Aviation Memorabilia Newsletter
Since 1995 Saturday, July 11, 2026
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The NetLetter's Bob Sheppard (waving)
with Bob Cutting at Boundary Bay, B.C. Airport See Submitted Photos |
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Dear Welcome to The NetLetter, established in 1995 as a dedicated newsletter for Air Canada retirees.
We have evolved into the longest running aviation-based newsletter for Air Canada, TCA, CP Air, Canadian Airlines and all other Canadian-based airlines that once graced the skies. The NetLetter is self-funded and is always free to subscribers. It is operated by a group of volunteers and is not affiliated with any airline or associated organizations. The NetLetter is published on the second and fourth weekend of each month. If you are interested in Canadian aviation history, and vintage aviation photos, especially as it relates to Trans-Canada Air Lines, Air Canada, Canadian Airlines International and their constituent airlines, then we're sure you'll enjoy this newsletter. Please note: We do our best to identify and credit the original source of all content presented. However, should you recognize your material and are not credited; please advise us so that we can correct our oversight. Our website is located at www.thenetletter.net Please click the links below to visit our archives and for more info about The NetLetter. |
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 We have welcomed 75 new subscribers so far in 2026.
We currently have 4616 subscribers.
We wish to thank everyone for the continuing support of our efforts.
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 Back issues of The NetLetter are available in both the original newsletter format and downloadable PDF format.
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We always welcome feedback about Air Canada (including Jazz and Rouge) from our subscribers who wish to share current events, memories and photographs.
Particularly if you have stories to share from one of the legacy airlines: Trans-Canada Air Lines, Canadian Airlines, CP Air, Pacific Western, Maritime Central Airways, Eastern Provincial, Wardair, Nordair, Transair, Air BC, Time Air, Quebecair, Calm Air, NWT Air, Air Alliance, Air Nova, Air Ontario, Air Georgian and all other Canadian based airlines that once graced the Canadian skies.
We will try to post your comments in the next issue but, if not, we will publish it as soon as we can.
Thanks!
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ACRA Montreal event -
Michael Perucho, Director Sports is delighted to announce that our YUL ACRA Golf Tournament will take place on September 11, 2026 at the prestigious Elm Ridge Country Club Golf Club, the same site as our famous Dream Travel Tournament.
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Submitted by Jay Sherlock who graciously allowed us to use his photograph of former registration CF-TAK in NetLetter #1584.
I just finished checking the latest issue of your NetLetter. To add to your data, a usually reliable source reports that the former CF-TAK was broken up June 27-28, 2020.
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Our Bob Sheppard recently spent a day at Boundary Bay airport (Delta, British Columbia) with Bob Cutting who built this kit plane (Van's RV-9A) in his garage.
His 15th plane to go with his 6 cars and a few boats. Not bad for an 81-year-old. We did a taxi to the fuel pump and back.
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Submitted by Vijay Ullal -
From Mumbai to Toronto - time may pass, but friendships built at Air Canada remain forever.
Retired Air Canada colleagues from Mumbai reunited at Moxies, Dixon Road, Toronto, on May 30, 2026.
Despite the years and the miles between us, the Air Canada spirit remains as strong as ever. It was a pleasure reminiscing about our days in Mumbai, sharing stories from our journeys since retirement, and celebrating the friendships forged during our time together
A heartfelt thank you to everyone who attended and helped make this reunion so special. Here's to good memories, lasting friendships, and many more reunions in the years ahead.
Left row, front to back: Ingo Hirt (Station Manager), Framrize & Aruna Lilauwala and Robert Colaco.
Right row: Vijay Ullal, Irene Hirt and Pankaj Dawda.
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Issue dated December 1953
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At the beginning of November 1953, Toronto became the turning point for trans-Atlantic flights for the first time.
Initial plans called for the dispatch of one overseas flight a week out of Toronto and the arrival of another from London and Prestwick, and to mark the introduction of this new service to the public, there was a ceremony.
Passengers for TCA Flight 532 were piped aboard at Malton Airport by members of the Georgetown All-Girl Pipe Band. The once-weekly schedule was the first trans-Atlantic flight to originate at Toronto.
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Flags at the countries served by TCA were
on parade at the ceremony.
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June 17, 2010 - Inaugural service between Toronto and San Diego with A319 equipment. In the Spring of 2014 service was transferred to Rouge.
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Found in 'Horizons' magazine
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Issue dated December 1998
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The Big Easy -
"Let the good times roll!" That's a remark heard often in the city of New Orleans. Air Canada's inaugural flight provided a glimpse of les bon temps awaiting our customers in 'The Big Easy.'
Saxophone sounds filled the air at Pearson International Airport's check-in area during pre-boarding festivities on October 26 for Air Canada's launch of service from Toronto to New Orleans.
Cutting the ribbon for the New Orleans inaugural are, left to right: Jim Kerr, Cabin Personnel Manager; Stephan Crete, RCMP; Phillip J. Jones, Secretary of Department of Culture, Recreation and Tourism, State of Louisiana; Paul D. Mitchell, Board of Directors, Air Canada; The Honorable Revius O. Ortique Jr., Justice-Louisiana Supreme Court, Chairman, New Orleans Aviation Board; and George Mitterer, Air Canada In-Charge.
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Crew of the inaugural service to New Orleans -
A319 crew, left to right: In-Charge George Mitterer, Flight Attendants Patty Vlachos and Diane Thibault and Captains Dave Glazier and John Bradshaw.
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Issue dated February 1999
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A simulation event.
On November 27, 1998, there was an electrical short, followed by a small explosion in the cabin of a B-767. Within seconds, a fire was burning out of control in the Montreal widebody hangar, two employees were trapped inside, and six more victims were on the ground injured.
Was anyone seriously hurt? No, because a fire simulation, designed by Health and Safety, was being run to test our emergency equipment and procedures and outside emergency services.
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"Our ability to respond to a crisis hadn't been tested in a long time," says André Perkins, Acting Technical Training Instructor, Technical Operations. "Despite our high safety standards, accidents can happen. That's why it was important to identify our weaknesses and our strengths."
It was a good dry run. However, our results indicated there's still a lot of work to be done. Special thanks for their efforts and energy to Chief Denis Lebreux, City of Dorval; Captain Denis Cloutier, ADM and Philippe Desrosiers, Urgence Santé.
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A great team effort -
Sylvain Rioux, mechanic with a sprained ankle, is helped to safety by John Purich, Certificated Aircraft Technician, Luc Simard, Team Leader and Dany Lachance, mechanic.
Eleven fire trucks from Montreal International Airport and the City of Dorval, an Urgence Santé observer, eight volunteer fire victims and 10 emergency evacuation team members took part in the fire simulation.
A total of 175 people were evacuated from the hangar in six minutes.
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Issue dated May 1999
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Bye Bye Bloor.
by Mary Manni, Day of Flight Coordinator, SOC, Toronto.
Before the employees of 130 Bloor Street grabbed their bags and headed to the Air Canada Centre, they bid adieu to their 40-year-old home - party-style.
Reservation rendez-vous -
"Hollywood had the Oscars," says Mary Nizich, Manager, Customer Service, Toronto Reservations, "we had Farewell to Bloor."
Throughout the day, more than 300 active and retired employees chatted about old times and munched on finger food in the ever popular Club 130 lounge. For one last time, retirees took a walk around the offices.
Fifth floor farewell -
Employees on the fifth floor organized a midday soiree in the much used, but never abused VP Conference Room. Amidst a room adorned with Trans-Canada Air Lines and Air Canada memorabilia, employees past and present reminisced over lunch.
Departments that have called Bloor Street home include Passenger Sales, National Sales, Corporate Communications, Corporate Sales, Sports Development, Law, City Sales Office, Yield Management, Message Edit, Customer Relations, Personnel, Sales Development and Communication, City Sales Office, and Reservations.
"The move," Nizich says, "marked the end of an era and the start of a new beginning."
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Chris Colton provided an informative and much-appreciated overview of the Lockheed Hudson restoration project at the National Air Force Museum of Canada. Chris previously gave a presentation to the Toronto Chapter on the NAFMC in October, 2013.
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TCA's CF-TCM Lockheed Super Electra Model 14.
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CP Air / Canadi>n People Gallery |
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From the 'Canadian Flyer' magazine.
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Issue dated April 1999
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Excerpt from:
The first Empress - the Canadair Four by Peter Pigott
Click the photo for the full article.
In 1949, Canadian Pacific Airlines modernized its fleet of 47 aircraft by replacing the amphibian Cansos used between Montreal and Rouyn and Val-d'Or with DC-3s.
But by far its most spectacular acquisition that year was its first four-engined aircraft - the Canadair Four C-4-1.
This was a heavier version of the North Star, Canada's first indigenous passenger aircraft. Under the aegis of C.D. Howe, the Minister for Reconstruction, Canadair (formerly Vickers Shipbuilders) was kept in postwar business by assembling surplus DC-4 airframes and putting Rolls-Royce Merlin engines into them.
The only legal stipulation that the Douglas Company had made was that the hybrid aircraft could only be sold in Canada and the United Kingdom.
In keeping with the Canadian Pacific tradition, where its majestic "White Empresses" were well known in the Pacific, CPA christened its C-4-1s:
- CF-CPI - Empress of Sydney
- CF-CPR - Empress of Vancouver
- CF-CPJ - Empress of Auckland
- CF-CPP - Empress of Hong Kong
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The Canadair plant at Cartierville gearing up to put together the North Stars.
Across the runway was Noorduyn where the CPA Norsemen were made. The white-roofed houses in the corner are the original Curtiss-Reid Flying School of 1928.
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The first Canadair Four and the CPA men in her life, left to right:
Grant McConachie; C. North Sawle; Charles Pentland; W.G.M. (Mel) Knox; R.N. (Bob) Goldie; Pat Roy; Bob Phipps; C. Kane; L.C. (Craig) Stevenson, M.D.; Mel Lee; Len Fraser; Ernie Gerby; Art Boone; Courtney Griffiths and Al Pierce.
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The life of CF-NAM Super Constellation - Nordair.
Delivered to National Airlines October 1957 as L-1049H N7134C. Stored at Miami, FL from mid-1963 until sold to International Aviation Company December 18, 1964. To Nordair December 21, 1964 as CF-NAM.
Our thanks to Ralph Pettersen for permission to use these photos.
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In service with Nordair from 1964 to April 1969, when it was sold to Canairelief.
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Derelict at Sao Tome Airport thirty years
after being abandoned there in July 1969.
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Things are looking up for CF-NAM in this April 2013 photo.
Note the Nordair and Joint ChurchAid titles still visible on fuselage.
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More defunct airlines of Canada
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Norcanair was a Canadian airline that existed from 1947 to 1987 when it was acquired by Time Air. Later absorbed into Canadian Regional and Air Canada Express.
It traces its history back to M&C Aviation, founded in Saskatoon, Saskatchewan, in 1930 by private pilots Richmond Mayson and Angus Campbell.
Moving soon to Prince Albert, this bush-flying firm survived the Great Depression by concentrating on carrying prospectors and travellers into Saskatchewan's heavily forested north.
When the Second World War broke out, the firm's technical expertise was put to work running an overhaul facility in Prince Albert that maintained aircraft used by the British Commonwealth Air Training Plan.
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Fokker F28 Fellowship
First jet aircraft bought by Norcanair.
Vancouver - July 1985
Photo courtesy of Gary Vincent
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Canadian Regional livery
Vancouver - August 30, 1999
Photo courtesy of Bernd Oberschelp
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C-GPWG - Canadian's first A320
In NetLetter #1583 we published photos by Pierre Gillard of three Airbus aircraft scheduled to be broken up at (YHU) St. Hubert.
The A320 was the first to be delivered to Canadian Airlines in April 1991. It served all of its nearly 35 year career with same registration in Canada.
Fin #401 was transitioned to Air Canada in the merger of 2001 and rebranded within the 'Tango' fleet until September 2003. It was moved to the 'Jetz' fleet from February 2010 until June 2012.
It was stored from December 2020 to April 2022 when it returned to service for Air Canada. It was withdrawn from service in November 2025 and stored at Trois- Rivières until January 2026 when it was moved to Saint-Hubert and broken up with many of its components salvaged and sold or returned to Air Canada inventory.
Below are photos over its career. It was never painted in the current Air Canada livery. At the time of its retirement it was Air Canada's oldest passenger aircraft (three of the six converted Boeing 767 freighters are slightly older) and one of the oldest A320s still flying in the world.
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Original livery
Toronto - June 5, 1991
Photo courtesy of Brian Richards
(Nationair DC-8 in the background)
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Air Canada Tango
Montreal - March 2002
Photo courtesy of Pierre Lacombe
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Air Canada Jetz
Vancouver - September 2, 2011
Photo by Biggerben
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Final Air Canada livery
Ottawa - May 11, 2025
Photo courtesy of Jeremy Peters
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| Terry's Trivia
& Travel Tips |
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Terry Baker, co-founder of the NetLetter scours the internet for aviation related Trivia and Travel Tips for you, our readers, to peruse.
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The Bristol Brabazon, was an ambitious and exceptionally luxurious post-WWII British airliner. Despite being a remarkable engineering achievement, the gigantic 130-passenger aircraft never secured a single commercial order and was rendered obsolete by the arrival of faster, more efficient jet-powered aircraft.
On September 4, 1949, before crowds of onlookers at Filton, Bristol, the Brabazon took its first flight.
In October 1953, after 164 flights totalling 382 hours' flying time, the first prototype was broken up and sold for £10,000 in scrap value, along with the uncompleted Mk. II prototype. All that remains are a few parts at the M Shed museum in Bristol and the National Museum of Flight in Scotland.
However, the development of the Brabazon laid the groundwork for the Bristol Aeroplane Company’s eventual contract to build the world’s first supersonic passenger jet, the Concorde.
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from 'Canadian Flyer' magazine
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Issue dated May 1999
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Wayne, Ken & Terry Richmond, British Columbia - December 2019
(Bob Sheppard was not available for the photograph) |
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Wayne, Bob & Ken Richmond, British Columbia - December 2023
(Terry Baker was not available for the photograph) |
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We wish to honour the memories of
Vesta Stevenson and Alan Rust. They remain a part of every edition published. |
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E&OE - (errors and omissions excepted):
The historical information as well as any other information provided in the "NetLetter" is subject to correction and may have changed over time.
We do publish corrections (and correct the original article) when this is brought to our attention.
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