A Canadian Aviation Historical Society Chapter
CAHS Toronto Chapter has many members from both Canada and the United States. With seven monthly meetings featuring intriguing speakers, and an informative monthly newsletter, our chapter is active in the preservation and dissemination of aviation history in Canada. You are invited to become a part of it!

Join us at our monthly meetings (location and map below) where you will enjoy 'hangar flying,' informative presentations, refreshments and the camaraderie of those who share your interest in aviation. Members, as well as new visitors are always welcome!
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With your membership you will also get seven issues of our newsletter, Flypast (details below), which includes write-ups of presentations, information on upcoming events, and aviation news of interest to our members.

CAHS Toronto Chapter also hosts a Toronto-specific aviation history page at torontoaviationheritage.ca.
Scroll down to discover Chapter events, including local meetings information, and if this Chapter offers publications, including newsletters, as part of its Membership.

Meeting and Mailing Addresses

Meetings:
Canadian Forces College, Armour Heights Officers' Mess
LtGen Guy Simonds Auditorium (Ground Floor)
215 Yonge Blvd at Wilson Avenue
Toronto
The entrance to the College’s premises, parking lot and the College’s Security Office is around the corner on Sandringham Drive
Transit users should take the Wilson 96 Bus from the York Mills Subway Station.
Zoom in on the map for a more detailed street view.

​Mailing:
Mailing Address
CAHS Toronto Chapter
65 Sussex Avenue,
Toronto, ON
​M5S 1J8

Membership and Meetings

Meetings of the members are held on the 1st Saturday of the month in February, March, April, October, November and December in the Lt. Gen Guy Simonds Auditorium and they start at 1 PM.   The Annual Dinner meeting is held on the first Sunday of May in the Armour Heights Officers’ Mess on the College’s grounds.

The monthly meeting "Landing Fee" is $3.00 ($5 for non-members), this includes refreshments.

The Landing Fee is collected for refreshments which are served in the Armour Heights Officers’ Mess after the speaker’s presentation in the Lt. Gen Guy Simonds Auditorium.

Annual Membership options:
  • All members requesting an 8-page (max) hard copy of Flypast Newsletter - $50.00
  • Members requesting e-mail copies - Regular members - $25.00
  • Student - $15.00
  • Members currently serving in Canadian Armed Forces - $20.00  

Chapter Executives, Directors, and Other Contacts - The election of a new Board is pending.

Sheldon Benner (1935-2023)
Past Chapter President
Toronto, Ontario
John Bertram
1st Vice President
​Email Message
Geoff Pyne
​2nd Vice President
​Email Message
Bob Winson
Volunteer – Website Support
torontoaviationheritage.ca
416-745-1462
​Email Message
Neil McGavock
Secretary, Archivist and Historian
​Email Message
Gord McNulty
Director
Hamilton, Ontario
905-525-9927
​Email Message
Eric Roscoe
Director, Toronto Flypast
Email Message
Ken Swartz
Membership
Email message

Chapter Activities and Publications

CAHS Toronto In-Person & Zoom Meeting (See poster below for more details)

The Life & Times of Leading Aircraftsman Doug Smith: RCAF Veteran 1954-1964
Presentation and film by Brian Cotter
Saturday, October 19, 2024 at 1:00 pm EDT

Canadian Forces College (CFC), 215 Yonge Blvd., North York, Ontario, M5M 3H8

The CFC is located just south of Highway 401, between Avenue and Yonge Street, on the north side of Wilson Avenue

As aviation enthusiasts we rarely hear much about the unsung fitters, riggers and other technicians without whom no RCAF/CF aircraft would ever get safely airborne or return from a sortie.

Created as a RCAF Centenary Project, this one-hour “bio pic” tells the story of the early Cold War RCAF career of aero-engine technician/crewman Leading Aircraftsman (LAC) Doug Smith, CD.

This film is a wide-ranging 2022 interview in which Doug shares the unique tale of his 10-year adventure as an enlisted Airman during the RCAF’s Golden Epoch. A vibrant raconteur, he offers this rarely heard perspective as he describes and reflects on starting out in the Manning Depot to graduating at age 23 at the top of his follow-on Trades class.

His experiences include a year in the exotic Middle East, an unexpected re-muster to Radar and his several flying adventures – some of which were close calls! The film features long forgotten and rarely seen NFB, CBC, BBC and RCAF footage among other clips, coupled with an epic array of stunning photos of aircraft, bases and sights from Doug’s service.
Brian CotterBrian Cotter re-joined the CAHS Toronto Chapter in 2019 on retirement from his 25-year TV & Film career: most recently as a Development/Executive Producer of natural history, science and current affairs documentaries for Discovery Health US, The Science Channel, CBC, Discovery Canada among other channels and genres. 

Starting out in 1980 as a post-secondary/professional book publishing sales rep, by 1991 he was GM-Publishing Director at GAGE before joining TVO in 1995.

While at Trent University studying History and Politics, he was an Air Reservist finishing up as a Captain 1975-77 & 1980 at CFB Trenton. Brian is an avid student of history and aviation, a member of the RCAFA, CWHM, CAHS, a Speaker & Ambassador for Historica’s MEMORY Project and was just recruited as an RCAF Associate Historian.
Chapter Newsletters
CAHS Toronto Chapter members receive our Flypast newsletter seven times per year, via traditional mail or via email, according to the type of membership (see above) selected. 

You can find Flypast's recent issues here.