Yellowknife, N.W.T. - The city of Yellowknife is planning to honour two of the great names in Northern aviation by names streets after them near the airport.

Laserich Gate is named in honour of Willy Laserich, who started Adlair Aviation in 1983; his wife Margaret; and his son Paul, who ran the Yellowknife operation, and passed away suddenly in November.

Mayor Gordon Van Tighem said Paul was a pillar of the community.

"In Yellowknife specifically if anybody ever came to town as a tourist with their own airplain Paul was alwas there, 'here use one of my cars and oh you don't have a place to stay well we'll take you over here.'  He was one of the real ambassadors for the city," he said.

Andrew Luther Blackberg was one of the men responsible for the construction of the Yellowknife Airport in the 1940s and will have Blackberg Drive named after him.

Van Tighem said construction of the airport was a unique operation.

"It wasn't done with getting any permissions or any of the things that are so important to society today,” said van Tighem. “It was just we need an airport, let's build it and there it was."

Both streets will officially be dedicated later this year.

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