The First Nation-owned general
partnership is poised for expansion after
experiencing some turbulent early years.
The recent acquisitions of an airport
hangar and two Sioux Lookout aviation
companies is being looked upon as the
launching pad toward the regional organization’s
ultimate goal of providing air
service to its home communities on the
James Bay coast.
CreeWest GP Inc. was formally
established in 2006 by the chiefs of
Attawapiskat, Fort Albany, Kashechewan
and Weenusk First Nations. It was born
out of an impact benefit agreement signed
with DeBeers Canada.
The mandate was to create business
ventures to ensure the James Bay coastal
communities would capture the spinoff
benefits from Victor diamond mine.
A limited partnership was formed to
carry out the business plan.
The creation of a First Nations-owned
airline was regarded as an economic
building block.
Entering as neophytes in the aviation
field, the inexperience of the fledgling
group showed with some costly deals and
bad business arrangements that included
purchasing a Beechcraft King Air 200, an
aircraft that was ill-suited for their purposes.
To set a new course and to bring their
finances under control, 36-year aviation
veteran Ron Basaraba was recruited as the
new CEO in 2012.
“What I walked into was worse than
I thought. When I got into the nuts and
bolts of it, there were red flags all over the
place,” he said.
CreeWest was living off the remuneration
of an air transportation contract
signed with DeBeers, with that work subcontracted
to Air Creebec.
The King Air was sold and money used
– together with a $245,000 Nishnawbe
Aski Development Fund grant and a commercial
bank loan – to make a $1.5-million
purchase of a large hangar at the
Sioux Lookout Airport and shares of a
charter service, Northern Skies Air Service,
in 2013.
Northern Airborne Maintenance was
added to the fold in 2014, allowing them
to work on their aircraft and those of 20
external customers. The two companies
are now divisions of CreeWest.
About $450,000 was spent on hanger
upgrades with a new passenger lobby
and overnight accommodations for flight
crew.
The Sioux Lookout assets were acquired
to position CreeWest to serve the mining
players in the Ring of Fire. With those
activities dampened, there’s been new
opportunity to provide service to the 32
remote First Nations communities in the
area. CreeWest provides air charter services
to various local social and government
departments, including Health Canada,
the Ministry of Natural Resources and
Forestry, and Tikinagan Child and Family
Services.
After starting with one Navajo Chieftain
aircraft, there is now three in the fleet.
Staff has grown from two employees to
18.
“We’ve turned it around,” said
Basaraba. “In three years, we’ve actually
accomplished quite a bit.”
Another potential opportunity exists
to be a partner in a regional food distribution
network to deliver affordable
and nutritious food to the remote communities.
“I’ve made it known that we want to be
a player in that,” said Basaraba. “We are
100 per cent First Nation-owned, so we
are a good fit.”
Besides the original Air Creebec joint
venture, CreeWest has strike similar agreements
to promote both aviation and
non-aviation businesses in Logikal Code,
WinMar Restoration Timmins, McCabe
Promotions, and Wisk Air Helicopters.
“We’re open to any kind of business
arrangement or deal that makes good
business sense,” said Basaraba.
In the years to come, he envisions adding
turbine aircraft to the fleet and delivering
on their original goal of servicing the
James Bay coastal communities.
“We still hold the Air Creebec joint
venture, but we also are now our own
identity. We are officially an airline.”