Dear CAHS member,

It's been a very busy and inspiring month of aviation heritage - and history in the making! Over 100 speakers and attendees from across the country (and even one from Washington State) gathered in Edmonton for the 2011 CAHS Convention. We visted the Reynolds-Alberta Museum, Canada's Aviation Hall of Fame, and the Alberta Aviation Museum. and not only was it fun, but we got the chance to learn from those who were there or are experts in their fields. From what I've heard, everyone enjoyed themselves, but you can see for yourself at www.cahs.ca where we have testimonials and photos posted on the newsreel, as well as a gallery of 250 photos of people and aircraft under the "Events" tab.

On Canada Day Canadian astronaut Chris Hadfield spoke about his big dreams, intense training, and affinity for writing songs in space. As I "tweeted" from our Twitter account afterwards, he is such a down-to-earth spaceman, and a great believer in education, physical fitness and pursuing your goals. I am sure every one of the 400+ adults and kids in the Alberta Aviation Museum hall that day walked away in awe, but also with a sense of the possible.

I hope during these dreamy summer days, you think back fondly on what you've achieved, make plans for those projects you want to accomplish, and take the time to thank those who've helped you along the way. On that note, a very happy birthday to the people in my life who have made many of my dreams possible: my mother, Mary Metcalfe; my father, Jacques Chenail; and my husband, Doug Pagnutti. Thanks for everything!

Sincerely,

Danielle Metcalfe-Chenail

www.daniellemc.com

Hawk One Team Coordinator Jeff Hill, me, and Chris Hadfield (Photo: John Chalmers)

National News

Journal Update

The Winter 2010 issue is finally reaching mailboxes now that the Canada Post strike is over. I think it is quite appropriate the cover features a Sabre since we were just treated to a visit by Hawk One in Edmonton during the convention. We got to chat with its pilot, Dan Dempsey, for a bit, which was great!

Journal Award Winners

During the convention we also announced the 2010 Journal Award Winners. Unfortunately, neither was able to join us, but we would like to extend our hearty 'virtual' congratulations to:

• W.J. "Bill" Cameron of Calgary who won the C. Don Long Best Article Award for "The Saskatchewan Feeder Line: 1938-1957"; and

• Matthias Joost of Ottawa who won the M.L. "Mac" McIntyre Outstanding Research Award for "The RCAF and the Civilian Flying Clubs"

Bill Cameron wrote the following once he had learned his article was chosen: "I was of course very surprised, but delighted, to have been given this prestigious award for one of my stories. It has always been a fascinating subject for me. As a 13 year old in 1942 I had my first-ever airplane ride on a Prairie Airways Beechcraft S-18D from Moose Jaw to Regina, SK. In 1948 I was hired in Regina by CPAL as a Radio Operator-Agent, and over several years did relief work at three other airports in that operation - and then for five years was the Radio Operator-Agent-In-Charge at Prince Albert - all bases originally set up by Prairie Airways in 1938.

My thanks to all the CAHS members that chose the story, and a special thanks ot CAHS editor, Bill March, for publishing the tale in the Journal!"

Bill Wheeler Volunteer Service Award

During this year's convention we spent a day visiting the Reynolds-Alberta Museum and Canada's Aviation Hall of Fame. Part of the program was watching the the video that was created for Bill Wheeler for his induction into the hall of fame this past May (for photos of that event, please go to www.cahs.ca).

The directors decided to resurrect a volunteer service award for the CAHS, and who better to be its first recipient and namesake than Bill Wheeler, a founding member and editor of the Journal for 45 years.

Bill was unable to join us in Edmonton, but good friend and fellow Toronto Chapter member, Gord McNulty (on left), accepted it on his behalf and promised to deliver it.

Convention - Next Stop: New Brunswick!

In September 2012, the Turnbull - New Brunswick Chapter invites you to join them in Saint John for another fantastic CAHS Convention. At right I am passing our new convention mascot, Avi, to Garry MacLean. Avi was donated by David Crone, curator of Canada's Aviation Hall of Fame, and named by Margaret May!

Moving Forward

We held the annual elections at the AGM during the conference, and last year's executive all stood for re-election: we just had so much fun working together! The directors have changed slightly, with Colin Webster of Hay River, Northwest Territories rejoining the board and George Topple from Toronto rotating in as a Chapter Director. With teleconference calls and email, we are able to have such a geographically diverse board of directors, which I think can only be a good thing for the society. I look forward to us all putting our heads together for future projects!

L-R: Colin Webster (Director), Don MacNeil (Membership), Richard Goette (Director), Dick Pickering (Director), Rachel Lea Heide (Treasurer), Danielle Metcalfe-Chenail (President), Gary Williams (VP), Jim Bell (Secretary), Jerry Vernon (Director)

The CAHS Wants You!

For the past year we have been noting the great ideas members have been proposing. As I mentioned in the letter that went out with the most recent Journal, we are asking you to consider donating some of your valuable time, contacts, or knowledge to pursue these projects. If any of the following areas sound interesting, or you think you can give us some leads, please email the person listed in the brackets.

• Products/Branding will look into CAHS-brand products, prices, put together a sales plan, and brainstorm items CAHS could sell or give away in person or online. (Don MacNeil at cahs.membership.secretary@gmail.com or Gary Williams at g.m.williams@sasktel.net)
• Promotions will brainstorm ways CAHS National and Chapters can promote themselves; create a list of events CAHS can participate in; etc. (Danielle Metcalfe-Chenail at info@daniellemc.com)
• Liaison will identify other aviation groups (like airline enthusiasts), historical and genealogical societies for possible partnerships, as well as look into other possible CAHS membership benefits. (Richard Goette at richardgoette@hotmail.com)
• Corporate will solicit memberships, donations and in-kind support from companies. Looking for provincial/regional representatives for: B.C., Saskatchewan, Ontario, Quebec (outside Montreal), Nova Scotia, PEI, and Newfoundland.(Rachel Lea Heide at rl_heide@yahoo.ca) 
• Awards will gather information on existing awards and write short descriptions/criteria for website, as well as the names and years of past winners. Will coordinate with website and corporate committees. (Danielle Metcalfe-Chenail at info@daniellemc.com. We are looking for someone to chair this committee, so please indicate if you are interested!) 
• Website Content will work on producing new content for www.cahs.ca and for posting about the CAHS in other parts of cyberspace (for example, Wikipedia). (Rachel Lea Heide at rl_heide@yahoo.ca).
• 50th Anniversary History will brainstorm ways to celebrate the CAHS's 50th anniversary in 2013 and possibly do some of the following: gather stories and photos from long-time CAHS members; create an online archive of personal papers or photos, etc. (Rachel Lea Heide at rl_heide@yahoo.ca)

Chapter News

The CAHS Chapters are taking their usual summer break from meetings, but several are still holding social events like barbecues or participating in air shows, so feel free to get in touch with them through our website’s contact page to learn more.

I would also like to take this opportunity to say how much I enjoy reading the chapter newsletters and encourage you to check them out!

Member News

Gordon Wilson has a book set to be released this month called Norad and the Soviet Nuclear Threat: Canada's Secret Electronic Air War. For more information on the writing of the book, please see: www.sparksinthenightsky.com.

Terry Higgins of Aviaeology says he is extending his discount offer on Early Canadian Military Aircraft to CAHS members until the end of July because of the postal strike.

Denny May launched a new book, "More Stories about 'Wop' May" at the 2011 CAHS Convention. Copies are currently available at the gift shops of the Alberta Aviation Museum and the Bomber Command Museum in Nanton, AB. You can also order them directly from Denny at maycroft@shaw.ca. For more information on the author and subject, please see www.wopmay.com.

Don Emslie recently unveiled a new display for Gateway Aviation Ltd. at the Alberta Aviation Museum. He provided the following brief history of their activities for our edification:

"They were formed in 1952 by Gordon Anderson, and others, and operated out of the first two hangars built on the City Centre Airport. They were primarily an Aircraft Charter company but also offered private and commercial flying training due to Gordon’s experience as a flying instructor in WW2. They also did pipeline patrols, offered medevac services, and maintenance services, and, as well, became a Cessna dealer. Scheduled Services were offered to some locations using DC3’s and Twin Otters until they obtained larger aircraft such as a Hawker Siddeley 748 and a Convair 640.

After gearing up for further expansion, they were denied additional routes by the Canadian Transport Commission due to the complaint of Pacific Western Airlines that it was cutting into their profits. They ceased operation in 1980. Nowadays there is no protection provided by a Canadian Transport Commission. At one point they were considered to be the largest company of its type in Canada." 

Readers Write Back!

Colin Webster reports the following from his travels: "The Norwegian Air Museum in Bødø was interesting but the poor lighting made photography difficult. 3 Norwegian Air Force F-16's took off in front of my Dash 8 flight to Svolvaer in the Lofoten Islands. Stayed only 2 hours in Iceland, as volcanic ash was threatening to close Keflavik Airport again."

Derm Barrett wanted to share this link to a short BBC video and news story on a tiny electric airplane!

Rachel Lea Heide emailed me interesting links to information on RCAF Air Women and a story about the unveiling of the British memorial to the RCAF I have mentioned in previous newsletters.

Steve Sanderson of South Carolina forwarded "Film Found of B-29 Crew Rescued by Submarine." As he says: "This is worth watching... about 2.5 mins. An entire crew of a B-29 was rescued by a US submarine after their plane was shot down in ~1945, 70 miles off the coast of Japan . The entire rescue was filmed on color film but then sat in a guy's closet until now. This is a story from a Denver TV station of one of those rescued aviators to whom the film was delivered. It also shows their transfer to another submarine that is likely headed back to port before the one that accomplished the rescue. Can you imagine 65 yrs AFTER your rescue you get to watch it on film?!?!"

Researcher-to-Researcher

I am going to Yellowknife for the Midnight Sun Float Plane Fly-In later this month to do research for my book on the history of aviation in Canada's north. If you know anyone you think I should interview, who has photos I should scan, etc, please email me (Danielle Metcalfe-Chenail) at info@daniellemc.com. I'll be there July 21-28. Thanks!

Announcements

Pour nos membres francophones (ou francophiles), Gaston Lepage vient de lancer Le livre de bord du commandant: Récits de voyages. C'est disponible exclusivement en édition numérique sur iBooks ou Kindle. Pour d'autres renseignements, svp cliquez

ici pour sa page Facebook.

Rich Hulina has come out with a coffee table book, Bush Flying Captured, featuring his favourite photos from 25 years of photographing bushplanes around Canada and Alaska. For more information and to order, please visit his website: www.richhulina.com.

 Mark Your Calendars!

• Vintage Wings of Canada's Yellow Wings tour is making its way across Canada, including a stop July 16-17 in Regina, where the local CAHS Chapter will help to host them. For the full schedule, please visit www.yellowwings.ca.
• Hawk One is also on the prowl. Check http://blog.hawkone.ca for dates and locations.
• August 20-21: Waterloo Air Show
• September 17: Wings Over Gatineau
  
• October 19-21: Canadian Council for Aviation & Aerospace is holding its 20th Annual Forum and AGM in Winnipeg, MB.
• October 29: Feeling adventurous? Depart on a 21-day trip from the UK to New Zealand (with stops in Asia and Australia) in a DC-3 to celebrate the 75th anniversary of Jean Batten's historic flight. More info at www.dc3-antipodes.com.

Skyward

Bob Woodhouse, an active CAHS National and Montreal member, passed away June 11 at the age of seventy-nine. Capt. Donald Van Dyke, Chairman of the Royal Aeronautical Society - Montreal Branch, wrote the following about Bob's involvement in aviation:

"For those of you who perchance did not know him, Bob was ex-RAF pilot, an ETPS graduate (class of 1964) and was a recognised world authority on instrument procedures design, including obstacle modelling and clearance criteria. Among his many, many achievements, he supported activities of the ICAO Obstacle Clearance Panel (OCP) for over 35 years and celebrated 38 years of membership in the Royal Aeronautical Society. All who fly owe him so much."

The photo at left shows him and his beloved wife, Claudette, at the 2010 CAHS Convention. It has been on our website since last year's relaunch, and I think shows the kind of energy and enthusiasm Bob had for all things aviation. His family have generously asked people to donate to the CAHS in his memory. An online form can be found here. His obituary can be found by clicking here.

Mary Buch, a CAHS Ottawa member, passed away July 1. Ottawa Chairman Tim Dubé writes the following: "Mary was a wartime RCAF WD and will be remembered for her book Props on Her Sleeve, the finest collection of personal letters of the Second World War that I have ever read.  She spoke to the Ottawa Chapter in the late-1990s about her experiences -- changing only the names to protect the guilty --and at the CAHS National Convention in 2004." Her obituary can be found by clicking here. 

James "Jim" Carmichael was another longtime CAHS member who recently passed away at the age of 96 in Ottawa. He graduated with honors from Queen's University in Mechanical Engineering. A highlight of his varied and colorful career was the ten years he spent in management at Canadian Car & Foundry, Thunder Bay, manufacturing aircraft during WWII. He derived a life-long passion for aircraft, flight and the history of aviation. Other highlights included being appointed to the Canadian Government's Glassco Commission and later the National Defence College. He devoted much time in his retirement to researching and writing books on the origins of aviation and advancing technology during the Industrial Revolution. His full obituary can be accessed here.

Jeff Pritchard died June 3 after a courageous 4-year battle with cancer. He showed his trademark humour and strength to the end, and never lost his love of aviation. As a young man, Jeff earned his pilot's licence, graduated from the University of Toronto as a metallurgical engineer and pursued a career in aerospace at Vac-Aero International in Oakville. There he worked with his dad, Ross, and with a very talented and dedicated group of colleagues who became some of his finest friends. As CEO of Vac-Aero, Jeff helped lead the company in more international ventures, including in Poland and India. To read his full obituary, please click here.

{tag:email}, thank you for reading this edition of the CAHS newsletter. I hope you enjoyed it! Please feel free to send any comments, event submissions, or questions to me at info@cahs.ca.

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