Telecommunications pioneer.
Born at Winnipeg on 21 August 1923, son of Donald Gordon Sutherland and Charlotte Kidd, he attended Gordon Bell High School and the University of Manitoba, receiving in 1945 a degree in Electrical Engineering from the latter. He then took graduate studies at Queens University (Kingston, Ontario) before joining RCA Victor at Montreal, Quebec where he rose to the positive of Vice-President (Telecommunications) at the age of 39. He led the team that developed the Alouette and Anik communication satellites and was involved in establishment of the DEW line in the Canadian Arctic. In 1971, he became President of RCA Iran where he led the building of microwave communication stations in Iran, Turkey, Afghanistan, and Pakistan. After returning to Canada, he joined Canadian Pacific as President and CEO of the newly-formed CNCP Telecommunications to provide telephone, television, and telex communications across Canada. He retired in 1987 and died at his home in Toronto, Ontario on 16 December 2014.
Obituary, Winnipeg Free Press, 20 December 2014.
This page was prepared by Gordon Goldsborough.
Page revised: 20 December 2014
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