Airship factory project takes flight
By William Crooks
Local Journalism Initiative
In a move hailed as transformative for the Eastern Townships and the province, Flying Whales announced on May 1 the official selection of Sherbrooke’s airport site in Cookshire-Eaton as the future home of its North American airship manufacturing facility.
The news was made public during the annual convention of the Quebec Air Transport Association at the Delta Hotel Sherbrooke, where company leaders, elected officials, and dignitaries from France and Québec gathered to unveil the company’s strategy and take questions from reporters.
According to a press release, the 50-hectare site near the Sherbrooke Airport will host the central assembly and testing hub for Flying Whales’ LCA60T rigid airships, which are designed to transport heavy cargo to remote areas. Construction is expected to begin in 2027, with the first Quebec-built airships taking to the skies in 2029.
“This is the largest aeronautical cooperation project between France and Quebec,” said Vincent Guibout, CEO of Flying Whales and President of its Quebec subsidiary. “The Sherbrooke site will be a pillar of our North and South American operations.”
Guibout emphasized the region’s advantages, noting that “with a lifting capacity 15 times greater than a helicopter and an environmental footprint 10 times smaller, the LCA60T is an accelerator of the energy transition.”
The Quebec facility, which will mirror an existing one in Nouvelle-Aquitaine, France, is projected to create over 300 direct jobs and hundreds more indirectly. The initiative also promises $3 billion in export revenues across the Americas.
Funding and regional impact
To date, between $75 and $80 million has been invested in Flying Whales by Quebec, making the province its largest shareholder. “We are truly a Franco-Quebecois company,” Guibout said, highlighting that $150 million has already gone into research and development. Future funding will come from successive capital increases as the company advances toward maturity and a public offering.
Flying Whales Quebec’s airships are already in testing phases, with key components being built in Longueuil and by partners such as Thales Canada and Delastec. “All major systems are fabricated. We’re no longer talking about ideas in the air—this is concrete,” Guibout told the audience.
