operationally compared to newer airframes that would have initial operating bugs that need to be refined and rectified.”
CanWest Aerospace is headquartered at Langley Regional Airport, but a key part of its approach is to deploy its workers around the world.
This is the mission of the CanWest Global Task Force (GTF), which essentially brings CanWest to the helicopter, ensuring exceptional service and reducing aircraft on ground time.
“We can perform anything from minor to major modifications and overhauls in the field, training the customer’s staff along the way,” said Jackson.
Training is a big part of the GTF’s mandate, sharing knowledge and experience with customers in North and South America, Central America, Africa, the Middle East, and many other corners of the globe.
“That’s kind of the heart of why the GTF is,” said Jackson. “It’s also giving back to the industry.”
Along with industry-leading MRO services, CanWest Aerospace offers a robust parts supply through its sister company, CanWest Global AirParts.
The company offers a competitively priced catalogue of top quality new and re-certified serviceable dynamic and standard components, as well as flight controls, wheels and brakes, landing gear, avionics and instruments, electrical items, and spares.
“I created the parts company to be kind of a one-stop shop for our customers,” said Jackson. “We were able to pass on the savings to our clients on the parts sales side because we have the MRO capability to do all the components and recertification and repairs in-house.”
CanWest Aerospace plans to continue growing in the near future, with the goal of staying small enough to maintain quality and preserve its unique, family-oriented culture.
“Back in the Okanagan days … the people there truly loved that job,” said Jackson. “They loved what they did so much that that they would do anything for that company.
“If you can just get a sliver of that with today’s workforce, any company will have success. So that’s what I’m trying to replicate, is having that same passion that people did back in the day.”
