Will Oversee Final Assembly Of Twin Otters In Calgary
Viking Air Limited
announced this week the company has appointed Ken Copiak as general
manager of manufacturing at the company's facility in Calgary.
Copiak (right) will be responsible for overseeing all operations
related to the final assembly of the new Twin Otter aircraft, which
has its major components and structures manufactured by Viking in
Victoria, British Columbia. As ANN reported, Viking
announced early last year the launch of its DHC-6 Twin Otter Series
400 production program.
Copiak was most recently employed as manufacturing manager with
Kenn Borek Air ltd. in Calgary, which operates thirty-five heritage
Twin Otters. At this position, he oversaw the control of detail
aircraft part production, quality assurance, purchasing, and
inventory control. Prior, he worked for more than six years at
E.D.O. Canada Ltd. of Calgary and Bristol Aerospace Ltd. of
Winnipeg, rising at both companies to the position of manufacturing
planner in the advanced composites department. He was responsible
for the comprehensive process planning of composite structures,
including labor and material estimating for proposals, technical
support during manufacturing and bill of material generation.
"I have confidence in Ken’s ability to perform
exceptionally under the responsibilities of this position given his
extensive experience and previous involvement with the largest
operator of Twin Otter aircraft in the world: Kenn Borek Air," said
David Curtis, president & CEO of Viking. "Ken is a professional
who has worked at all stages of manufacturing since the start of
his career, and has acquired a solid know-how of all processes,
from tooling to purchasing, quality control and planning."
Copiak will report to Dominique Spragg, vice-president,
manufacturing.
Incorporated in 1970, Viking Air Limited specializes in
aerospace manufacturing and aircraft modification, sales, leasing
and repair. Customers include Bombardier Aerospace, Bell Helicopter
Textron, Middle River Aircraft Systems and numerous de Havilland
heritage aircraft operators worldwide.
Viking owns the Type Certificates for the de Havilland Canada
DHC-1 Chipmunk, DHC-2 Beaver, DHC-2T Turbo Beaver, DHC-3 Otter,
DHC-4 Caribou, DHC-5 Buffalo, DHC-6 Twin Otter and DHC-7 Dash-7 and
has been providing all product support functions for the fleet
since May 2005.