The AVRO Arrow
Black Friday
Stu Rahmer remembers coming back from lunch with a friend to find that smoke and steam were no longer pouring out of the Orenda factory. The announcement "brought tears to my eyes," Rahmer recalls.
Orenda employee Stu Raymer, 1957. RPA/Raymer collection.
Disbelief and shock filled the parking lot as thousands of employees left. How would they pay the mortgage, rent, car payments? Local papers were soon full of ads from former AVRO and Orenda workers, desperate to find employment.
Classified advertisements of people looking for work after the cancellation of the Arrow program, 1959. RPA/Conservator.
Debate over the economic and political decision to cancel and scrap the AVRO Arrow project began immediately and continues to this day.
Classified advertisements of people looking for work after the cancellation of the Arrow program, 1959. RPA/Conservator.
[ Mouse over image to enlarge ]
On Friday, Feb. 20, 1959, radio stations across Canada announced that Prime Minister John G. Diefenbaker had cancelled the Arrow project. AVRO and Orenda switchboards were jammed with calls from people who wanted to know what the cancellation meant for the nearly 14,000 men and women working in Malton.
At 11:20 a.m., AVRO acknowledged the announcement over their public address system. Production ceased, and workers endured several anxious hours before the final grim announcement was made.
Faced with the loss of its single most lucrative contract, and possibly in an attempt to pressure the government into reversing the decision, AVRO decided to lay off all workers.
It was a stunning blow to the employees. Rumours suggested that the project might be scaled down, but few expected total cancellation.
Workers were told to turn in their tools, and go home. No one knew what the future held.
At 11:20 a.m., AVRO acknowledged the announcement over their public address system. Production ceased, and workers endured several anxious hours before the final grim announcement was made.
Faced with the loss of its single most lucrative contract, and possibly in an attempt to pressure the government into reversing the decision, AVRO decided to lay off all workers.
It was a stunning blow to the employees. Rumours suggested that the project might be scaled down, but few expected total cancellation.
Workers were told to turn in their tools, and go home. No one knew what the future held.
Revised: Monday March 01 2010
