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.

FMI: www.vikingair.com