Spartan Air Services: Book Project

Mosquito B.35 CF-HML of Spartan Air Services, Uplands Airport, c.1958.  It was reconfigured as a dual-control trainer which required cockpit access through a modified canopy. After nearly five decades of on-and-off restoration effort by a number of individuals and organizations, this Mosquito flew again on June 16, 2014, as C-FHMJ. Photo: George Hunter

I am writing a detailed history of Canadian aerial survey company Spartan Air Services Limited of Ottawa, Ontario, Canada.

Spartan operated a diverse fleet of aircraft and helicopters that included Ansons, Venturas, a Lancaster, a Sea Hornet, P-38 Lightnings, Mosquitos, Cansos, DC-3s, Bell 47s and Vertol H-21s plus a variety of smaller fixed-wing aircraft.

Operations included aerial photography from low to high level; magnetometer, scintillometer, electromagnetic, SHORAN and APR surveys; and a wide range of helicopter services, mainly in support of the mining and petroleum sectors and the Mid-Canada Line. 

As well as operating throughout Canada, Spartan aircraft ranged widely around the world with operations in the United States, Mexico, Argentina, Colombia, the Dominican Republic, Peru, Belize, British Guiana, Trinidad, Grand Bahamas, Liberia, Nigeria, Kenya, Somalia, Tanzania, Mozambique, Togo, the Seychelles, Iran, India, Malaya, the Philippines, Laos and the Mekong River basin.

Some of these operations were conducted in partnership with Canadian Aero Service, a subsidiary of the US survey company, Aero Service Corp.

The period covered by the book will be from Spartan's formation in August 1946 until Spartan-Aero was taken over by Kenting Aviation at the beginning of 1973.

I would very much like to make contact with former Spartan employees and their families to learn of their Spartan connections and to share information.

A wish list, including some desired Spartan contacts, appears on the Wish List page.

Please contact me via email.

Robert M Stitt

Please note: This site contains other material that may be of interest to aviation enthusiasts and historians - it's accessible from the sidebar menu. Feel free to contact me via email if something catches your eye. RMS

Site last updated: October 6, 2024 (Fleet Canuck Restoration page)