Transport committee  For the air support, whether the contract is large or small, Purolator is dependent, like many other businesses, on growth. With contracts that are very compatible with Purolator's capability to deliver on that promise, we'll compete on all those contracts, whether they are in the air or on the ground.

Transport committee  We do.

Transport committee  I can respond to that. In 2007, Purolator went to market with the largest aviation airlift bid in Canadian history for the cargo services. Barry Lapointe Holdings, Kelowna Flightcraft, did respond to that bid, as did eight other carriers in the country. The bid was awarded to Kelowna, based on a number of factors: on service, reliability performance, maintenance performance, the type of aircraft a carrier needs, as well as financial stability.

Transport committee  We have airline, ground line, and also haul contracts.

Transport committee  We contract with Perimeter airlines; Cargojet, for parts of western Canada; Purolator provides airlift services to FedEx in and out of Newfoundland; and through the weekend, FedEx flies on Purolator.

Transport committee  When the RFI was issued, we responded, as did other members of the aviation community. The timeline was within 120 days to provide wide-body airlift, or “large-gauge” aircraft; that's how we would refer to them in the industry. We operate 727 aircraft. Those are narrow-body aircraft that carry about 46,000 pounds.

Transport committee  The timeframe we were given was extremely short. Generally in aviation you have anywhere from 12 to 14 months to respond. So in 120 days, due to its size and capability, Purolator was able to engage our resources and capability right across the country, with the support of Kelowna Flightcraft, to put these aircraft into service and get Purolator people trained for the loading and offloading of these aircraft.

Transport committee  I'd like to keep the terms.... Because these contracts are highly confidential, I will tell you it's in the very low single digits in representation of our overall revenue base.

Transport committee  No. I'll add clarity to that. Air Canada was providing commercial airlift services to Canada Post using multiple aircraft. Our response to that in the proposal we submitted to Canada Post was to consolidate those multiple flights to improve the scheduling, service, and overall cost.

Transport committee  On the total structure of Purolator, we're the largest express cargo carrier in the country. We have over 300 dedicated personnel across 14 airport locations, from Victoria right through to St. John's. Given our capability in those air operations at all those airports and our ability to operate aircraft, with the training and the capability, we put a solution forward to improve both the service and the cost for Canada Post.

Transport committee  Because of the commercial sensitivity of those terms and the highly competitive nature of the express industry we compete in, I can't divulge the size of the revenue of the contract. I can tell you that the margin percentage is 15%. That's an accepted transfer margin between Canada Post and Purolator.

Transport committee  It's in the general range of the contract.

Transport committee  I believe there were probably about four or five other corporations in Canada that participated in that.

Transport committee  Purolator responded, as did the rest of the aviation industry in Canada, to a public RFI issued by Canada Post.

Transport committee  I believe there was Morningstar, which is the carrier for FedEx; Cargojet; and probably a couple of others.