After six seasons, the Ice Pilots are set to fly off into the sunset.
Ice Pilots NWT airs its final episode at 10 tonight on History. The adventures of Buffalo Joe McBryan, son and general manager Mikey McBryan, sister Kathy, son Rod and all at Buffalo Air in Yellowknife have wowed viewers for six seasons. That’s a long time to be on Canadian TV, or as Mikey quips, “Coronation Street long.”
Viewers were likely drawn at first by the vintage aircraft featured on the series. Patriarch Joe, now 70, takes one of his Second World War-era DC-3s across Great Slave Lake every evening in a passenger run to Hay River. “He’s made that run every day since 1982,” said son Mikey. Non-pressurized, unlike modern jetliners, the DC-3 climbs only as high as 1,500 meters over the lake run. Most short winter days the view of the Yukon outside the windows is one of snowy darkness with a sharp ribbon of purple and pink along the horizon. Engines spark and crackle and then roar to life in the sub-zero temperatures. The drone inside the cabin and the surprisingly warm exterior would prompt some passengers to ask for a little air-conditioning. This was sometimes accomplished by cracking open the back cargo door.
Those passenger runs go on, as do cargo supply runs vital to residents in the northern territories. Buffalo’s vintage DC-4s, however, have been grounded, giving way to a slightly more modern fleet of Electras. Buffalo Joe has about six carcasses of those turbo-prop planes from the 1950s around his hanger, enough parts to always keep his Electra ZFE in the air.
Viewers were able to ride along for those six seasons and get to know the technicians, pilots and other characters. The McBryan family became like hoser versions of the Kardashians, if that more glamorous family had been swaddled in tuques, scarves and parkas. They were all famous for being famous, recognized in airports around the world.
“I guess the show is pretty big in Croatia,” said Mikey, who heard from a friend of his sister that Ice Pilots was a fascination there. “When we travel, we hear stories from all over,” he said. “Where you from? Yellowknife? Ice Pilots? It really puts an ice breaker to the conversation.”
Mikey has tried to capitalize on that recognition. Ice Pilot souvenirs can be found in airports in Winnipeg, Edmonton and other Canadian cities. Tuques and T-shirts and even underwear are emblazoned with the Buffalo Air labels.
Over the years, the series lured Iron Maiden lead singer and pilot Bruce Dickinson to Yellowknife, along with several NHLers who came north for a charity game. Pilots have come and gone over the years, including fan favourites Scotty Blue and Justin Simle. “Scotty’s a full-blown water firefighting pilot now,” Mikey said. “He’s semi-retired.”
Mikey said the biggest lesson he’s learned from the series is to just be yourself on TV. “The times when people are acting or trying to be something they’re not, it all falls apart very quickly,” he said.
Wednesday’s season finale will feature the Buffalo boys in Red Deer, Alta., taking part in ceremonies last June marking the 70th anniversary of the D-Day invasion. A tribute jump by 20 paratroopers is planned, but bad weather and an unscouted drop zone have Joe set to cancel the stunt. A jump the next morning will be the last chance to make it all happen. “The finale is the craziest thing,” Mikey said.
A sixth season was a last-minute decision, Mikey said. “We’re like, ‘Yeah, let’s do it again,’ ” he said. “We just hunkered down and did eight more awesome episodes.”
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