The 25-cent Millennium coin chosen for November 1999 was designed by Brian R. Bacon of Winnipeg, Manitoba. Entitled "The Airplane Opens the North" the coin salutes the bush plane that helped open northern Canada. Bush planes were used for mail, mining exploration, surveying and transporting goods and people to remote locations previously accessible only by watercraft, dog sled or on foot.

Brian R. Bacon was born and raised in Winnipeg, and worked for thirty-four years as a member ofhe Winnipeg Fire Department. Both his father and grandfather were artists by profession, and drawing has always been one of his favourite pastimes.

The coin was launched in a ceremony in Carp, Ontario on November 1, 1999. A new 25-cent coin will be introduced each month throughout 1999 and 2000 as part of the Royal Canadian Mint Millennium coin program.