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CAHS Newsletter
 
CAHS logo - plain white
 

The Canadian Aviation

 

Historical Society

March 2023 e–Newsletter 

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From the Desk of the Executive

The Canadian Aviation Historical Society is pleased to invite you to our annual convention in Kingston, Ontario, Wednesday 21 June to Saturday 24 June 2023.   We are looking forward to what promises to be an exciting event, building on the traditional excellence of our conventions as reflected in our rewarding and successful gathering at Winnipeg in 2022.

 

Registration will be open soon. Registration for in person attendance is only $240 and includes the Wednesday reception, lunch for three days, and the Friday banquet, plus the tours. Registration for online attendance is $75 and includes access to all convention sessions via Zoom, but not the tours. Recordings will be made for sessions where the presenter grants permission, and these recordings will be available to all attendees after the convention, subject to technical limitations.

 

In the meantime, we ask that you complete this attendance survey, even if you plan not to attend the convention. Your responses will help us make the convention better.

 

We are seeking speakers to make presentations to our convention. The convention is open to all: university students, aerospace industry professionals, academics, professionals in aviation or heritage associations, and aviation enthusiasts of every kind. Our focus will be on history, but we welcome proposals addressing current aviation or aerospace issues. If you're interested in speaking, please complete one of the forms on this page.

 

The convention opens with a Meet and Greet on Wednesday evening. Reconnect with your friends and meet aviation enthusiasts from across Canada at this informal evening. On Thursday, a bus will take us to Trenton, Ontario, where we will tour Canada's largest air force base and the National Air Force Museum of Canada. The C-17 Globemaster, the CC-150 Polaris, the CC-130J Hercules, and the CH-146 Griffon are all based at Trenton. We are also planning a tour of the air force museum, featuring one of the only two restored Handley Page Halifax bombers. The museum also features an extensive air park of retired RCAF aircraft. Convention sessions start Friday morning, and continue until Saturday afternoon. Our annual banquet will take place on Friday evening. More information will be coming soon.

 

Reservations for the convention hotel, the Quality Inn & Conference Centre Kingston Central, will be available soon for $179 per night, plus taxes.

Jim Bell,

National Secretary and Convention Coordinator,

Canadian Aviation Historical Society

 
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From the Desk of the Journal Editor

 
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Volume 58 Number 1 (covers and feature title pages illustrated above) is now in the mail to all traditional members.

 

The digital edition will be available on our website members-only area in the coming days, and all current members – both traditional and online-only – will receive the usual notification and link via email shortly.

 

For non-members, both the print and digital editions of 58-1 will be available in the CAHS.com e-shop later this coming week.

 

Volume 58 Number 2, featuring Nightfall by Cher Pruys as cover art, will go to final proofreading soon.

Terry Higgins, Creative Director, Website Administrator,

CAHS Journal Managing Editor and Graphics Director,

Canadian Aviation Historical Society

 
 
 

From the Desk of the Treasurer

March is Women's History month, so I would like to take a brief moment to reflect on places to learn more about contributions that women have made to Canada's aviation history. 
 

A great first place to explore is Canada’s Aviation Hall of Fame website where female inductees include Rosella Marie Bjornson, Helen Marcelle Harrison Bristol, Maryse Carmichael , Lorna Vivian deBlicquy, Vera Elsie Strodl Dowling, Kathleen Carol Fox, Elizabeth Muriel Gregory MacGill, Marion Alice Orr, Julie Payette, Moretta Fenton Beall Reilly, Shirley Linda Render, and Vi Milstead Warren.

 

In 2017, the CAHS put together a list of 150 aviation books in celebration of Canada's 150th birthday. That list is still available. Check out the books on the list written by Liz Muir, Shirley Render, Crystal Sissons, and Joyce Spring. The CAHS would also like to expand/update our list, so if you know of any additional book titles about Canadian women's contribution to aviation history, please pass them along.

 

I would also like to point out the contribution of a number of CAHS member female artists to our annual CAHS Aviation Artists' calendar over the years. These include Helene Girard, Priscilla Paterson, Cher Pruys, and Virginie Tanguay. Thank you for generously sharing your talents with our fundraising initiatives over the years. By the way, we still have copies of the 2023 CAHS Aviation Artists Calendar in stock, so you can still pick up a copy of the 13-month, full colour calendar.

 

Two CAHS authors have books available (discount prices) about women in Canadian aviation. See the thumbnails below for quick links to purchase Liz Muir's Air Crazy and Air Crazy Too, and Danielle Metcalfe-Chenail's children's book Alis the Aviator. Keep watching future newsletters for new book offers that I am working on making available. 

 

I hope that you found this piece informative about where to learn more about women's contributions to Canada's aviation history. Please pass around to other interested readers, including youth so we can inspire the next generation!  If you would like to suggest other women to highlight in future newsletters (or perhaps even CAHS Journals), please contact me - I would love to hear from you!

Cordially, Dr. Rachel Lea Heide,

National Treasurer,

Canadian Aviation Historical Society

CAHS 2023 Aviation Art Calendar

 
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$15 a copy (plus $5 shipping in Canada).  Visit the calendar's web page for an overview of this year's art and artists…

Only 10 copies left!

 
Order yours here now…
 
 

Air-Crazy:

Fascinating stories of Canadian women in the air

 
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by Elizabeth Muir 

 

When airplanes were first invented over 100 years ago, they were flown by men. Women weren't even supposed to be passengers. But many "air-crazy" women wanted to fly, and eventually they did - becoming pilots, stewardesses, flight instructors, and astronauts.
 
Author and historian Elizabeth Muir tells stories about some of these courageous and determined women across Canada who contributed so much to Canadian aviation history
 
Also available in French.

 

This book can be purchased for $12 (plus $6 shipping in Canada).

Get your copy here…
 

Air-Crazy, Too:

More fascinating Stories of Canadian Women in the Air

 
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by Elizabeth Muir 

 

In the early 1900s, when airplanes were first invented, women weren’t supposed to fly – not even as passengers. But many women persevered and became airplane and glider pilots. They even flew blimps. They became balloonists, skydivers, helicopter and medivac pilots, and even astronauts.
 
Enjoy our new stories about more daring women aviators in Air-Crazy, Too, a companion to the first book, Air-Crazy.
 
This book can be purchased for $12 (plus $6 shipping in Canada).

Get your copy here…
 

Libres Comme L'Air:

Histoires fascinantes des pionnières de l'aviation canadienne 

 
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by Elizabeth Muir 

 

Lorsqu’on a inventé les avions il y a environ une centaine d’années, ce sont les hommes qui les pilotaient. Les femmes ne devaient même pas être à bord comme passagères. Cependant, beaucoup de femmes souhaitaient voler dans un avion. Plus tard, c’est ce qu’elles ont fait.
 
Elizabeth Muir, auteure et historienne, raconte les histoires vécues de ces femmes courageuses et déterminées qui ont grandement contribué à l’histoire de l’aviation canadienne
 
Aussi disponible en anglais.

 

Get your copy for only $12 (plus $6 shipping within Canada).

Order yours here now…
 

  Alis the Aviator

 
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by Danielle Metcalfe-Chenail

 

Come along on an aviation journey with Alis! This spunky female guide will take you through an ABC of planes featuring gorgeous cut-paper art.

An A to Z of planes past and present, this book has stunning cut-paper art and a cute-as-a-button guide named Alis. Named for Dr. Alis Kennedy, likely one of the first Indigenous women to obtain a commercial pilot licence in Canada, Alis will take you on an aviation tour from the Avro Arrow to the Zeppelin and everything in between.

Meticulously researched and uniquely crafted, this is a one-of-a-kind book that will delight aviation fans big and little

 

Get your copy for only $20 (plus $6 shipping within Canada).

Get your copy here…
 
 
Go to the CAHS Shop for more options!
 
 

Our Society is very thankful for the support of our Corporate Members, Museum Members, Individual Donors, and from the proceeds generated by the time-limited Special Offer items in our e-shop.

 
 

Aviation News and Events

 
 
 
 
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Captain Judy Cameron Scholarship Recipients

Every March 8th we celebrate International Women’s Day, and every year we recognize the week that it falls on as National Women in Aviation Week. This year on March 8th, in recognition of women, the Northern Lights Aero Foundation announced the recipients of the Captain Judy Cameron Scholarship. 

Press Release
Recipient Bios
 
 
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Author Elinor Florence

Elinor Florence lives in Invermere, B.C. Her wartime novel Bird’s Eye View, about a farm girl from Saskatchewan who joins the RCAF in the Second World War and serves as an aerial photographic interpreter, is a Canadian bestseller. She currently writes a monthly newsletter titled Letters From Windermere. You may read more about Elinor and her books here. 

 
 
 
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Not Just to Fly in Combat: Chinese Canadians Take Flight Training in the Inter-War Period   

 

Between the wars, dozens of Chinese Canadians took flight training at airfields across Canada. Their reasons were as varied as their backgrounds; it wasn't just about learning to fly so they could fly in combat against the Japanese, who had invaded China in 1931. Join us as Mathias Joost looks at this little known aspect of Canadian aviation history. This presentation was given to CAHS Ottawa on February 24, 2022.  

 

via Kyle Huth

Check it out on Youtube…
 
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"Take to the Skies with these Kids' Books About Airplanes"

Do you have a young aviation enthusiast at home? Brightly has put together a list of recommended books for young kids who have an interest in aviation.
by Dena McMurdie

See Brightly Website
 
 

Stellar Aviation Conference at

Winnipeg Aviation Museum  

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The Royal Aviation Museum of Western Canada in Winnipeg is excited to announce a special aviation conference they’ll be hosting in April. 

 

by John Chalmers,

CAHS Membership Secretary

Read more...
 
 

Canadian Aviation Moments

Here are the questions and answers to this month's Canadian Aviation Moments:

 
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Question 1:  Who was the guest of honour at a gathering of German airmen in Berlin in 1928?

 

Source:

Canada’s Fighting Airmen,

pg. 56 (Drew)

 

 
 
 
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Question 2:  How many Noorduyn Norseman were ordered by the RCAF in 1938 and again in 1941? Where did many of them serve?    

 

Source:

Jericho Beach and the West Coast Flying Boat Stations,

pg. 266 (Weicht)

 

 
 
 
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Question 3:  What was the particularly effective, sinister and painfully-long-undetected weapon fielded by the Germans in the summer of 1943?    

 

Source:

No Prouder Place,

pg. 255 (Bashow)

 
 

Spoiler alert -  the answers to this month's questions follow. Skip the rest of this section and come back later if you wish to guess/research the answers first. Good luck and have fun!

ANSWER 1: “The sincerity of these words was proved in 1928 when Bishop was the guest of honour at a gathering of German airmen in Berlin and was made an honorary member of their association. Germans have been similarly received in London. In each case sincere tribute was paid to the courage and achievements of former enemies. 'Respect for human qualities of this high order knows no frontier.'”

Source:

Canada’s Fighting Airmen,

pg. 56 (Drew)

ANSWER 2: “Several IVs were sold to Canadian bush operators, and in 1938 the RCAF ordered four of these models. By the end of 1941 the RCAF had 18 Norseman IVs on order.” “Many Norseman IVs and Vis served with the RCAF at Jericho Beach and also at the various Flying Boat Squadrons on the British Columbia coast."

 

Source:

Jericho Beach and the West Coast Flying Boat Stations,

pg. 266 (Weicht)

 

ANSWER 3: “The shortcomings of Bomber Command’s defensive armament are highlighted by the introduction of a particularly effective, sinister and painfully-long-undetected weapon fielded by the Germans in the summer of 1943. Known as Schräge Musik (Strange Music, or Jazz Music), it consisted of a battery - usually a pair, but in groups of four or even six of either 20mm or 30mm cannon - obliquely mounted in a night fighter’s fuselage to fire forward and upward at an angle of approximately fifteen degrees from the vertical. In an extension of the earlier low stern approach tactic, the idea was to close from the bomber’s vulnerable blind cone and then, remaining directly beneath the bomber but flying parallel to it, rake it with fire aimed through a special reflector sight mounted on the roof of the fighter’s canopy. Widespread confirmation of this weapon was not released to the crews until early 1944, by which Schräge Musik had claimed many victims. Even when the weapon’s existence was confirmed, there was no real counteraction to it, except for the mid-upper and tail gunners and the mid-under gunner (if the aircraft was so configured) to be extra vigilant in scanning this particular attack approach path.” 

 

Source:

No Prouder Place,

pg. 255 (Bashow)

 
 

Chapter News

Select a chapter to discover what they have been up to since the last newsletter.

Many of our Chapters remain very active on Zoom with presentations every bit as good as they would be if we did not have pandemic restrictions to deal with!

 
 
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Special Thanks To Our Supporters

 
 

In addition to its members, contributors, and newsletter subscribers, the CAHS is thankful for the ongoing support of its Corporate Members, Museum Members, and Partner Organizations, as well as the many individuals and organizations whose financial donations are so generously given.

 

If you would like to become a Corporate Member or Museum Member - or if you know an organization that might like to join - we are always happy to receive new applications. Please use the hyperlinks above to learn more about our corporate members and partner organizations. 

Corporate Members:

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Corporate Partners:

Aviaeology Publishing / SkyGrid Studio

CANAV Books

Northern Lights Awards / Elsie MacGill Foundation

The RCAF Association

Vintage Wings of Canada

 

Museum Members:

Alberta Aviation Museum

Billy Bishop Home and Museum

Bomber Command Museum of Canada

Botwood Flying Boat Museum

British Columbia Aviation Museum

Calgary Mosquito Society

Canada's Aviation Hall of Fame

Canadian Bushplane Heritage Centre

Canadian Historical Aircraft Association

The Canadian Museum of Flight

Canadian Warplane Heritage Museum

Commonwealth Air Training Plan Museum

Comox Air Force Museum

First In Last Out

Great War Flying Museum

The Hangar Flight Museum

Harvard Historical Aviation Society

Montreal Aviation Museum

National Air Force Museum

Quebec Aerospace Museum

Royal Aviation Museum of Western Canada

Shearwater Aviation Museum

Western Development Museum

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The Canadian Aviation Historical Society (CAHS)

P.O. Box 2700 • Station D • Ottawa • Ontario • K1P 5W7

visit us at www.cahs.com

The CAHS is incorporated as a Canadian Registered Charity under a Federal Charter with the business registration number 118829589 RR001

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Canadian Aviation Historical Society (CAHS)
P.O. Box 2700, Station D
Ottawa, Ontario, K1P 5W7
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