The federal government has pledged up to $2.5 billion in financing for Canadair water bomber maker De Havilland Canada in a bid to ramp up production of the iconic firefighting aircraft.
The money will allow for a second assembly line in Alberta, the Finance Department said. And it will provide the means to double production capacity to an eventual 20 water-scooping planes per year, according to De Havilland.
The manufacturer, whose “super scoopers” can suck up more than 6,000 litres of water in 12 seconds and dump it on wildfires, also says it will put the cash toward new staff and production in Victoria, Calgary and Ontario….