Wasaya Airways (WP, Pickle Lake) has announced it will cut 46 out of 400 jobs as part of a restructuring effort being overseen by Toronto-based R.e.l.group. The Canadian domestic carrier, owned by 12 First Nations in northern Ontario, has teetered on the brink of financial collapse with debts amounting to over CAD3.0million (USD2.6million) largely attributed by the Canadian press to excessive managerial spending.
A recent audit of the airline's books also showed outstanding revenue owed to the Canadian tax authorities totalling more than CAD1.1million.
The carrier operates a total of 27 aircraft including one Dash 8-100 and a Dash 8-300 as well as Beech 1900Ds, Cessna Caravans, Hawker 748s and PC-12s on flights to 26 remote communities in Ontario.
It is a subsidiary of the Wasaya Group Inc. (WGI) whose other business interests include freight shipments, an MRO facility dubbed the Wasaya Prop Shop, and fuel runs from their headquarters in Thunder Bay.
