At some point it looked like Air Spray was converting to jets to (BAe 146s), but this seems no longer the case.
Glad to see so many propliners here still, Air Spray has a considerable fleet of Lockheed L.188s.
Unfortunately I wasn't allowed to take photos in the hangar, only those parked outside. I did see Tanker 490, the
one that made a belly landing here at Red Deer on 22Jun19 (YouTube), in the hangar with the tank repaired.

Tanker 489 is C-FVFH.
C/n 1006 is (a.o.) ex/Air California N125AC and ex/ PK-RLF Mandala Airlines; ferried via Chitose,Japan in 1995
to Canada. C/n 1006 was manufatured in 1958, reg'd as N5501V for General Motors, opb Allison Division, engines
testbed. Then it became N1R, flying the Los Angeles Dodgers! Other operators followed (N1432, N90700, N1006T).

During my visit there was still snow on the aircraft, the area had some very early snow in good quantities two days earlier.

Lockheed L.188A C-GZVM/485 (c/n 1036). Delivered new to Eastern AL in February 1959 as N5524. Converted to
belly tank equipped airtanker by Air Spray by 2008. Air Spray calls their Electra airtanker conversion the 'Long Liner',
as proudly shown on the forward fuselage. Notes from my files: N351Q Renown Aviation, since aug95; operating flights
for UN (late-1990s?). W/o Zaire 08Feb99. Photo in Propliner magazine 82/00 on 30nov99 in excellent state (@Roswell Industrial Air Center,NM). Renown ceased operations Oct.2000. Rr C-GZVM Aug02. R26Mar03 Air Spray (1967) Ltd.
My notes say the tank was already installed by/in 2003. Ln 13May05 Red Deer T85, being worked on.
In 2007 I was allowed to take photos in the hangar: there was C-GZVM still in the hangar!

Tankers 481 and 484 were ready to be deployed to the blazing fires in Brazil, the deal had been made but Air Spray
wanted to see some money first: never happened. That's when politics come in the way of good work and business.

Tanker 484 is C-GHZI, L.188 c/n 2007.
From my files: ex/ N1968R of Reeve Aleutian Airways. Reeve ceased ops 06dec2000. Bt Air Spray Dec.2000
and was converted to water bomber. Rr C-GHZI 12Jun01. By 22Jun03 still stored at Red Deer in Reeve c/s.
Converted to tanker @Chico,CA, ferried 12May04 to Calgary while still in Reeve Aleutian c/s. Reported
on 06Jun16 @Red Deer, in hangar, full air spray colourscheme and coded 484.

Tanker 489 and 485 once more

Online (Facebook) I read recently that both of the A-26 Invaders used in the movie 'Always' were owned by
Denny Lynch of Lynch Air Tankers Billings, Montana. I think Tanker 1 (C-FPGF) is up for restoration, Air Spray
intends to use it as a company show piece.

I was shown the simulator, for procedural training and it looked quite impressive.
Much used when preparations start for a new fire fighting season!
I was also shown a large briefing room and shown on the 'board schematics' what caused the belly landing of T490,
a freak technical malfunction is all I that became clear to me because I have no technical background!

Thanks to Andrew Robertson for his time and hospitality!

From Air Spray we go to Buffalo Airways

Lockheed L.188AF, C-GLBA (c/n 1145) of Buffalo Airways. No engines: probably kept for spares.
Ex/LN-FOH of Fred Olsen Line, bought by Amerer Air in 1998 and reg'd OE-ILA. Last service VIE-LNZ 25May06.
Reported at Coventry,UK on 31Aug06, arvd as 'Buffalo 1131',on its way to Y'knife. Left 02Sep06. Seen Yellowknife
19Jun06, reportedly still in full Amerer Air livery. Reg'd 03Jul07 to Buffalo Aws. Ln 13Sep12 at Yellowknife
undergoing maintenance in Buffalo's hangar. Reported 06Jun16 @Red Deer, without engines.
Dirk Septer braced the wintry cold of Canada's high North in Nov.2008 and C-GLBA was among the planes he saw.

Lockheed PV-1 Ventura, CF-FAV (c/n 237-5324). Ex/ BuNo.33315, RCAF 2195.
In the past preserved Alberta Aviation Museum, Edmonton City Centre AP but seems to have made its way down south.

Tanker 285 is Canadair CL-215-1A10 C-FYWP, seen here still in the colourscheme of Newfoundland and Labrador.
C/n 1002 was registered on 28Aug2018 to Buffalo Airways Ltd.

Tanker 284 is Canadair CL-215-1A10 C-FTXA (c/n 1006), also reg'd to Buffalo Airways Ltd on 28Aug2018.
'Known as 'ducks' for their nimble capabilities on water, the CL-215 aircraft is a twin-engine, high-wing amphibious waterbomber that is a staple of northern aerial firefighting efforts. This past summer, the north endured an especially severe wildfire season. According to the NWT government, 303 fires were recorded in 2023, with more than
four million hectares burned...'

Lockheed L.188AF Tanker 417, C-FBAQ (c/n 1039). 'In memory of Arnie Schreder'.
Wore through its career a number of identities: VH-RMA N356Q N355WS N356Q N356CE(?) N356Q OE-ILB
Damaged in landing incident at Y'knife 05Mar12, rh main landinggear did not go down, but repaired and returned to service.
Dirk Septer shared photos of (a.o.) C-FBAQ at Hay River in 2017: Dirk Septer's vintage propliners in Canada
C-FBAQ is also displayed on Photos by Friends & Guests #9 and my Red Deer 2007 visit which has more history details.

Covered in snow: L.188PF C-FIJX (c/n 2010), Buffalo's Tanker 416.
Previously: (ZK-BMQ) ZK-TEB N33508 CF-NAX N63AJ N178RV C-GNWC G-LOFI N2RK

'In memory of Mr Forbes', he was Buffalo's accountant for many years.

C-FBAQ, Tanker 417 and C-GIZU (L.188CF c/n 2014).
Arnold Begeman shared a May 2020 photo by him and remarked 'C-GIZU outside again at last'.
See my Photos by Friends & Guests #60. It seems where C-FBAQ is parked, in May 2020 C-GXFC took its place.

Buffalo has two hangars here at Red Deer, this one brought me 3 L.188 Electras. The other hangar I saw no one about.
Strange, it seemed so much different from my 2006 visit to Red Deer!

Beech B95 C-GWCB / 140 (c/n TD 369), a Buffalo 'lead plane' or 'bird dog'. Reg cancelled 18Oct2018.

It pays to look behind buildings here..

This is (probably) the rear fuselage of Douglas DC-6BF (converted to Swingtail!) N867TA (c/n 45202/880),
which crashed in Alaska in 2001 while operated by Northern Air Cargo ('NAC690'). No casualties.
Ln 18Apr04 at Fairbanks,AK - aft fuselage section only and tailnumber visible. Sighting repeated in 2008.
Northen Air Cargo ceased DC-6 operations 30Sep08. Working with Photoshop I have to admit the tailnumber
reads more like N327TR? No.5 and 6 digits are unmistakenbly a '7' and 'T' but the 3rd digit is not a '6'..?
Do the previous indentities, N557 (and OH-KDA), play a role here? EMAIL

Looking at the DC-6 fleetlist of Northern Air Cargo for a tailnumber with that ...7T. Only N867TA seems a candidate.
Fred Barnes wrote me in Sep.2020 in support of this theory, he included photos: Photos by Friends & Guests #61.

There's more here among the weeds..

A Beech 18 with '557' on the nose. Identity? EMAIL
I think it was the Twin Beech I came across in 2007, stored inside the hangar among a lot of 'debris'.
My 2007 report has 'There are clues indicating it is c/n CA-226 which operated with the RCAF, with serial 1503."
But I have also quoted those who doubted this identification!

Top: Beech 18 557
Bottom Left: "Early Ce.310 and I’d guess formerly owned by Airspray judging by the colours." (Nigel Hitchman)

What's this? EMAIL
Jörg Wilkening from Germany responded to this quest: "I'm sure that tail is from Electra cn 1148, last reg N287F,
last operator Lynden Air Cargo (note the green stripe!). She rested at Abbotsford from 1998 to 2012, then scrapped. Several pieces (including the tail) went to Air Spray at Red Deer!"
Check Airliners.net 2009 photo at Abbotsford, it certainly does fit the bill!

Kenneth Swartz shared this photo of stored & derelict N287F at Abbotsford:

-+-

We'll have a look at Buffalo's 2nd hangar. I did not see an entrance or meet someone here to let me in.
To what (type of) aircraft may have that undercarriage belonged to? EMAIL

C-FFAY (ex/ CF-FAY): heading to Basler soon?

Douglas C-47 C-FFAY c/n 4785; reg'd 17Sep2018 N865QB for Basler Turbo Conversions.
Its history has been detailed on my Red Deer 2006.

This C-47A C-FBAE (c/n 12591) has been stored here since the 1990s.
Ex/ C-FDTH of Transport Canada-Aircraft Svcs Directorate, Ottawa. Probably played a part in saving 'DTD!

Pity I could not get into that hangar, C-FDTD must be inside..? Its history has been detailed on my Red Deer 2006.

Canadair CL215 1A10, C-GNCS (c/n 1008) of Buffalo Airways. Reg'd since 11May2011.
From my files: Ex/ N215NC North Carolina Forest Service. The state of North Carolina put its only
CL215 on eBay in May 2011. Manufactured 1969. It was bought for $446,000 by Buffalo Aws, NCFS had not
used Tanker 215 since the 2008 fire season; were cut from the budget and N215NC was stored. Operating costs
for NCFS were US$1.2 million a year and in 2008 the FAA required add'l $1.5 mil in modification costs and thus
NCFS decided to sell. R10May11 as C-GNCS to Buffalo A/w. Ln 29May16 @Yellowknife (YZF), inside hangar.