Aviation industry flying high in Parry Sound-Muskoka. (Transportation).

PARRY SOUND -- Since Sept. 11, the aviation industry in general has taken a downward turn. But here in Parry Sound and Muskoka two aviation companies are expanding in the face of the downturn.

First, is Found Aircraft, located at the Parry Sound Area Municipal Airport, and maker of the Bush Hawk bush place. The company started about five years ago with a shoestring budget, reintroducing the aircraft which was popular in the 1960s.

Since Sept. 11, Found Aircraft has received five new orders for its rugged bush. plane and is looking at a bright future, Drew Hamblin, director of marketing and sales says.

The Bush Hawk has a starting price of $250,000 (US). Next year, because of demand, the asking price will increase by $15,000 (US). Found Aircraft employs about 45 people, including design engineers and office staff.

Some may wonder why an aviation company woulad locate in this area, seemingly far removed from any major hub of the aviation industry. Hamblin says a major factor in Found Aircraft setting up shop near Parry Sound is that company founder, Bud Found is from the area.

Another factor in locating and staying at the Parry Sound airport is the facility's 4,000-foot runway and a nearby 4,000-foot-long lake.

"We got a lot of co-operation from the Parry Sound area, too," he says. "They helped us out with the building of a production facility and because Parry Sound is part of Northern Ontario, we got some favourable government loacccns."

"Recently we had a customer fly his float plane in from Sault Ste. Marie into the lake and walk up to our office at the airport to finalize a sale," says Hamblin. "There are no other airports that I know of where you can do that. It makes it very convenient for the bush plane and float plane operators that we cater to."

The upturn in business for Found Aircraft has a lot to do with a redesign of the Bush Hawk's flaps, which are used in take-off and landing, says Hamblin. Also, with the change they have been able to increase the amount of cargo the aircraft can handle, without increasing the cost to fly the plane.

The other aviation company flying high in this district is Skyway Refinishing at the Muskoka Airport near Bracebridge. Skyway Refinishing provides its clients' aircraft with full exterior refinishing, interior refurbishing, upgrades and modifications, as well as airframe inspections and repairs. Currently the company can handle small- and intermediate-sized airplanes and jets, but with a proposed expansion of its facility it will be able to work on aircraft as large as Boeing 757s, vice-president Bob Cooper says.

Skyway Refinishing started with a 20,000-square-foot hangar at Muskoka Airport almost two years ago. By Jan. 1, 2001, it had completed a 25,000-square-foot addition to the hangar. The company is "80 per cent confident another expansion of the hangar will add another 40,000 square feet," by June 2002, Cooper says.

"The primary reason we decided to locate in Muskoka was because of the airport size, and the airport is well-known in the aviation world," says Cooper.

"Economically, for us it was also better to locate here, and the community was eager to expand the employment opportunities in the area. We were also able to purchase the land outright, which was very important to us."

Skyway currently employs about 20 people, and when the next phase of the expansion is complete, Cooper says as many as 50 people will work for the company. Right now the aircraft refinisher works on about 80 aircraft per year.