July 2022 CAHS e-Newsletter

CAHS Newsletter

In Praise of Volunteers and Craftmanship

I never cease to be amazed at the skill, dedication and patience of volunteers who are involved in the restoration of aircraft for Canadian museums. Having visited more than a dozen aviation museums from Vancouver Island to Newfoundland, I have seen the same undying interest by volunteers who contribute to the collections of aircraft that preserve history and share it with visitors to museums.

As well as the volunteers, I admire the work done by skilled craftsmen who work under contract not only to restore aircraft but also to re-create in exact detail components of aircraft that are missing and can’t be located.

In the past few weeks, I have been made aware once again of the ongoing work by volunteers and commercial shops in preserving our heritage. At the Bomber Command Museum of Canada in Nanton, AB, on June 25, a large crowd was present to celebrate the de Havilland Mosquito in displays, books and a talk by David Briscoe, whose father flew the “Wooden Wonder” during the Second World War.

While there, I checked the progress of the Mosquito being rebuilt in the museum’s shop. Volunteers from Calgary and area are there every Saturday to take the warbird to static display with running twin Merlin engines. Progress continues during the week when workers are available. The Mosquito is in its 10^th year of restoration since being rescued by the Calgary Mosquito Society.

At the same time, the Nanton museum’s curator, Karl Kjarsgaard, was off the coast of Sweden aboard a ship with divers working to recover more components from a sunken Halifax bomber destined for restoration in Nanton. Meanwhile, at the shop of Knox Tech Inc. in Ottawa, workers were building new replacement parts for wings and the fuselage of the Halifax.

Two days later, I was in Wetaskiwin, AB, at the home of Historical Aircraft Services Inc., where proprietor Byron Reynolds is under contract to The Hangar Flight Museum in Calgary to restore an RCAF CF-100 Canuck to static display.

On display outdoors for decades, the aircraft had suffered from the effects of weather, corrosion being the most notable evidence. In some cases, it was necessary to repair or replace metal areas, and in other cases, complex, new metal components had to be made from scratch.

Here in my hometown of Edmonton, at the Alberta Aviation Museum, work continues regularly by volunteers in restoring a Bell P-39 Airacobra single-engine fighter. During the war, vast numbers of them were flown through Edmonton from the USA in the American Lend-Lease Program en route to Fairbanks, Alaska. They were then passed on to Russia in support of that country’s wartime efforts.

In early July, a half-scale V-1 rocket replica built by volunteers at the museum was suspended from the ceiling of the wartime British Commonwealth Air Training Plan hangar that serves as home for the museum. The V-1 is appropriately “flying” alongside the museum’s Mosquito, named for the late Russell Bannock, whose victories as a Mosquito pilot during the Second World War included bringing down a number of V-1 rockets aimed at London.

I have learned that in aircraft restoration, there is no definite timeline, no expected firm date of completion. The job takes as long as it takes by tireless and patient workers whose goal is simply to finish the project, not meet a deadline. The aforementioned examples are only four instances of the type of projects that are underway across our country in our aviation museums. In the next issue of this newsletter, I will illustrate those projects in an article about them.

Each museum in Canada proudly displays the stunning results of thousands of hours of work by volunteers, whose priceless labour contributes greatly to what we see when we walk through the doors of our aviation museums. The Canadian Aviation Historical Society newsletter welcomes stories from our aviation museums, many of which are Museum Members of the CAHS. Send your stories to editor Katherine Simunkovic.

A Move of Home and Office

With effect from 31 August 2022, the new mailing address for CAHS Journal correspondence and editorial matters will be:

SkyGrid Studio

739 Route 105

Maugerville

New Brunswick

E3A 8L1

On the occasion of my wife Alison's retirement, we have sold our home of nearly 20 years in Kitchener, ON, in preparation for a move east. In farm country, directly across the St. John River from Fredericton International Airport, the new property will better accommodate our aviation-history-related editorial and design/production work in a single, large, dedicated space. It should prove to be much more user-friendly than the two house rooms (on separate floors) and one rental space we use now.

The move will involve equipment relocation and new facility modification, so there will be some downtime. The final day of operations here will be 29 August, and the first in the new location will be 12 September. However, I will do my best to keep up with any currently in-progress email correspondence with authors, photo contributors, and fellow CAHS editors during that time.

Also coincident with the move will be a change in webmaster and an improved chapter-to-webmaster "updates" reporting channel – the goal is to get chapter news and events on CAHS.com with minimal delay. I will have more on this in the next newsletter report.

CAHS Journal Volume 57-4 should be arriving in your mailboxes shortly, if it has not already been delivered by Canada Post. Your membership expiry date is indicated in two locations: firstly, on the mailing envelope above your address block; and secondly, in bold type at the top of the President's Letter. If you have not paid for 2022 membership, you should find a renewal form and pre-addressed envelope accompanying the Journal. You can use cheque, money order, or credit card when mailing in your renewal form, and you can pay online using Paypal or a credit card (no Paypal account needed).

If your membership has expired, we kindly ask that you promptly renew - either using the paper renewal form or online at this link. Your membership payment is what enables us to pay the bills, which includes printing and mailing the Journal, running the website, and maintaining the insurance policies that are legally required. The CAHS Executive and Board works really hard to minimize our expenditures, so that we can keep membership rates steady and affordable: $50 per year gets you four hard copy issues in a year (in Canada), and for just $25 a year, you can receive four PDF Journal issues.

Have you ever thought about giving CAHS membership as a gift to a friend, relative, or aspiring youth? Perhaps you would consider giving a student a gift membershipas part of back-to-school supplies shopping? The aviation industry desperately needs more pilots, technicians, and air traffic controllers. Exposing young men and women (in junior high and high school) to Canada's impressive and exciting aviation history just might inspire some students to enter the aviation industry and become the aviation history makers of Canada's future.

The Turnbull (NB) Chapter is recognizing Her Majesty’s Platinum Jubilee by planting 70 spruce trees around the Province, each tree representing a year of Her Reign.

Seven New Brunswick communities will receive 10 trees each. Our Chapter is a provincial organization which meets in Fredericton, Saint John, and Moncton. Five of the seven communities which will receive trees are:

• Saint John - at the Wade-Myles Aviation Park, Millidgeville
• Fredericton
• Hillsborough
• Papineau First Nation
• Rogersville

Other communities under consideration are St. Marys First Nation, Eel Ground First Nation, Bath and Woodstock. If a community is interested in having a group of 10 trees to mark the Queen of Canada’s Platinum Jubilee, they may send a request to the Turnbull (NB) Chapter via email. There is no cost to the host community.

Each tree planting location should be near an elementary or middle school. Students will be active participants in the tree planting. All trees will be dedicated to Veterans who served within the seventy years of Her Majesty’s reign, and the students will select the Veterans within their own community. Each student will receive one of Canada’s Platinum Jubilee pins.

Each community event will have a ceremonial component which could involve the students, community leaders and Veterans. Details of each ceremony would be developed by each community.

In addition to the trees, the Turnbull (NB) Chapter will produce a short power point presentation for each community. This presentation will detail all visits to New Brunswick of Her Majesty from 1951 to 2002. The tree planting in all communities will be included.

The Turnbull (NB) Chapter received some funding from Heritage Canada, and the donation of 100 trees from J.D. Irving Ltd. The Chapter has partnered with Landscape New Brunswick and that organization is overseeing the planting of all trees. The students will also receive a short presentation on the value and significance of trees from Jim Landry, the Executive Director of Landscape New Brunswick.

Turnbull (NB) Chapter has also given 30 trees to two Legions; Jervis Bay Memorial 53 and Kennebecasis 58 and to Landscape NB. The Legions held their own ceremonies.

The Turnbull (NB) Chapter was formed in 1996 to preserve New Brunswick’s aviation heritage. They own the Don McClure aviation gallery at the Moncton airport, they developed the Wade-Myles Aviation Park, Provincial Heritage Place in Saint John, and have placed aircraft commemorative plaques at numerous locations around New Brunswick. The Chapter will shortly announce their 2024 RCAF 100 legacy projects in the fall.

Harold Wright

CAHS Turnbull (New Brunswick) Chapter

Captain Bettina McCulloch-Drake, a soon-to-be veteran, recently received permission from the 17 Wing Commander to commence work, alongside the Wing's historian, on an official history of 17 Wing / Canadian Forces Base Winnipeg, as part of the RCAF Centennial in 2024 and the Wing's centennial in 2025. She is reaching out to determine:

What historical records, testimonials, and imagery might anyone possess concerning RCAF Station Winnipeg, up to and including its present status as 17 Wing Winnipeg.
Are there any historians or authors that have either done some work concerning the RCAF in Manitoba or may be willing to assist with writing some of the text for the book?
Are any former members of RCAF Station Winnipeg, CFB Winnipeg, and 17 Wing Winnipeg, who are interested in sharing their stories (with imagery where possible) about their work and time there, willing and interested in being contacted to arrange for a telephone, video, or in-person interview?

Capt Bettina McCulloch-Drake, Public Affairs Officer in Manitoba may be reached via email or by phone: 204-590-5885.

ANSWER: “The RCAF was not happy with the outcome of the design modifications it had imposed on the Varunas. However, specific requirements were necessary to develop an effective and efficient transportation aircraft for use in fire-suppression. In May 1928, after consultation with the RCAF, Canadian Vickers provided a new design. The Vancouver I was an equal-span biplane powered by two Armstrong Siddley Lynx IVB engines. The prototype was flown in April 1929, and accepted by the RCAF in September of that year. With the Vancouver I, the RCAF felt they were finally on the right track and that many of the design flaws evident in the Varunas had been solved. After sorting out some design changes, the RCAF requested Canadian Vickers to produce five Vancouver IIs. Three Vancouver IIs were powered by a 240 hp Lynx IVC, a geared version of the Armstrong Siddley, and two with the 300 hp Wright J-6 Whirlwind. Delivered in the summer of 1930, the aircraft were sent to Manitoba for operational trials. For several years the machines satisfactorily performed a valuable service for the forest industry. By 1932 fire protection was no longer a federal responsibility and the RCAF decided to convert the Vancouvers to a Service type. Lewis guns, external bomb racks and other military equipment were installed, which brought about the replacement of the Lynx engine with the more powerful Armstrong Siddley Servals. All of the converted aircraft eventually served on coastal patrol duty with No. 4 Squadron at Jericho Beach Air Station. ”

From Jericho Beach and the West Coast Flying Stations, pg. 247