'Oh God, it's a fire truck': Veteran N.W.T. pilot gets a surprise sendoff

Forty-eight years as a pilot wasn't enough training to prepare retired Air Tindi captain Garry McIver for the spectacular send-off the company arranged for him Saturday afternoon.

McIver, 70, flew the last test flight his career at around 2 p.m. 

As he taxied his King Air plane down the Air Tindi airstrip after landing, two fire trucks let rip with twin geysers of water, forming a curtain of mist for McIver's plane to pass through.

They call it a "two-cannon salute." 

After parking his plane, he recalled what was going through his mind.

"'Oh God, it's a fire truck. Oh, no, they're not doing this, are they?' And then I saw all the people and everybody here and it was a very nice and emotional moment for me."

"It was, like right now, hard to maintain my composure, to be honest with you."

'Garry just kept on going' 

McIver has been flying since 1968. His career, which included a long stint with the RCMP, has taken him everywhere from West Africa to Inuvik, N.W.T.

At Yellowknife-based Air Tindi over the last four years, he's nurtured several younger crew members while flying medical evacuation planes and charter flights.

"He's got a wealth of knowledge, he's a really sharp tack," said co-pilot Cory Szucs. "I came off the ramp and he's been helpful in growing my career as a pilot.

"Lots of places, you'd work for 20, 30 years as a pilot and you retire. Garry just kept on going."

Until now.

Air Tindi flew his wife Karen up from their home in Kamloops and the couple spent the weekend touring and dining in Yellowknife — something McIver hasn't had much to time to do while on his rotations.

He has however noticed the changes in the North's aviation scene over the decades.

"A lot of the communities now have extended runways, with terminal buildings and facilities at airports," he said.

Not to mention the arrival of global positioning systems.

"It certainly made flying in the North [easier.] You know where you are all the time."