Paws on a Plane – Summit Transports SPCA Dogs

Last month our Twin Otter had some unlikely four-legged passengers along for a ride to Abbotsford, BC. Four dogs from the local NWT SPCA were offered up space and prospects of new adoptive families in Victoria, and we were happy to help transport them part of the way there.

The NWT SPCA is often full and needed room to take in more dogs. The plan to transfer the dogs to BC was facilitated by Marvin Robinson, a long-time supporter of the SPCA who reached out to his connections at Summit Air.

With a SPCA rescue dog of his own, Marvin often tries to help out with escorting dog transfers when travelling. He was well aware of the challenge of moving large dogs on commercial flights, and so when he heard a private flight was headed south, he reached out to the airline and the SPCA to create a partnership.

“I knew one of the aircrafts was getting ready to go for maintenance, so I got hold of Summit to see if they could help out,” said Robinson.

Matthew McElligott, our Director of Business Development, was more than happy to have Summit be involved. “We didn’t have to go too far out of our way to do a good deed here, and when it comes to getting involved with charitable organizations, that is the mandate through our parent company, Ledcor. This one just kind of fell in our lap and seemed like the right thing to do.”

With no crate size restrictions on a private plane or requirements for escorts, this was a great opportunity to move some larger dogs to a shelter where they have better prospects for adoption.

Pilots James Steward and Josh Pedersen flew the Twin Otter south. Staff from the Victoria shelter was set to meet the plane in Abbotsford, before bringing the group of dogs back to the Island.

Any travelers interested in escorting a dog south should contact the NWT SPCA at nwtspcayk@gmail.com with their flight reference code so staff can look into the availability of space for dogs.