Did you know that SAN was once one of the first 3 dedicated civilian Air Ambulances on the western side of the Atlantic? (The Royal Flying Doctor Service in Australia was the first in the world) She was a Saskatchewan Government Air Medevac aircraft circa 1947. Her sister ship SAM (#2) is in a museum in Saskatchewan and was on a stamp... Can't remember which was the first dedicated air ambulance, but it was another Saskatchewan Government aircraft in Feb 1946
History link
Museum link
CF-SAN Delivered to Saskatchewan Government Department. of Natural Resources, Regina, Saskatchewan and registered on October 5, 1946 as CF-SAN.
Registered to Saskatchewan Government Airways, Prince Albert, Sask in 1947. Damaged at Ile-A-La Crosse, Saskatchewan on June 16, 1960. Aircraft was taxied downwind for takeoff. Turning back into wind the right wing dipped into the water and the aircraft tipped forward and capsized causing considerable damage. Pilot George Greening and passenger (a nurse) both escaped injury. Re-registered to Saskair, Prince Albert, Sask. in 1964. (Company name change) Registered to Dolphin Airways, Lynn Lake, Manitoba in 1966 and then in 1968 to Ontario Central Airlines, Kenora, Ontario. Registered to Ilford-Riverton Airways, Winnipeg, Manitoba May 28, 1971. (Lease from Samuel Breen) Registered to Northland Fisheries, Winnipeg, Manitoba on May 12, 1972. Again registered to Ilford-Riverton Airways on June 7, 1973. (Lease from Northland Fisheries) Re-registered to Northland Fisheries in early 1974 and then on June 4, 1974 to Ignace Airways, Ignace, Ontario. It was registered to Simpson Air Ltd, Fort Simpson, NWT. on August 10, 1978. Registered to R. and M. Smith (Sportsman's Outfly Air Charter Service), Armstrong, Ontario on July 11, 1979. Again registered to Simpson Air Ltd. in 1980. Suffered substantial damage when it crashed at the Fort Simpson, NWT. airport on December 15, 1981. Take off was attempted with frost on wings and the aircraft overturned. C of A expired on August 12, 1982. Shipped to Calgary, Alberta for rebuild but found to be beyond economical repair and donated to the Calgary Aerospace Museum in 1993.
Sold to Joe McBryan (Buffalo Airways) later the same year. The aircraft has since been rebuilt and registered to Buffalo Airways, Hay River, NWT. Current as of April 2010.