CANADIAN VICKERS LTD.

CANADA

Established 1911 at St Hubert, Montreal, as subsidiary of Vickers Ltd. Aircraft division formed 1922; first Canadian company to build aircraft commercially. First contract was for six U.K.-designed Viking IV amphibians for Canadian Air Force. These followed from 1924 by 61 Vedette single-engined flying-boats and amphibians, its most successful product, designed in Canada by W.T Reid. During the 1920s six other designs appeared: the Varuna, Vista, Vanessa, Velos, Vigil, and Vancouver. Of these, only the Varuna (eight) and Vancouver (six) flying-boats went into production. In the 1930s the company license-built Fairchild and Fokker designs and Northrop Deltas. During the Second World War built 40 Supermarine Stranraer flying-boats for the RCAF, 230 Consolidated OA-10 Catalinas for the USAAF, and 149 Canso amphibians for the RCAF, plus hulls for 600 more Catalinas and fuselages for 40 Handley Page Hampden bombers. Took over Canadian Associated Aircraft in 1941, and in following year moved to government factory at Cartierville, near Montreal. In December 1944 became a separate autonomous company under new name of Canadair Ltd, later to become a subsidiary of General Dynamics.


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