Viking Air, which plans to build a factory in Western Canada, could begin producing new water bombers in 2027, but those planes probably won't be used to put out forest fires in Canada, Gradek said.

Viking Air, which plans to build a factory in Western Canada, could begin producing new water bombers in 2027, but those planes probably won’t be used to put out forest fires in Canada, Gradek said.

I think that’s more the way we have to look at it,” he said. In 2016, Bombardier, which acquired Canadair in the 1980s, sold its water bomber program to British Columbia-based Viking Air.

Newfoundland and Labrador’s is restoring its fifth Bombardier CL-415 water bomber after it spent seven years out of service. (CBC)All of Newfoundland and Labrador's five water bombers will be in ...

One of Newfoundland and Labrador's five water bombers has been out of service since 2018 after being damaged, and CBC News has learned it won't be back in service until 2026 at the earliest. That ...

A water bomber picks up water at the Waterton Dam, north of Waterton Lakes National Park, Alta., Tuesday, Sept. 12, 2017. Photo by David Rossiter / THE CANADIAN PRESS ...

Quebec and Ontario have systematically used bird dog aircraft to coordinate water bomber operations since the 1980s. More than 80 wildfires took place in Newfoundland and Labrador in 2024. (CBC) ...