VILLENEUVE — Some potentially valuable parts have taken wing from a former passenger jet that was among the last aircraft to fly out of Edmonton’s former downtown airport last year.
The old Pacific Western Airlines Boeing 737 is the property of the Alberta Aviation Museum and currently sits at the airport near Villeneuve (VIHL’-noov), west of the city, where it’s to be a feature display.
The museum says last weekend, someone who may know about planes made off with several parts from the jet, including an emergency door that would be of value in operational aircraft.
Tom Hinderks, a museum spokesman, says the theft is heart-breaking for staff who have worked to preserve the jet.
Hinderks says repairing the damage and replacing the stolen items could run into the five-figure range if they have to go to a manufacturer for parts.
The jet made a final brief trip out of Edmonton’s City Centre Airport last November just before the facility’s closure prior to its redevelopment.