The Aklak Air logo resembles ice blocks carved into the letters of the name. The emblem’s style perfectly reflects the region it serves and the weather conditions under which the carrier operates.
In the mid-1970s, the local Inuvialuit community in Inuvik, Canada’s Northwest Territories, devised a plan. They saw the need for a specialized airline to serve remote Arctic areas. They teamed up with Kenn Borek Air, a company with experience in Arctic flights. Together, they started Aklak Air in 1977.
Aklak Air first flew in 1978 with a DHC-6 Twin Otter plane. This flight from Inuvik to Tuktoyaktuk launched a service that reached Aklavik, Sachs Harbour, Polar Bear, and Holman.
In the early 1980s, Aklak Air expanded its fleet with larger planes, enabling it to serve more destinations, including Yellowknife, Norman Wells, and Cambridge Bay. In 1994, Aklak Air merged with Kenn Borek Air to expand its fleet and charter operations.
As the 2000s began, the airline updated its fleet to modern DHC-8 Dash 8 planes. Now, Aklak Air has seven of these planes and serves over 25 places in the Northwest Territories and Nunavut.
Throughout its existence, Aklak Air focused on supporting indigenous northern communities and their activities, providing connectivity to the most remote parts of the country. However, in 2007, the airline ceased scheduled flights, switched to charter services, and ceased operations in 2016.
Aklak Air is the largest airline in Canada’s Arctic regions, with main hubs in Inuvik and other bases in Yellowknife, Cambridge Bay, and Rankin Inlet. The airline is crucial for many remote communities without other transport options.
The Inuvialuit Joint Venture Company and Kenn Borek Air still manage Aklak Air, keeping the Inuvialuit community at the center of its operations. Aklak Air focuses on meeting the unique travel needs of the Arctic and supports the communities it serves.
During its heyday, Aklak Air operated a fleet of 13 aircraft serving about 30 destinations in northern Canada. Despite its eventual closure, the airline played an important role in connecting remote northern regions and performed admirably throughout its years of operation.
Meaning and History
What is Aklak Air?
It is a small regional airline based in Inuvik, Northwest Territories, Canada, providing essential air service to remote communities in the harsh, sparsely populated Canadian Arctic. The company operates a fleet of light aircraft and turboprops, such as the Cessna 208 Caravan and Beechcraft King Air, which are ideal for navigating challenging weather conditions and landing on the short, unpaved runways typical of this area.
1977 – today
Aklak Air’s logo skillfully combines simplicity and complexity. On the one hand, the logo consists solely of the airline’s name, with no additional embellishments or graphic symbols. The letters are white, but each has a black outline, allowing them to be placed on a light-colored background. On the other hand, the font is complex. It is italic, with large serifs and irregular glyph spacing. In addition, the chosen color scheme gives the impression that the letters consist only of outlines and seem hollow inside.
The simple design, featuring only the airline’s name, conveys straightforwardness and unclutteredness, aligning with the desire for clarity in aviation. The complex typeface, on the other hand, adds sophistication to the logo. The black outline provides flexibility in logo placement, as it stands out against different backgrounds. The illusion of emptiness creates a sense of lightness suitable for an aviation company.


