Snow Angels
Missing "Home" for the Holidays
I’ve been retired for three years now and I find myself missing something that I could not have predicted before working my last Christmas Day in 2015. I miss working over the holidays.
This was always a time when we could truly feel that we belonged in the large extended family that is the airline industry. All of us, in Customer Service, In-Flight and Maintenance, could appreciate the people that provided our livelihoods, our passengers, and know that the brief time that we were away from our own families, played a significant part in bringing families and loved ones together.
A special memory for me is one year, in the late nineties, when my first day off was Christmas Day and (after my shift on Christmas Eve) I planned to fly to Montreal overnight to spend Christmas with my mother. Considering the season, not easy to do on stand-by.
I waited anxiously in the lounge while the first of three overnight flights was being loaded and, luckily heard my name called. When I arrived at the counter, the CSSA stretched out her hand containing a boarding pass and said quickly, “Flight Deck, Go!”
I hurried down the gate and was the last person to board; the flight attendant just said ‘Hi’ and pointed to the open flight deck door. I sat down and strapped into the jump seat, receiving only nods from the pilots, who were discussing the weight of the aircraft (no doubt full of Christmas presents).
As we lifted off from Vancouver, there was a group sigh and both pilots then turned to chat with me. The in-charge then poked her head in and apologized that she could not bring me a festive beverage in the flight deck, but I was welcome to stand in the galley area to have one.
The busy crew went about their duties professionally and enjoyed themselves and shared the warm feeling of knowing that what they do is very important to a plane full of passengers anxious to be with their loved ones.
To all the special people who will be spending this holiday season bringing people together, thank you.
The YouTube video is entitled,
“Air Canada: Coming home for the holidays”.
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Third part of Canadian Pacific history - C.P.R. has done much to stabilize the costly and competitive '' bush country'' operations which have been a sore spot in Canada's aviation picture for many years. Faced with ultimate transcontinental competition unless the Government should force a merger of the two railroad companies (an unlikely prospect), Trans-Canada is busy extending its services to Halifax and preparing to extend its Lethbridge-Edmonton route to Whitehorse, Yukon Territory, junction point for air traffic in Alaska. The White Horse route will be opened early next year and the radio facilities will be complete sometime this year. For some years the British have called attention to its so-called "Red Route," a proposed air service extending from the British Isles to Canada and westward over the Pacific to Australia. The "Red Route" would not touch the United States. But it seems clear that the dominating force in development of such a route will not be London, but Montreal, and the big force in Montreal is C.P.R. An important factor in the expansion program is the expected immigration in Canada of ten million people from England and France after the war is over, doubling the country's population. Even in the midst of war, Canada seems more bent on preparing for future prosperity than on an all-out war effort. C.P.R. is making up for lost time. It had wanted to launch the first Canadian transcontinental route but the Government pushed its own plans and invited C.P.R. to share 50-50 with it in the organisation of Trans-Canada. C.P.R. would not go along on this deal and the Government assumed complete ownership of Trans-Canada through its railway, Canadian National. (Source: Financial Times Archives - 1941) (Final part is in NetLetter #1406 -eds) |
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Found in the PWA Reunion web site - October 20, 2018, from the desk of Captain Terry Champion (retired) 'Jack Johnson's Jenny'. To the Alumni People of Pacific Western Airlines and Canadian Airlines International. This authentic 1918 Curtiss JN-4D ‘Jenny’ was the oldest airworthy aircraft in Canada when it last flew in 2009. It was built by the Curtiss Aeroplane and Motor Company in Buffalo, New York, in May 1918. During the First World War it was stationed in Waco, Texas and was used for training pilots. After the war it was owned and flown in Uruguay by a Hungarian pilot who had flown for Germany during the war. In 1929 he put the Jenny into storage at his shop in downtown Montevideo, where it sat until discovered by an American missionary in 1971 and then repatriated to the United States. Unable to complete the restoration process, he sold it in 1977 to Captain Jack Johnson (retired). After 21 years of painstaking work, Jack’s Jenny took to the skies again on July 16, 1998. |
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The aircraft shown here is 100 years old and is an original, not a replica. The owner, Capt. Jack Johnson, retired Pacific Western Airlines pilot, has graciously donated this valuable aircraft to the Alberta Aviation Museum in Edmonton. This very welcome addition to the Museum's collection was not expected at this time so the Museum has no budget to develop the appropriate display space required. We are asking former employees of PWA and Canadian Airlines to help fund this worthy aviation history project. The museum is also seeking funding for this project and discussions are being considered for that organization to make matching funds to our contributions. Any funds left over will be used to enhance other displays in the historic Alberta Aviation Museum WW2 hangar. Please mail your cheque to the museum and designate your donation to "Jack Johnson's Jenny:" Alberta Aviation Museum 11410 - Kingsway Edmonton AB T5G 0X4 OR credit and debit cards will be accepted at (780) 451-1175. Tax receipts will be issued for the full amount. Your contributions made through the airline alumni group will be appropriately recognized and incorporated into the Jenny display. Thank you, Captain Terry Champion, (Retired) Update: Total raised as of Nov 2, 2018. $2,925.00. Terry Champion advised the generosity of the PWA Alumni has been overwhelming however the plans and budget to build the Jenny display have been modified to reflect revised donation targets. Terry and the Alberta Aviation Museum pass on their thanks and are very encouraged by the generosity and support for this program. (Source: http://www.pwareunion.com/) |
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On the occasion of 2018 International Women’s Day, on March 8, 2018, several Star Alliance member airlines operated all-female crew flights. In this photo, Air Canada has this crew, but no identifications, unfortunately. |
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For Austrian Airlines, Brussels Airlines, Lufthansa and SWISS all-female crews took off to Berlin. Also, several SAS flights were in the hands of women only, both in the cabin and flight deck. Air India flew from Delhi to San Francisco and to New York with an all-female crew. And Air Canada marked this year’s International Women’s Day with two special intercontinental flights operating with all female pilots and flight attendants and handled by female crews in boarding, ramp and specialized airport operations. Ethiopian Airlines did not only celebrate International Women’s Day but also the inauguration of its Addis Ababa – Buenos Aires route. The inaugural flight was conducted by women only. |
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In NetLetter #1335, we gave a source for baggage information at www.seatguru.com and other airline info at I noticed you have a link to SeatGuru on your site and so I figured you’d be interested in hearing about our site Upgraded Points which your visitors may also find useful. Here’s the link - upgradedpoints.com We publish a huge number of ways to save money on air travel; from tips/tricks for finding cheap airfare to the best ways to maximize credit card rewards and even fly for free. We launched in 2016 and the site has been going strong attracting nearly 10k subscribers and industry acclaim from the likes of Huffington Post, Fortune, Tripsavvy, Vice and many more. Thank you in advance. Andrea |
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Here is a timetable issued May 2008 from the collection of Bjorn Larsson. (Source: kdair.com) |
