Aviation Memorabilia Newsletter

Submitted by Herbert Metzler -

I found these old pictures from a Hadj pilgrimage charter in Casablanca.

Must have been in the late 70's or early 80's.

Shown on the picture are Rudi Roth, Purser, Herbie Metzler (myself) OPS and Captain Stinston, Chief Pilot.

Cheers, Herbie

Editors' note: The aircraft in the photograph is C-FTOA (Fin # 301) which was delivered to Air Canada in February 1971 and remained in the fleet until October 1983. 

View history at Planespotters.net

Ken Patry, regarding this photo in "Subscriber Feedback" in NetLetter #1449, sends ths information -

Regarding the photo of Robert Service standing in front of the Barkley Grow, I think the pilot is Sheldon Luck. He and my father Don Patry were both pilots for Yukon Southern.

Enclosed is a picture of one of the Barkley’s they flew on floats.

Ken Patry

Warwick Beadle sends this additional information -

Regarding the Barkley-Grow photo question, I sent the document to a friend of mine in Whitehorse, Bob Cameron to see if he knew. His response follows. I hope it helps.

Regards,

Warwick Beadle CP 1968-2001.

Mr. Cameron's reply:

Hi Warwick,

Nice to see a few folks out there interested in the history! The pilot in the picture with Robert Service is Sheldon Luck. He had just given 'RWS' his first ride in an airplane (the Barkley)!

I have the original of that photo. The news reporter who took the photo gave a copy to Sheldon, who wasn't much on collecting photos. He gave it to my uncle Dick Fisher, who was often a co-pilot with Sheldon back in the Yukon Southern days.

Uncle Dick was an engineer with 'YSAT', worked a lot with Sheldon and Grant, and ended up at the top of the maintenance department of CPA when he retired. I have all his Yukon Southern photos.

Uncle Dick and Rex Terpening were among the managers who took off their suits and put on their coveralls to put back into service a DC-8 that was undergoing heavy maintenance when the maintenance crew went on strike. With the DC-8 in pieces the strikers thought they had the company over a barrel, but they underestimated the capability of management back in those days!

They were all out of the bush flying days of CPA and YSAT and hadn't forgotten their trade!

Submitted by Mike Nash -

In feedback section of The Netletter #1450 of November 28, 2020, you quoted Vic Bentley as saying that Andy Cruikshank’s ‘Ryan’ aircraft was the same model that Lindbergh flew across the Atlantic, “…the sister ship to the famous Spirit of St. Louis, in which he made his famous transatlantic flight.”

The connection to Lindbergh may actually be a lot stronger than Vic Bentley suggests. According to author Kerry Karram in ‘Four Degrees Celsius: A Story of Arctic Peril’ (Dundurn, Toronto, 2012), pages 44-46.

Andy Cruickshank was next in the production line for a Ryan monoplane when Charles Lindbergh approached him and asked if he could take delivery of the plane instead for the attempt on the first non-stop Atlantic flight. Cruikshank agreed to give up his position in the production line and Cruikshank’s aircraft became Lindbergh’s ‘Spirit of St. Louis’, with Cruikshank taking delivery of the next plane in production.

Submitted by Captain David Edward -

Hi,

Always look forward to receiving The NetLetter and appreciate all the hard work you do to keep us informed.

Reference the Submitted Photos section of issue NL  #1450, graduates of Brantford-Norfolk Aero Club.

My father, A.G.K.(Gath) Edward has been misidentified. Dad had a 30 year career, from, from 1940 to 1970, with TCA-Air Canada. I had a 40 year career, from 1958 to 1998, and the family tradition carries on.

Our eldest son, Gregory is in his 32nd year with Air Canada, flying the B-787 at the present time, and his son Casey is currently on furlough from his position as an First Officer on the A-220.

We had hoped to celebrate Casey's joining the family tradition and making him the first 4th generation pilot for the same airline. Sadly, he now becomes a 3rd generation pilot to be furloughed by the same airline.

Cheers

David Edward, TCA / AC Captain, Retired

Editors' note: We also hope that Casey returns to work as soon as possible and this family tradition continues.

Captain Edward also supplied the following excerpt from InterPilot Journal - Issue 2 - 2018 (Page 20)

“Our eldest son Gregory, born in 1963, got his aviation diploma and pilot’s license in 1987 at Mount Royal College in Calgary. He flew in the bush with Athabaska Airways and then with Voyageur Airways in 1988. He was hired by Air Canada in 1989 and is currently a captain flying the B-787. He is also a project pilot on assignments with the company.

Gregory’s second son Casey was born in 1993. He got his wings in 2013 at Algonquin College and worked at Ottawa Aviation Services as an instructor until his hiring by Air Georgian (an Air Canada connector) in 2017. He is currently a F/O on the RJ.”

Posted by Darrell Wood on October 31, 2020. 

A comment by Cliff Dueck

As a newly minted S/O on the DC-8 in the early 70's flying with an unnamed captain, I can definitely confirm this as true. Life is too short to be serious all the time.

And this from Brian Spear

As a thirty five year worker and hundreds of flights, I have been told that in many cases the flight attendants request this "turbulence" from the flight deck to get the passengers to sit, while they attempt a food/beverage service.

In 2008, the East Canada Section of the Ninety-Nines initiated a stamp project in order to celebrate Canadian women pilots representing various flying careers.

In NetLetter #1444 we published details of the commemorative stamps issued by the East Canada Section of the Ninety-Nines in order to celebrate Canadian women pilots representing various flying careers.

Please note that these stamps cannot be purchased at Canada Postal outlets but are available at www.canadian99s.com/stamps.

Rosella Bjornson - First Canadian Female Airline Pilot. 

Rosella's interest in flying ignited when, as a youngster, she flew with her father, sitting on his knee, holding the controls of his Aeronca Champ.

Her seventeenth birthday gift was an easy choice for her parents - flying lessons! Her first lesson at the Lethbridge Flying Club was July 13, 1964.

The Rosella Bjornson stamp was released in 2014, where Rosella had her first lesson, on the fiftieth anniversary of that day.

In April 1973 Transair, Canada 's fourth largest airline, hired Rosella Bjornson as First Officer on a Fokker F28 jet, the first woman in Canada to achieve this position, and also the first jet qualified female airline pilot in North America. As the first woman hired by a commercial airline in Canada, and the first woman member of the Canadian Air Line Pilots Association, she joined a fraternity of 2800 male airline pilots.

Source: canadian99s.com/rosella-bjornson