Madam Speaker, Max Ward was born on November 22, 1921, in Edmonton, Alberta. In 1940, Max joined the Royal Canadian Air Force and received his pilot's wings in 1941. Max worked as an instructor at various training bases during the Second World War until its end in 1945. After being discharged from the air force, Max received his commercial pilots licence and began his flying career as a bush pilot in Yellowknife.
In 1946, Max started Polaris Charter Company Ltd., carrying passengers throughout the Arctic, including prospectors and supplies into mining exploration camps. In 1948, Max and George Pigeon formed Yellowknife Airways, combining their two aircraft into one company. Max moved to Alberta after liquidating his share in 1949. It wasn't the last the North saw of Max, Madam Speaker. In 1953, he acquired a 14-passenger single-engine Otter and launched Wardair Ltd. into commercial service.
Madam Speaker, Max Ward revolutionized the aviation industry in Canada's North. Wardair expanded every year, and in 1957, he purchased the company's first heavy aircraft, a Bristol Freighter, and eventually made the first landing of an aircraft on wheels at the Geographic North Pole. In 1966, Wardair became the third major Canadian carrier to offer a pure jet aircraft when they purchased the Boeing 727, the first ever in Canada. By 1973, they had become Canada's largest international air charter carrier, but times change and Max sold the company in 1989 to Pacific Western Airlines, bringing an end to one of the greatest chapters in the history of Canadian aviation.
The impact Max had on the Canadian aviation industry has been immeasurable, Madam Speaker. He was inducted into the Canadian Aviation Hall of Fame in 1974, was awarded the Order of Canada in 1975, and was inducted into the Alberta Order of Excellence in 1989, amongst a host of other awards. Max helped blaze the trail for generations of pilots to explore the world around them and to find a home in the North, where they could fly one of the most unique aviation experiences in the world today. Madam Speaker, I seek unanimous consent to conclude my statement.
---Unanimous consent granted