Our Story

A lot of hard work and dedication, along with a little luck, went into making the Gulf Island Seaplanes of today! In 2005 Sean and Alison met, a pilot and a legal assistant, destined to become a happy family of six, with three daughters and one son. Sean had spent many years prior to this meeting as a pilot in Northwestern Ontario and was happy to find work on the west coast as a pilot for Tofino Air. Eventually, after becoming Chief Pilot, Sean took on many more responsibilities with Tofino Air and the job took him to many destinations where he gained invaluable experience and knowledge of flying on the west coast of British Columbia.

Now as luck would have it the owner of Tofino Air decided to sell the scheduled route from Gabriola Island to YVR, Vancouver so Sean and Alison made the incredibly exciting and somewhat daunting decision to create GULF ISLAND SEAPLANES! The two have supported one another in their business venture ever since and thankfully are suited to different aspects that complement one another in the running of the airline. A carefully selected and incredibly strong group of employees are the heart and soul of the business, our strength lies with our team and with this team there is no telling where Gulf Island Seaplanes is headed!

We are proud to be an Indigenous-owned company. Our co-owner Alison Evans is from Hagwilget Village First Nation, and is always striving to make connections and partnerships with Indigenous businesses, communities and networks.

Embracing cultural diversity, we are committed to all of our passengers and want their experience from the first step of booking their trip to when they disembark at their final destination to be a personable, memorable and enjoyable experience. We make a point to get to know our customers, whether it is their first time flying with us or on a continued basis. Customer service is where we shine – and if you are not happy we want to know so we can make it right.

We credit our excellent safety record to our pilots that have years of floatplane flying experience in and around coastal BC.

And our team, each and everyone of us, loves what we do. We are excited to share that with you!