After nearly 70 years, the Avro Arrow will land in Mississauga again

A supersonic aircraft often described as a significant part of Mississauga’s history is expected to arrive in the city on Tuesday — but it won’t be landing at nearby Toronto Pearson Airport.

Instead, the plane, which is actually a near full-size replica of a jet built some seven decades ago in the Malton area of Mississauga, is scheduled to be delivered by truck to Paul Coffey Park, several kilometres north of Canada’s biggest and busiest airport.

The scale model Avro Arrow CF-105 is to arrive in pieces on several flatbed trucks at around 8 a.m. on June 23, Mississauga Mayor Carolyn Parrish said online in drawing attention to the long-awaited delivery.

From there, it will be carefully assembled and then lifted, by crane, onto a pedestal at the Derry Road East and Goreway Drive park — its permanent home.

The replica, built in Barrie and then trucked south on Highway 400 to Mississauga, will be situated next to the restored CF-100 model aircraft that’s been on display for decades at the Malton site.

Rendering shows what the completed display at Paul Coffey Park will look like. The Avro Arrow replica is shown to the left, nearby the existing CF-100 aircraft model that’s been at the site for decades. (Image: City of Mississauga)

An official ceremony marking the new installation, which will offer a glimpse into the city’s — and country’s — aviation history, is planned for Aug. 31, Parrish said earlier.

In the works for several years, the large likeness of what’s been described as a ground-breaking supersonic aircraft marks a significant milestone for Malton and Canadian aviation heritage, the Malton Business Improvement Area said in a news release on Thursday.

The “landmark project” represents the culmination of a multi-year community effort led by the Malton BIA, City of Mississauga, local leaders, corporate partners and private donors, the business group noted.

“The dramatic scale replica returns Canada’s most iconic aircraft to the community where it was originally built and celebrates Malton’s historic role as a global aerospace hub,” the BIA said, adding the permanent monument will sit on “the very grounds where (the Avro Arrow) was originally built, honouring the mid-20th century local engineers and tradespeople who positioned Malton as a global aerospace hub.”

Moment has arrived! Our massive AVRO Arrow arrives at Paul Coffey Park, corner of Derry and Goreway, Tuesday June 23 at approximately 8:00am. It will be in pieces on several flatbeds to be assembled and lifted by cranes onto a pedestal adjacent to the MALTON letters. Exciting! pic.twitter.com/PEvCxEretO

— Mayor Carolyn Parrish (@carolynhparrish) June 19, 2026

The mayor said in a post to social media earlier this spring the Avro Arrow model “will be elevated on a 5-to 6-metre arm above the ‘MALTON’ letters, in front of the CF-100. Seeing it being ferried to its home, close to where the original was built, will be fabulous.”

The public art project has been in the works for a number of years now and was initially to be completed at some point in 2023 or soon thereafter. However, unspecified issues led to delays in unveiling the piece to the public.

In 2017, the Malton BIA said, its chair, Sam Kohli, and Parrish, then Ward 5 councillor, began discussing a vision to create “a landmark that would celebrate Malton’s unparalleled contribution to Canadian aviation history.”

The Avro Arrow was designed and built in Malton in the late 1950s before production was unceremoniously halted by the Canadian government in 1959.

At the time, the jet was widely thought of as the ultimate in Canadian aerospace achievement and one of the most advanced jets in the world.

The sudden halt of the $470-million Arrow program in 1959 put some 15,000 employees, many of whom lived in Malton, out of work.

In a nod to the significant place the 1950s’-era twin-engine supersonic jet has staked out in Mississauga’s history, the City of Mississauga has paid to have the near full-size replica built and installed at Paul Coffey Park.

The replica Avro Arrow while under construction. (Photo: Mayor Carolyn Parrish X)

While initial plans called for a full-size replica to be constructed, rising cost of materials prompted city officials to scale things back by about 20 per cent several years ago in order to stay on budget, Parrish said earlier.

When assembled and set in place, the replica Arrow and the restored CF-100 aircraft beside it will be visible to those flying into and out of nearby Pearson Airport, city officials noted earlier.

The replica Arrow project was approved several years ago by city council at a total cost of $3.6 million. The city planned to pick up $2.2 million of that tab, with the rest coming from community donations and other sources.

The installation of the replica Arrow is part of a larger, ongoing redevelopment of the 112-acre Paul Coffey Park, a multi-use destination formerly known as Wildwood Park that opened in 1968. Sections of the new-look park are scheduled to open this summer. 

Check out more photos of the Avro Arrow and the Malton plant where it was built.