The Canadian Aviation Moments were submitted by Dennis Casper from the Roland Groome (Regina) Chapter of the CAHS. Spoiler alert - if you read any further than each question, you will find the answer to the questions directly below. Good luck and have fun!
The Canadian Aviation Moments questions and answers for July are:
Question: Which bomber, that was in service from 1938 onwards, was seen as blisteringly fast and for a short period of time was employed as a night fighter?
Answer: “Light yet powerful, the Bristol Blenheim was in service from 1938 onwards. It was blisteringly fast for its day with a top speed of 307 mph. However, it lacked range and, like its contemporaries, it was under-armed. Furthermore, it was only able to carry a disappointing maximum of 1000 pounds of bombs in its minuscule bomb bay. Nonetheless, because of its speed, its vulnerability and its limited effectiveness as a daylight bomber, it was employed for a short period as a night fighter until more suitable types became available.”
Source: NO PROUDER PLACE – Page 23
Question: How were Janney (Provisional Commander of the Canadian Air Corps and Webster (Company Pilot for Burgess-Dunne) treated when they entered Canada with Canada’s first warplane?
Answer: “The Burgess-Dunne was so stable it could almost fly itself. Consequently, Webster was able to turn the controls over to Janney for about 40 percent of the trip. Janney might have had more time at the controls but – as if on cue in a Gilbert and Sullivan Opera – problems arose. Strong headwinds hampered the delta – winged aircraft’s progress, resulting in the flying boat taking some two hours to cover the eighty miles to Sorel, Quebec, where the craft ran out of fuel. A large crowd awaited the aviators at the wharf where, once the Burgess-Dunne was safely moored, the local sheriff promptly stepped forward and arrested the aviators as spies. This mix-up resulted from an order-in-council passed under Canada’s War Measures Act, which banned all airplane flights in Canada except with the militia’s permission. Janney’s situation was further complicated by the minister of militia’s failure to advise his headquarters; no one in Ottawa had any idea that Sir Sam’s airforce was raggedly winging its way northward towards the plains of Val Cartier. Indeed, they had no idea Canada had suddenly acquired an air force.”
Source: Dancing In the Sky – Page 20-21
Question: What did First Flying Officer Allen B. Thompson of Penetanquishene, Ontario accomplish on September 10, 1939?
Answer: “The following night, Flying Officer Allen B. Thompson of Penetanquishene, Ontario, became the first Canadian wartime guest of the Third Reich when his 102 Squadron Whitley was brought down on another leaflet raid. This occurrence was still such a novelty that Thompson was personally greeted by Reichmarschall Herman Goring before the Canadian was packed off to prison camp.”
Source: NO PROUDER PLACE – Page 26