The Atlantic Canada Aviation Museum The November meeting ... · 11/1/2010 · The de Havilland Dragon Rapide. Engines: 2x DH Gipsy Queen 2 or 3 6-cyl. inverted inline engines of

The Atlantic Canada Aviation Musuem NewletterNov / Dec 2002

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DEDICATED TO THE PRESERVATION OF THE AVIATION HERITAGE OF ATLANTIC CANADA

The Atlantic Canada Aviation MuseumHalifax International Airport

P.O. Box 440061658 Bedford Highway

Bedford, N.S.B4A 3X5

Website: http://acam.ednet.ns.caE-Mail: [email protected]

Upcoming Meeting Dates:

The November meeting will be on Wed.November 27th at the Bedford SuperStoreCommunity Room beginning at 7:30pm.Please note the change of date.

The Annual General Meeting will be on the25th of Jan. 2003. Times and format infor-mation to be announced.

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ter Avenger Progress Report

The Avenger now has both wings installed. For a full update see page 13.Photo by: Frank MacLoon

The Bell 47 J-2 Helicopter is progressing in it’s restoration program. New vinyl lettering hasbeen added to the boom and doors.

Photo by: Rob MacIlreith

Included in this Issue:Moscow to Miscou

Museum NotesIn the Air and on the Ground

ID Quizand much more!


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The Moscow to Miscou Flight and theMoncton Airport

By: Ron Cunningham

[Editor’s Note: This article is a forwardto the Moscow to Miscou article]

A significant aviation event in 1939brought widespread attention to NewBrunswick, in particular to Miscou Is-land. This small Island, situated off thenortheast coast of New Brunswick, wasthe site of the forced landing of a Rus-sian Airplane.

The Russians were attempting to flynon-stop polar flight from Moscow toNew York for the opening of the NewYork World’s Fair – they almost made it!When news of the landing at Miscou be-came known, Moncton Airport immedi-ately became the destination of newspeople flying in from the Eastern UnitedStates to report on the story.

The Moncton Airport was the clos-est airport to Miscou at that time and hadaircraft suitable for the rescue of the Rus-sians, as well as, providing transport forsome of the Russian Embassy people andAmerican news reporters to Miscou Is-land.

This event of over sixty years ago islittle known by people today. Researchrevealed a very well-documented articlewritten by Reverend Donat Robichaud forthe Nicolas-Denys Historical Society ofShippagan, N.B., published in 1989. It isinteresting to note some of the history ofthe old Moncton Airport before it closed,as the new airport was under construc-tion at this time.

The Moncton Flying Club wasformed in 1929, with Dr. Charles R.Baxter as its first president. The airportwas developed at Leger’s Corner (nowDieppe), a few miles east of Moncton,on a 6.1-acre site. The City of Monctonsupplied the services of the City Engi-neer, a tractor and a grader to aid in theconstruction of the airport. Two grassrunways were built: the East-West run-way was 1700 feet in length and the

North-South runway was 900 feet long.Two de Havilland Gypsy Moths werepurchased for the Flying Club.

In 1931 the Trans-Canada Air Pag-eant arrived with many aircraft visiting.Canadian Airways began flying their“big, new” de Havilland Dragon Rapidesout of Moncton to other Maritime citiesin 1935, including daily flights toCharlottetown. Two of the pilots wereH.S. (Junior) Jones and Joe Anderson.During 1936 Dick McCully formed East-ern Canada Airlines, which was a directcompetitor to Canadian Airways. Five“Monospar” twin-engine aircraft werepurchased from England, and were un-crated and assembled at Moncton. Theywere to serve Charlottetown, NewGlasgow (Trenton), Halifax, Sydney,Saint John and Moncton. The first navi-gation aids (Radio Range) in Monctonwere established in 1937. Don McClurebought de Havilland Gypsy Moth CF-AYZ from the Moncton Flying Club.(Don also provided some details aboutthe old airport.)

The new Moncton Airport was be-ing built at Lakeburn a few miles east ofthe original one. The site was chosen inMay 1936 and a 3200-foot x 150-footrunway was completed in August 1939 -four months after the Miscou event.

In early 1940, with the beginning ofthe British Commonwealth Air TrainingPlan, the Moncton Flying Club was con-tracted to train three classes of studentsas provisional Pilot Officers. Tiger Mothswere used in the training at Moncton.

The old airport was finally closed inApril of 1941. Don McClure was the lastowner of the Airport.

Some observations by a young ladof all the activity at the Moncton airporton this weekend in April 1939:- Several types of airplanes arrived fromthe U.S.

D.H. 60 Gipsy Moth CF-AYZ wasbought for the flying club and laterpurchased by Don McClure.

Engine: One D.H. Gipsy I inlinepiston engine of 100 hpWing span: 30 ft 0 in / 9.14 m.Length: 23 ft 11 in / 7.29 mHeight: 8 ft 9½ in / 2.68 m.Weight Empty: 920 lb / 417 kgMax. take-off: 1,650 lb / 748 kgMax. speed: 102 mph / 164 kpha.s.l.Cruise: 85 mph / 137 kphInitial climb: 500 ft per min.Service ceiling: 14,500 ft/4,420 m.Range: 320 nm / 515 kmCapacity: Two

The de Havilland Dragon Rapide.

Engines: 2x DH Gipsy Queen 2 or 36-cyl. inverted inline engines of 200hp each.Wing span: 48 ft 0 in / 14.63 m.Length: 34 ft 6 in / 10.51 mHeight: 10 ft 3 in / 3.12 m ·Weight Empty: 3,276 lb / 1,486 kgMax. takeoff: 5,500 lb / 2,495 kgMax. speed: 136 kt / 252 kphCruise: 115 kt / 212 kphService ceiling: 16,700 ft / 5,090 m.Range: 502 nm / 930 kmCapacity: Up to 8 passengers.


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- The preparation of the Stearman to flyto Miscou including: removing a bird’snest from the rear cockpit, patching a fab-ric tear on a wing, removing months andmonths of dust and a good engine run-up.- The departures and arrivals of theplanes to and from Miscou Island.- Standing up in the wheel well of theLockheed 14. (This type was soon to be-gin flying to the new airport by TransCanada Airlines)- The delayed departure of the Lockheed14 for New York when someone had

This D.H. 82C Tiger Moth is partof the Canadian Aviation Museum’sCollection.

D.H. 82A Specifications:Engine: One D.H. Gipsy Major Ipiston engine of 130 hp.Wing span: 29 ft 4 in / 8.94 m.Length: 23 ft 11 in / 7.29 m.Height: 8 ft 9.5 in / 2.68 m.Weight Empty: 1,115 lb / 506 kgMax. take-off: 1,825 lb / 828 kgMax. speed: 95 kts / 175 kph ·Service ceiling: 14,000 ft / 4,267 m.Range: 261 nm / 483 km.Capacity: two

A Lockheed 14 in flight.

Engines: 2x Pratt & WhitneyHornet S1E-G radial piston enginesof 875 hp each.Wing span: 65 ft. 6 in. / 19.96 m.Length: 44 ft. 4 in. / 13.51 m.Height: 11 ft. 5 in. / 3.48 m.Weight Empty: 10,300 lb / 4,672kgMax. takeoff: 17,500 lb / 7,938kgMax. speed: 247 mph / 398 kphCruise: 221mph / 346 kphService ceiling: 24,300ft. / 7,405 m.Range: 2,060 nm / 3315 kmCapacity: Up to 14 passengers.

swiped Kokkinaki’s beautiful white furflying boots, the culprit returned them toavoid an International incident.- The Lockheed’s pilot, Russell Thaw,walked the sod runway before take-off.He used all of the 1700 ft, runway beforelift-off.

SourcesDon McClure, Moncton, N.B.Mary-Ellen Badeau, New BrunswickProvincial Archives, FrederictonBrenda P. Orr, Moncton HeritageMuseum

De Moscou à MiscouBy: Reverend Donat RobichaudTranslated By: Monique Muise

Edited By: Ronald Cunningham (ACAM)

1939New York City was in a state of ex-

citement. It was preparing to launch itsextravagant World’s Fair in the mostgrandiose of ways. The fair’s president,G. Whalen, wanted to do everything in abig way and $100,000,000 had beenspent. Nothing was too good for the oc-casion. The official opening ceremonieswere to be accompanied by nothing lessthan a world aviation record. Thecelebration’s hero was to be the famousRussian Brigadier General, VladimirKokkinaki, holder of more than a dozenworld records in aviation.

Son of a railway officer, VladimirKonstantinovich Kokkinaki was bornJune 12, 1904 in the town of Novorossisk.In 1925, he joined the Russian army andin 1930, finished his stint at theBorisoglebsk School of Aviation withhigh honors. He was quickly noticed asan outstanding pilot, specializing as of1932 in high altitude flying.

On November 21, 1935, he climbedto 14,575 meters in a single-seated air-plane and on July 17, 1936 he reached11,458 meters with a payload of 500 ki-lograms, thus setting two world altituderecords. On June 27 and 28, 1938, heachieved a non-stop flight from Moscowto Vladivostock in a record time of 24

hours and 36 minutes, earning him theHero’s “decoration” of the Soviet Union.His feats continued and in 1939, he set anew altitude record of 48,097 feet [14,660meters] in an open aircraft, which pre-pared him for his record non-stop flightfrom Moscow to Miscou, which wouldtake 22 hours and 56 minutes.

The Conquest of AmericaTo show off to the world the pres-

tige of Russian aviation, Moscow hadcome up with the idea of a record non-stop flight from Moscow to New York, afirst in the aviation world. It would bethe first non-stop “transpolar” flight be-tween Moscow and New York by way ofthe “great circle route”, which lookscurved on the map, but is actually a di-rect route between the two places. Theflight, as planned, would take the planeover Norway, Iceland, South Greenland,New Brunswick, the coast of Maine andBoston, finally landing at Floyd BennettField in New York. The flight was esti-mated at 25 hours, for a spectacular en-trance at the opening ceremonies of theWorld’s Fair.

Eventful FlightA young Brigadier general at 35,

Kokkinaki was to share the mission with


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radio operator and navigator, MajorMikhael Gordienko. The plane chosenfor the flight was a small red bomber, amonoplane, twin engine Illyushin TsKB,modified to include additional fuel tanks.The plane was equipped with twin onethousand horsepower motors. It wasnamed Moskva, derived from “Moscow”.

The flying speed (ground speed) forthe 4,000 mile journey was 165 to 225miles per hour, which was much fasterthan the previous record of 101 miles perhour, set by other Russian aviators whohad landed in San Jacinto (California)July 4, 1937 after a 6,300 mile flight.

Thursday evening, April 28 at 19minutes after 9 (New Brunswick time),the Moskva took off from Moscow air-port at a loaded weight of 12 and a half-tons. Winds were unfavorable but whenthe plane flew over Iceland at four in themorning, it was on schedule.

By mid-afternoon, approaching thecoast of Labrador, the plane encounteredheavy cloud which forced the pilot toclimb to 30,000 feet. It was very cold,but the pilots were well equipped for thetemperature. However, their oxygen sup-ply was being rapidly depleted. By thetime they entered clear air, they were overthe Gulf of St. Lawrence.

Night was approaching and theywere nearing a critical point to verify theirposition, Gordienko tuned in to the newCBC radio station in Sackville, N.B. apowerful station which served all theMaritime Provinces. To guide themthrough Canadian airspace, the Russianambassador in Ottawa had asked the CBCto send a short message in Russian, “thisis CBC Radio Sackville” to help the navi-gator determine their position. Halifax’sR.J. Nathanson, a former Russian profes-sor, had recorded the message, which wasto be transmitted during the hours whenthe plane would be in range of CBC.

After a few minutes of uncertainty,Gordienko finally received the message.However, the radio compass that wouldhave allowed him to verify his positionas per the radio signal was completelyfrozen. As a result, the Russians were

The Polar route that the Moskva would follow from Moscow to New York.

unable to orient themselves.There was only one solution - land

before nightfall. At 8:55, the Moskvalanded on an unknown island. Thenavigator’s first action was to contactMoscow by radio to inform them of thesituation.

There were 330 gallons of gas left,enough to fly 940 miles, more than suffi-cient to complete the 650-mile journeyto New York. At 9:25 pm Friday night,the control tower at Floyd Bennett air-port in New York received a communi-cation from the Russian Chief of Affairs,Constantine Oumanski, informing themthat the plane had made an emergencylanding “South of the Hudson Bay”.

This was the second time a transat-lantic flight had been aborted in NewBrunswick. On August 19, 1932, a Scot-tish Captain named J.E. Mollison landedhis airplane, the “Flying Gas Tank”, onthe farm of Frank Armstrong at PennfieldRidge (40 miles from St. John). He hadleft Port Marnock (Ireland) alone andheaded for New York, but after 30 hoursin the air, fatigue forced him to land.

In Miscou, this time, the Russian pi-lots had to make a perfect landing. Theyhad chosen a strip of land between thesand dunes that line Chaleur Bay, and theforest that lies a bit inland. If the plainhad been completely frozen like in mid-winter, they would have probably landedwith little damage. You could see thetracks from the plane’s wheels, which hadbeen only partly deployed to facilitate

landing. At the end of their path, therewas a small tree onto which one wing gotcaught, without which their landingwould have been perfect. Despite theirlanding on Miscou Island, Kokkinaki andGordienko became the first to success-fully complete a northern flight fromRussia to North America.

Calm Before the StormWhile the plane was flying over the

North Atlantic, the Acadian Peninsulawas having an ordinary although beauti-ful spring day. The sun had begun to meltthe ice; it was the spring thaw, with mov-ing ice floes paralyzing traffic betweenShippagan, les Iles Lameque and Miscou.

On Friday April 29, the snow cover-ing the plains had begun to melt after ahard winter. The roads were muddy andsometimes impassible. But the day wasbeautiful. As evening began, people heardthe engines of a low-flying plane near thechurch. The village priest at the time,Father Ernest Chiasson recalls:

“I went outside to see what washappening. The plane circled thechurch ten times as if trying to find alarge field in which to land. Then itflew a bit further, maybe to avoid thehouses, and find another site. It wastwilight. Further away, we saw it flyover the plain with a “ landing light”to inspect the terrain. Finally, a mo-tor died and we heard the sound of acrash. Then, silence.”

In Shippagan, everything was


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equally quiet. The telephone operator atthe time, Antonine Robichaud, now re-tired in Moncton, recalls:

That evening, it was fairly quietand there were only a few rare callsduring the night. An alarm systemwould wake us up to respond to late-night calls, which were generally foremergencies or sickness. There were,at the time, very few posts in the lowercounty.

At 8:50 on Friday April 29, thephone rang. It would be the first ofseveral calls that would keep us onalert and without sleep until Sundayafternoon at 5 o’clock.

For our part, we had read in thepaper about the proposed Russianflight, but had paid it little attentionbecause it didn’t concern us. However,that winter, my brother Raymond hadbought a kit containing all the neces-sary parts to construct a “crystal”radio. For a few weeks now, he hadbeen testing it, spending hours tuningto American stations. The stationswere reporting on the Russian flightand the ones Raymond had managedto tune-in to, in the late afternoon, re-ported that the flight had ran into dif-ficulty and had changed course. At thetime, in that region, the telephone cen-ter was really a news and info center.

At 8:50pm, a call came in fromMiscou asking if we had heard that aplane had crashed on the island. Icalled Mrs Lawrence Vibert fromMiscou Plains, as well as, some otherresidents. They had all heard a planelooking to land and then the sound ofa crash.

My mother sent a telegram to ra-dio station CFCY in Charlottetown:Plane sighted 8:50 pm thought tohave landed STOP If wanted will wirefurther particulars soon available bywire or phone. Advise.

The Search is OrganizedNight had fallen in Miscou. This un-

announced visitor intrigued the inhabit-ants. They had seen the plane circling,

heard the noise and had an idea of its di-rection. A search party was organized.Lawrence Vibert, his brother Bert Vibertand Avila Sivret went out, walking in thedirection of the noise. They knew theplain well but the walk was long. It tookthem nearly two hours to find the crashsite. With the help of flares lit by the pi-lots, they were able to locate it but as theyapproached the plane, they were greetedby two Russian aviators, revolvers inhand, who refused to let them anywherenear the aircraft. It was impossible tocommunicate as the pilots knew neitherFrench nor English. Lawrence signaledthat he would return, but this time withfood and help. The journey there and backtook 3 hours and 15 minutes.

The telephone operator recalls:“When he returned, Lawrence calledus and told us that there were two pi-lots that spoke neither French or En-glish and that one appeared to be in-jured, possibly with broken ribs. Thecrash site was several miles from thehouses. The closest doctor, inShippagan, had taken ill and so we hadto call one in from Tracadie.

As the pilots could only commu-nicate by signs, we gave Lawrence thenames of the Russian aviators that wehad gotten from the newspaper.Lawrence wrote the two names downon a piece of paper and returned tothe crash site. He showed the pilotstanding guard the paper, which saidKOKKINAKI, and he pointed to hisinjured comrade, lying on a makeshiftbed near the plane. Lawrence had alsobrought food. By signs, he realized thatthe aviators wanted the military ad-vised of the situation.”

Reassured that these people knewwho they were, the Russians indicated ona map that New York was their destina-tion. They insisted on sleeping by theplane as one of the gas tanks had beenperforated and they were concerned aboutthe possibility of a fire. They were welldressed and protected from the cold. Sat-urday, they were further reassured by thepresence of the R.C.M.P. A later medicalMiscou Island, N.B.

Miscou Island is located 130 miles fromMoncton, New Brunswick, as the crowflies. The lighthouse at Miscou Islandwas built in 1856 making it the secondlighthouse constructed on the Gulf ofSt. Lawrence by the Government ofNew Brunswick. The first settlers cameto Miscou for it’s isolation. Today tour-ism is the main industry of the island.


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exam by Dr. Specter concluded thatKokkinaki had no broken ribs; the avia-tors accepted the hospitality of LawrenceVibert. They slept at his home Saturdaynight, awaiting transportation to Monctonthe next day.

Visiting the SiteNews of the crash had spread quickly

over the island and on Saturday, peoplebegan visiting the site. The plane hadlanded on a plain near the coast betweenLake Chenière and la Baie des Chaleurs,a bit north of the stream at Anguille wherethe lake flowed into the bay. It was there-fore between center Miscou and MiscouPlains. At about half a mile from thechurch, there was a passable route abouta half-mile long, which led to the beach.

From the moment the telegram fromMadame Robichaud was sent, the mes-sage was received almost everywhere andthe news had spread rapidly acrossCanada, the United States and even over-seas. For their part, the aviators had con-tacted their base in Moscow as soon asthey were forced to land. From that mo-ment, Russian Ambassadors, Interna-tional Press, World’s Fair authorities, andemergency services had began trying tohelp the aviators, and trying to get moreinformation.

The closest RCMP detachment wasin Shippagan, leading it was ConstableMarcellin Theriault and his assistantMaurice Monette. Friday night, the Con-stables received a message fromMoncton, asking that someone go out tocheck on the plane.

Constable Theriault said he wouldbe in Miscou Saturday morning at 5o’clock with Dr.Ulysse Bourgeois.Marcellin Theriault and the doctor had torent a small rowboat to get to Miscou,where they walked across the island toget to the plane. By the time they got therein the afternoon, a doctor from New Yorkhad already arrived.

From Bathurst to MiscouIn Bathurst, everyone was now

aware of the situation. The Honorable

The crash site, note the skid marks from the upper left of the photo.

Dysart, Premier of New Brunswick, heardthe news at home in Bouctouche and im-mediately telephoned MLA Clovis Rich-ard in Bathurst, telling him to help theRussian aviators in any way he could.

At the same time, the major papersin Toronto and Montreal telephoned ajournalist from Bathurst’s The NorthernLight, Cyril Mersereau, asking him to goto Miscou immediately with a photogra-pher and an interpreter to get them a storyas soon as possible.

After a difficult drive to Caraquet,and to Shippagan, then by boat and walk-ing over ice floes to Ile Lameque and IleMiscou, they met Father Ernest Chaissonwho drove them to near the crash site.The only available automobile on the is-land, belonging to Father Chaisson wasused to transport visitors and journaliststo the beach, from where one could walkto the crash site. Father Chaisson recalls:

“I transported the people fromBathurst. When we arrived on thecoast, we had to walk nearly a milealong it and over the plain. The mer-chant Moe Dingott, from Bathurst,who was supposed to be the interpreter,

did not speak very good Russian. I waswith him when the pilot asked himwhere they were and he responded, “inMiscou”. The pilot appeared frus-trated and said, “I know we came fromMoscow, I want to know where we arenow.” Moe reassured him saying,“That’s true, you departed from Mos-cow and landed in Miscou.”

Air Rescue from MonctonBy Friday evening, all the news

people, mostly from eastern UnitedStates, were trying to get to NewBrunswick. Since Moncton had the near-est commercial airport to Miscou, it wasabout to become quite busy. As soon asthe sun rose on Saturday morning, twoplanes left Moncton airport. In a lightplane, a Fox Moth from Canadian Air-ways, pilot Josiah “Joe” Anderson man-aged to set down on the island not farfrom the crash site. He was accompaniedby Canadian Press journalist WilliamHorne, photographer R.T. McCully andThomas Gallant (an aircraft mechanic).

The second plane, a twin-engine deHavilland Rapide, piloted by H.S.


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“Junior” Jones, arrived a short time laterbut could not land. He had to settle forflying over the scene to permit his com-panion Richard McCully to take photosbefore returning to Moncton.

Saturday, April 30, a Waco biplanepiloted by William Warner, and rented bythe New York News arrived in Monctonat 9:45am after leaving New York at 2:30that morning. He then traveled to Miscouwhere Charlie Hoff of the New York Newstook aerial photos.

Two minutes later, about 9:47am, alarge twin-engine plane, equipped withfourteen seats, a Lockheed 14 landed.Harold S. Vanderbilt,of America’s Cupyachting fame owned the plane. Pilotedby Russell Thaw, the plane had left NewYork at 4 o’clock and had made stops inBoston and Bangor. Aboard were threemembers of the Russian embassy carry-ing passports for the stranded aviators.Also on board was Albert I. Lodwick,vice-president of the Aviation Corpora-tion, and a doctor from Brooklyn namedO.E. Specter. They had planned to travelto Shippagan by train, but as the journeywould have been difficult and long, theydecided to rent a small, local plane.

A short time later, an amphibian, aGrumman (Goose) of Gillies AviationCorporation in Hicksville, N.Y. arrived.It had been rented by the Russian embassyto facilitate access to Miscou.

Two more planes landed. ABeechcraft (Beech 17 Staggerwing) fromNew York and a Stearman from Bostonarrived carrying journalists and photog-raphers from the Associated Press and theInternational News Service. The firstplane to leave Moncton with photos forthe International Press was the deHavilland Rapide, piloted by H.S. “Jun-ior” Jones, which took off at 10 o’clockfor Bangor, Maine.

Transporting the AviatorsThe first attempt to transport the

aviators was made by Joe Anderson inhis de Havilland Fox Moth, which leftMoncton at 1:10 carrying Dr. Specterfrom Brooklyn Jewish Hospital, the Rus-

sian officer from Washington, PeterBaranov, as well as H.B. Roberts. How-ever, the Russian aviators refused to leaveMiscou, preferring instead to wait for theamphibian plane from New York.

Less than two hours after the arrivalof the Fox Moth, the amphibian piloted,by Ralph Bourdon, landed in MiscouHarbor, six miles from the crash site.However, because of ice floes and the ap-proaching darkness, they were forced tohead back to Moncton without the Rus-sian aviators.

Shearwater’s Royal Canadian AirForce Station (Nova Scotia) also sent anamphibian plane, carrying doctor D.A.Forsythe from Dartmouth and a customsagent from Halifax, Andrew Malaidack,who spoke good Russian. The planelanded at sea 3 miles from Miscou andits passengers got ashore in a small boatand then trekked through snow and mudto the crash site.

Sunday morning, the GrummanGoose and two small planes from Cana-dian Airways departed again for Miscou.At 6:30am, the Stearman from CanadianAirways, piloted by H.S. “Junior” Jonestook off from Moncton. At 8:30am, pilotBourdon’s amphibian also left, but thistime he was unable to land because ofstrong winds and rough seas.

A bit after noon, “Junior” Jones tookoff from Miscou and at 2 o’clock, hisplane landed in Moncton with doctorSpecter and the Russian attaché PeterBaranov aboard.

Immediately, Joe Anderson took offfor Miscou in his Fox Moth and at3:35pm, arrived back in Moncton withGodienko, the Russian navigator, and A.I.Lodwick, who brought back severalpieces of the crashed plane. Hardly tak-ing a break, Anderson immediately flewback to Miscou and later returned withKokkinaki, who was accompanied by V.P.Butusov from the Russian embassy inWashington.

The Russians had brought backpieces and instruments from the crashedplane. These sophisticated instrumentswere carefully guarded and were trans-

Iluyushin TsKB-30or DB-3

The TsKB-26 long-range bomberprototype appeared in 1935, a twin-engined metal low-wing monoplanepowered by 597-kW (800-hp) Gnome-Rhône K-14 radials. Demonstrated bytest pilot Vladimir Kokkinaki on MayDay 1936, the prototype went on to es-tablish two world altitude records dur-ing July 1936. A second prototype, theTsKB-30, had an enclosed instead ofopen position for the pilot, Soviet M-85engines and a metal rear fuselage. TheTsKB-30 also broke records and then at-tracted world interest by flying fromMoscow to Canada, where pilotKokkinaki had to make a wheels-uplanding on 28 April 1939 after coveringa distance of 8000 km (4,971 miles).

By then the bomber had been in pro-duction for the Soviet air arm for morethan two years. Under the military des-ignation 1131113-3 it served widely withthe ADD (Long-Range Aviation) and theV-MF (Naval Aviation), remaining op-erational well into the war with Ger-many, DB-3s being credited with someof the earliest attacks on Berlin...

DB-3 production terminated in1940 with the 1,528th machine.(from The Complete Encyclopedia ofWorld Aircraft)

Iluyushin TsKB-30 or DB-3

Specifications:Engines: 2 950 hp M-87B RadialsMax Speed: 277 mphCeiling: 31,825 feet.Empty Weight: 11,618 lbs.Max. take off: 16,887 lbs.Span: 70 ft. 4 in.Length: 46 ft 7 3/4 in.Height: 13 ft. 9 in.


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ported back to the Russian embassy insealed containers.

From Moncton to New YorkWhen they arrived in Moncton at

4:30 pm in Joe Anderson’s Fox Moth, theRussian aviators were greeted byR.C.M.P. Corporal A.D. Pelletier.Gordienko stopped for a few moments togive a military salute for the photogra-phers then the Corporal led them quicklyto the Brunswick Hotel where they wereto spend the night.

Sunday morning, May 1st, pilotRussell Thaw took off. On board theLockheed were the two Russian aviators,also V.P. Butusov, Peter Kosolov, A.I.Lodwick and Dr. O.E. Specter. After astop in Bangor, they landed in New Yorkat 10:32 am.

The Grumman Goose, piloted byRalph Bourdon and his co-pilot/naviga-tor, Art Schwab, returned to New Yorkas well with the following passengers:two Russian engineers from the Amtorgcompany, P. Koslov, I. Mitzner, and anembassy employee named P. Smirnov.The latter was no doubt a Russian secu-rity agent, as he didn’t leave the side ofhis companion, Molchanvsky.

At their arrival at Floyd BennettField in New York, the aviators weregreeted by the head of Russian affairs inWashington, Constantine Oumanski, whointroduced them to G. Whalen, Presidentof the New York World’s Fair Corpora-tion. Oumanski congratulated them onbehalf of the Russian Communist Party’sSecretary General, Joseph Stalin, as wellas, the President of the People’sCommissionership Council, ViacheslavMolotov.

For their part, the aviators submit-ted two separate letters to the Presidentof the World’s Fair: one dated April 28in Moscow and postmarked that same dayin Miscou, the other coming from thehead of American affairs in Moscow,Alexander Kirk. In his letter, Kokkinakimade it clear that from now on, planeswould be making regular 24-hour tripsnon-stop from Moscow to New York.

While all sides were attempting tocontact the aviators, the only method ofcommunication had been the telephonecenter in Shippagan. Antonine Robichaudremembers. They were calling from ev-erywhere: from London, Boston, NewYork, Toronto, Moscow: “Please get thiswire through…Get General Kokkinaki onthe phone…Can I speak to MajorGordienko…This is the National Broad-casting Company…Hurry!…”

The order was given to maintain a24-hour open line with Moscow. Thecommunication with Moscow was donewith ground and marine cables, passingthrough Poland, Germany and England.It was wireless from England toYamachiche (Quebec), by cable fromYamachiche to Montreal to Shippagan,finally connecting with Miscou by under-water cable via la Pointe Brulée.

Obviously, it was often impossiblefor the operators to understand Russiancommunications. Saturday afternoon,Major Gordienko had come with FatherErnest Chiasson to the “presbytere” inMiscou to make several calls. The opera-tor could only say “Major Gordienko?”and he would respond, “Da!” and thencontinue in Russian. When it came toRussian telegraphic messages from Mos-cow, it was necessary to receive them let-ter for letter, word for word, and then tele-phone them in to Miscou.

The Russian embassy, through itsattaché Oumanski, expressed gratitudeand praise towards Antonine Robichaudon behalf of the Russian government. Thepress was equally grateful. The TorontoStar even invited the two telephone op-erators, all expenses paid, to Toronto totell their story. These were unforgettablesouvenirs.

Recovering the PlaneFather Chiasson recalls:

For more than a month, R.C.M.P.officers Marcellin Thériault andMaurice Monette ensured a constantsurveillance of the plane. They stayedat the “presbytere”. Another visitorwas Mr. James from the Ministry of

National Defense, Ottawa, who ar-rived shortly after the departure of theaviators. For two weeks, he examinedone of the plane’s motors, taking itapart piece by piece, examining andphotographing each piece, and thencarefully replacing it.

The Russian aviators remainedin New York for three weeks. In theirabsence, Russian technicians wereexploring the possibility of repairingthe damaged aircraft and flying it toHalifax. When they arrived, they knewthis would be impossible. They renteda boat, the Banscot, which they sentto Miscou with the FoundationMasson, an 80-foot boat equipped witha “crane”. The plane was 300 feetfrom the beach. The fuselage was 48feet long and the wingspan was 32 feet.

On May 27, mechanics went to workdismantling the plane and on June 2nd, theBanscot arrived in Halifax Harbor, wherethe plane was cleaned and then coveredin a layer of protective oil to preserve itin the salt air. On June 3rd, 1939, the Rus-sian steamer Alma Ata left the port ofHalifax with the plane and the two avia-tors, en route to Leningrad.

For Kokkinaki, it would be his lasttime on Canadian soil. However, in thefuture, the whole world was to bear wit-ness to his exploits. During the SecondWorld War, he served as a test pilot andchief inspector for Russian aviation.Twice decorated as a Hero of the SovietUnion (July 17th 1938 and September 17,1957), he was promoted to Major Gen-eral of Aviation in 1943.

He received Sports Master in 1959,and the Lenin prize in 1960. He was afive-time recipient of the Order of Lenin,three-time recipient of the Order of theRed Banner, four-time recipient of the RedStar Order and also earned the Order ofWar for patriotism. He also earned nu-merous medals, among them the goldmedal from the International AeronauticFederation. Vice-President, and thenPresident of the International Aeronau-tic Federation as of 1961, he then becamean honorary President as of 1968. He was


Page 9


R.C.M.P. Constable Theriault and Unidentified Person on the Ilyushin Bomber

still alive and well in his last years, in1985 he was still celebrating his birth-day.

EpilogueOf this episode, there remains prac-

tically nothing. The telephone operatorsreceived small souvenirs, matchboxesand pieces of chocolate, in remembranceof the plane. Gordienko had given theplane’s first aid kit to Father ErnestChiasson, and a pair of skies to ConstableMonette.

Most of these small trinkets havenow been lost or have disappeared. Noth-ing remains except the memories. Whoremembers now, (1989) fifty years later,that Miscou was once the center of worldnews; that it welcomed the hero of Rus-sian aviation; that all the journalists andphotographers fought for the privilege tofly overhead or to visit? Nature quicklyerased all traces of the crash landing.

So today, as we try to find new waysto attract tourists to the islands, it wouldbe a shame not to invoke the memory ofthe Russian plane and it’s important pi-lot Kokkinaki, who, for a few days, made

A postcard that was carried on the flight from Moscow to Miscou. Note that thepostcard carries the Miscou island cancellation stamp in the center of the post-card. The post office on Miscou Island was located at the Miscou Island lighthouse.(Postcards via http://66.96.244.85/~nblight/miscouislandhistory.html website)

The modern airplane creates a new geographic dimension. A navigable ocean ofair blankets the whole surface of the globe. There are no distant places any longer:the world is small and the world is one.

- Wendell Willkie.


Page 10


this island the center of interest for theworld’s great newspapers.

Editor’s Post ScriptMonsignor Robichaud, now retired

from pastoral duties and living inShippagan, kindly gave permission for theMuseum to print this very interesting andwell researched account of this event of1939. He had interviewed the local peoplewho were on the scene at the time.

Robichaud has tried to raise interestin erecting a monument locally, possiblya model or pictorial of the plane, whichwould serve as a touristattraction. ‘Maybe someday it will hap-pen.’

He also writes ‘It is good to see thatyou are helping to keep memories of theearlier aviation days in the Atlantic.’

Sources

Newspapers:The Boston Globe, 26.06.1984Canadian National Magazine, June 1939The Chronicle-Herald (Halifax),27.07.1989Le Devoir (Montreal), 29.04.1939L’Evangeline (Moncton), 4.05.1939Gloucester Northern Light (Bathurst)4.05.1939; 11.05.1939; 1.06.1939;8.06.1939The Moncton Times, 28.04.1939;1.05.1939; 3.05.1939Ottawa Journal,Toronto Star, LondonTimes – non-dated clippings.Other newspaper clippings without ref-erences.Articles:Shippagan News, by JeannetteRobichaud-NewtonKokkinaki in The Great Soviet Encyclo-pediaInterviews:Antonine and Albertine Robichaud,Moncton, July 1989.Father Ernest Chaisson, Shippagan, July1989.Maurice Monette, interview by a journal-ist, recorded on cassette.

This is a copy of the 50th anniversary Russian postcard to mark the flight in1989.(Postcards via http://66.96.244.85/~nblight/miscouislandhistory.html website)

Above: The TsKB-26 long range bomberprototype gets airborne for the first timewith Vladimir Kokkinaki at the controls.Kokkinaki later demonstrated this air-craft for Stalin and looped it during thedisplay.

[Newsletter Editor’s Note:I wish to take this space and thank RonCunningham for all of the work he hasput into this story. Ron has worked for 6months to get the rights to publish thestory and have it translated to Englishand then he edited the story before I re-ceived it. Thanks so much for the storycontribution Ron, I am sure that our read-ers will enjoy the work as much as I did.Thanks also to the Author and MoniqueMuise for translating.]

Above: Vladimir Kokkinaki. Kokkinakidied Jan. 7th, 1985. Information aboutMikhael Gordienko was not discoveredprior to going to print.

(Photos: http://www.aviation.ru/Il/)[Photo credits:The maps and photos on page 6 and 9were supplied with the story. All photoson pages 2 and 3 came from the editor’scollection except the Tiger Moth whichcame from the CAM website and CF-AYZfrom Don McClure’s collection via RonCunningham. The DB-3 photo on Page 7came from a Russian Museum websitethat I could not translate the address.Other web photos are credited]


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Mus

eum

Not

esFacility:The 2002 Tourist Season ended on Octo-ber 19th and the Museum closed it’sdoors to the public. Tours can still be ar-ranged with Michael White. The gift shopcan also be opened by contacting DaveMcMahon. Remember everyone thatChristmas is coming, why not have some-one buy your gift from the gift shop andsupport the Museum in the process.

The winter work session is set to be-gin and there is much to be done this year.Why not come out and see how you cancontribute to the growth and improvementof our Museum. A few hours of time canbe as important as a full day, so come onout and see what you can do to help.

Jetstar:One major goal that has been set for

the winter is to clean up the Jetstar mak-ing it a major exhibit within the Museum.As reported last issue, work continuesinside the aircraft, cleaning and preserv-ing the interior. A fair amount of the cor-rosion in the airframe has been removedfrom the aircraft already. Interior lightingand plexi-glass will be installed to im-prove the presentation of the cabin andcockpit areas and limit the public’s ac-cess without limiting the view.

In terms of exterior work, the crewintends to try buffing the aircraft to bringthe paint back “up” to a high shine. Thisprocess worked with the Sabre but is verytime consuming and will require lots ofman-power to accomplish the task. Addi-tionally, wheel stands and locks will berequired, as well as, an information dis-play for the public.

Right: This incred-ible CC-130 Herculesmodel was built byWilliam Babineau, ofTruro, and donatedto the Museum afteronly 2 short flights.The model has over2000 hours of con-struction time in it. Itwill be hung over thewinter in the Mu-seum.

Space Shuttle Tire(Right): ThisMichelin SpaceShuttle tire has beenput on long-termloan to the Museumand will be devel-oped into a futuredisplay. The tire

Members Please Note:

Nominations for the Distin-guished Member Award are tobe submitted in writing to theSecretary, Curator or Presi-dent. Submissions must be inno later than December 1st,2002.

was flown on the Space Shuttle Colum-bia on STS-90. Lift-off was April 17th,1998 for the 17 day flight on which lifesciences research was conducted. Thetire was manufactured at Michelin’sNorwood, N.C. plant.

Top Left: The Jetstar interior. Restora-tion continues with cleaning and corro-sion control. Work is also beginning onthe seats.Top: John Christie performs corrosioncontrol in the cockpit.Left: The Jetstar as it appears in the han-gar. Work on the exterior will beginagain as the weather warms up in thespring and polishing can begin.


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Sabre: In preparation for the Sabre dedi-cation this summer, the editor had placeda request on the SPAADS website for pi-lots to check their logbooks to see if theyhad time in the Museum’s Sabre. Threegentlemen have responded. Here is whatthey had to say:

Rob:I have an entry in my log book as havingflown the above a/c on 18 Aug 1960. Iwas in gunnery flight at Chatham near-ing the end of my course at the OTU. Thenote in my log book says “air to air, livefiring” My leader was F/L Dale Stevensand I was No. 2 in the formation. I didn’tkeep track of my scores at the OTU. Theywere too low to be proud of.

Cheers: Dave Work.

The SPAADS page have a request for infoon flights in Sabre 23355. My log bookshows flights on 30 Jul, & 14th and 16thof Aug in 1962 at the Sabre TransitionUnit in Chatham (in preparation for theCF-104 course in Cold Lake).

W.L. (Bill) Worthy S\L Ret’d

I hope this info is useful and I apologizefor coming up with it so late. I lookedthrough my log book and found that thatI had flown this particular machine for 1hour and 20 minutes on 13/12/54 whileon 1 Overseas Ferry Unit at St. Hubert. Iam fairly certain that it would have beendelivered on Random XI toGros Tenquin on 25/02/55 though I can’trecall who delivered it.

J.R. Haran

ACAM’s Sabre 23355 soon after it’srestoration was complete in the earlysummer of 2002. The aircraft hadserved in Europe and at CFB Chatham.The Museum recovered the airframefrom the post at CFB Chatham when theBase closed.

(Rob MacIlreith , Photo)

Canso:Restoration on the Canso continues

on the horizontal stabilizer and verticlefin. The crew has found that this sectionof the aircraft does not have as much cor-rosion damage as was first thought. Lotsof patchwork has to be performed on thetail assembly though as there are manytiny holes. As this section of the aircraftdid not come from our PBY, some modifi-cations to the tail assembly must be per-formed so that our rudder will fit. The mostnotable change will be the “chopping” ofthe top of the verticle fin.

Top Left: The top side of the horizontalstabilizer and fin assembly. Note that theinspection plates have been removed andcorrosion control is being performedwhere required. Additionally, patchworkis also in progress.

Bottom Left: This photo shows the bot-tom center portion of the horizontal sta-bilizer, where it bolts on to the bottomportion of the verticle stabilizer.

Bottom Right: The same assembly show-ing the bottom from another angle.

(Rob MacIlreith, photos)


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Bell 47 J-2: Dave Powell continues tomake progress on the Bell 47 J-2 restora-tion. Since our last update, new vinyl let-tering and markings have been added tothe airframe and more painting has takenplace. Further information on the job willbe published in a later issue.

Top Left: A long view of the Bell-47 J-2showing the horizontal stabilizer, boom,engine compartment and cockpit.

Bottom Left: Close up view of the vinyllettering on the boom. Vinyl, while not100% accurate historically has providedthe Museum with a way to apply mark-ings that look good and areenviromentally friendly. It is near impos-sible to paint in our facility without hav-ing overspray on other exhibits and air-craft. As well, the fumes cause problemsfor our visitors.

Bottom Right: The cockpit section andengine compartment side view. Note thedoor sitting on the ground that has vinylregistration markings and a maple leafon it.

(Rob MacIlreith, photos)

TBM Avenger Progress Report Oct 25, 2002Text and Photos By: Frank MacLoon

The TBM restoration-working sea-son is, of course, primarily during thewarmer weather since it is an outdooroperation at the Forest Protection Basein Fredericton. Work during the winterseason is limited to work on internal fit-tings, control surfaces, etc. in memberworkshops.

This season began with the trans-port of the extensively damaged rightwing to the FPL ramp. Some 4 feet of thewing tip had been totally destroyed alongwith extensive damage to the leading edgeand trailing surface. Particularly concern-ing was the damaged wing slot whichwould be next to impossible to duplicate.

The team set the restoration and fit-

ting of the wing, the fitting of the BombTank, and the installation of the Trackerwheels and brakes as primary objectivesfor the year.

Fortunately, visits to a number ofcrash sites had built up a supply of wingsections and components, including anintact outer wing panel, as well as, a com-plete wing slot assembly, which was thenrestored at the Moncton Aircraft Main-tenance School. These made a qualitywing restoration possible.

The first priority was clearing thedamaged outer wing panel and graftingin the replacement panel. This was a timeconsuming exercise as was the fitting ofthe wing slot.

Above: The damaged wing arrives at thefield on May 16th, 2002. As can be seen,about 4 feet of the wingtip has been to-tally destroyed and the trailing edge isin hard shape. The Avenger restorationteam certainly had their work cut out forthem.


Page 14


Action then moved to the extensiveareas of leading edge damage. This re-quired rebuilding of the underlying ribstructures and, with .040 materials, a slowfitting and riveting process requiring bothconventional and “cherry” rivets.

The trailing edge required fabricationof sections of most ribs and reshaping ofthe extruded edge piece.

Extensive reskinning was required onboth upper and lower wing surfaces alongwith the most extensive riveting effortsof the project. The aileron and wing flapwere successfully fitted in the processand restored sections were fitted to com-plete the inboard end of the wing. It wasthen mounted to the fuselage and, for thefirst time, the Avenger had two completewings in place.

Of the total 1120 hours expended thisyear on the project some 625 were on theright wing alone,

Tracker brakes were fitted to theundercarriage, as well as, Tracker wheelsas utilized on FPL’s Fire Tankers alongwith wing mounted flap and landing gearstatus indicators fabricated and installed.

Work then turned to the Bomb Tankon which Clem Crocker had previouslycompleted extensive damage repairs. Thefirst requirement was to fabricate the sup-port structure required in the Bomb Bay,which is a duplicate of the actual FPL in-stallation. Following this the Bomb Tankwas successfully mounted with somevery ingenious mounting procedures de-veloped by Don Henry. It all worked andthe Bomb Tank fitted perfectly.

We were assisted in the process bythree of our friends from the WoodsmenMuseum who came to observe but wereof much assistance.

The final process for the year is tofabricate and install the Bomb Tank fair-ings with the forward one now completedand the rear one being undertaken aswarm days permit.

A lot of small items have been com-pleted as “fillers” as other work was car-ried out. Work next year will move intointernal fittings, replacement of two ar-eas of fuselage skinning, installation of

control surfaces – currently being com-pleted by Gord Nielson in Moncton – anda host of remaining small items – over 70at last count - as we move on to finalcompletion.

The ACAM “team” of DonHenry, Clem Crocker, Gord Nielson, Bob

Purdue and Frank MacLoon continuedto commit a normal two days per week asweather permitted. We also continue toreceive excellent support from Forest Pro-tection and the Woodland Aviation man-agement and staff, which is very muchappreciated.

[3][2]

[4] [5]

[6] [7]

[8] [9]


Page 15


[10] [11] [12]

[13] [14]

[15] [16]

[17] [18]

[2] Fitting the replacement outer wingpanel Don and Clem in the photo.[3] Bob “attacks” the trailing edge. Get-ting at the internal damage takes a lot ofwork.[4] Leading edge damage.[5] Don contemplates the next step.[6] Gord working on the trailing edge.[7] Clem and Don installing the flapwhich fits properly.[8] So does the aileron![9] Leading edge progress.[10] Gord and the Tracker brakes beinginstalled.[11] The Tracker wheel and breaks havebeen installed.[12] The completed right wing and someof the crew that worked on it.[13] Wing Installation begins. The craneis required to hold the very heavy wing ofthe Avenger.[14] The next step includes making surethe wing folds properly. Note the FPLAvenger in the background with bothwings folded. This is a wonderful shotshowing the Avenger’s carrier basedhistory.[15] The wing “fit” took a lot of time tomake sure that it folded properly. Don,Gord and Bob pictured.[16] The TBM has two wings installedand a happy crew.[17] Tank preparation under way withGord and Don in the photo. The bombtanks fits in the bomb bay of the Avengerand is the key component of the Avengerin the water bombing role.[18] Bomb Tank support structure inplace in the bomb bay, the bomb tank at-taches to this structure.


Page 16


[19] [20]

[21]

[24]

[25]

[19] Bomb tank installation under way,the trailer was used to position the tankand pivot it into place.[20] The bomb tank has been mountedand one door has been opened on the tank.[21] A full view of ACAM’s TBM. Note:both wings have now been successfullyattached and the bomb tank is installed.The aircraft is looking more and morecomplete all the time.[22] Don working on the front fairing ofthe bomb tank.[23] The front bomb tank fairing is com-plete.[24] Bob – the pattern maker hard atwork in the outdoor work shop.[25] With the wise old owl minding thefuselage, maybe the Starlings will passus by?

[Editor’s Note: My thanks and compli-ments to Frank MacLoon, as crew chief,for providing such a complete and in-depth report on this season’s work onthe Avenger. By the look of the photos Ithink that we will all agree that the crew ismaking great progress on completing theAvenger. She is going to make a marvel-ous exhibit for the Museum and will fillan important niche in our display aircraft.]

[22] [23]

Aviation is proof, that giventhe will, we have the capacityto achieve the impossible.

- Captain Edward “Eddie”Rickenbacker


Page 17


New Air Service to Link Halifax With Bangor, MaineVia Karen Sinclair, HIAA

News Shorts: Compiled From Various Sources

ton-Maine Airways, which also operatedunder contract with a then-fledgling PanAm.

Halifax International Airport is At-lantic Canada’s largest full-service air-port, providing passengers and cargo cli-ents with direct and indirect access tocentres across Canada and to strategiclocations in the United States and Eu-rope.

[Editor’s Note: This is not the first timethat Pan Am has flown into Halifax. In1931, Pan American Airways, on the ba-sis of a U.S. Post Office contract and aCanadian permit, began to operate a dailyservice in summer from Boston and Port-land to Saint John and Halifax, with theoption of extending the service to Sydneyand St. John’s. Pan American’s permit tooperate in Canada did not allow it to carrymail or passengers between Canadianpoints, a rule that did not please residentsof Halifax and Saint John. The service wasclosed down for the winter in late 1931 asweather conditions made it too risky. Sev-eral factors including the onset of theGreat Depression and problems with theOld Halifax Municipal Airport resulted inthe service not being re-instated in 1932.]

Halifax International Airport Author-ity (HIAA) has announced that PanAmerican Airways will introduce a newscheduled service linking Halifax withBangor, Maine. Beginning November 4,2002, the Pan Am Clipper Connection, op-erated by Boston-Maine Airways, willoffer a daily flight to Bangor InternationalAirport aboard the 19-seat Jetstream 31twin turbo prop aircraft.

“This is great news for both leisureand business travelers, and the AtlanticCanadian economy as a whole,” says RegMilley, President & CEO for HIAA. “Adaily air link to Bangor offers shoppersan ideal weekend getaway, and it presentsbusiness travelers with another choice tothe US, further strengthening the culturaland trade ties we already share,” he says.“Furthermore, it is a shining example ofwhat partnerships can accomplish.”

The service has been developed byPan Am, in conjunction with Emera, aHalifax-based natural gas and energycompany. The airline currently servespassengers through routes in Saint John,New Brunswick; Maryland; Atlantic City,New Jersey; Portsmouth, New Hamp-shire; Bedford and Martha’s Vineyard,MA; White Plains, New York; and theGrand Bahamas Islands.

“There is a meaningful level of com-merce that takes place between Maine,New England and the Canadian Maritimesand we are confident that passenger de-mand will be very strong,” says DaveFink, the Airline’s President.

The Boston-Maine Airway’s namehas its roots in the earliest days of com-mercial aviation. In the late 1920’s andearly 1930’s, the Boston & Maine andMaine Central Railroads jointly operatedan airline, which provided internationalmail and passenger service throughoutthe Northeastern United States and Ca-nadian Maritimes. In fact, Amelia Earhartwas a Vice President of the original Bos-

Above: Jetstream 31 (G-BLKP), similarto the type that Pan Am will be flying intoHalifax beginning in early November.The service will connect Halifax andBangor, Maine.

(http://www.pbase.com/image/940418)

Denis Anctil BenefitAuction

Via Donna Smith, EHS Life FlightDenis Anctil is a pilot with EHS

LifeFlight, Nova Scotia’s Air MedicalTransport Program. He has flown count-less critically ill and injured patientsthroughout theMaritimes, andhas deliveredthem safely tothe IWK, QEIIand other Re-gional Hospi-tals. Denis ismarried toDiane, has twochildren, lovesthe outdoors,and is an ex-pert craftsmanand an avid kayaker.

Tragically, while working on the roofof his cottage in Chester, Denis suffereda spinal cord injury in his neck, whichhas left him paralyzed. Friends of Denis,most of whom are the medical crew ofLifeFlight and his fellow pilots at CanadianHelicopters, are organizing a benefit tohelp with the costs of a wheelchair, vehiclealterations, ramps, and other medicalequipment needs.

Donations can be made throughoutthe next few months at any CIBC branch,care of “Denis Anctil in Trust” (account00703-7635036). If anyone would like todonate items for our first fundraiser “abenefit auction” (auction date November15, 2002), please call EHS LifeFlight at 873-3657.(email: [email protected])

All of the funds raised will go directlyto the purchase of these much-neededitems.

The work of the individual still remainsthe spark that moves mankind ahead.

- Igor I. Sikorsky

Denis Anctil


Page 18


A Picture is Worth a Thousand Words!Photo Submitted by E-mail Via Frank MacLoon

Grumman F-14A Tomcat 16.4 MillionNimitz Class Aircraft Carrrier 2 Billion Plus

The feel of the Jet Wash as this hotshot blows by: PRICELESS!

In the Air and On the Ground

Royal New Zealand Air Force Boeing 727getting airborne from St. John’s NF.

(Todd Pomerleau, Photo)

JAL 747-400 at YHZ for the G-7 meet-ing in June.

(Shirley Leeming, Photo via BillLeeming)

Delta Connections Fairchild Dornier328on the ramp at YHZ.

(Shirley Leeming, Photo via BillLeeming)


Page 19


Left: The September Quiz was correctlyidentified by a lot of our Museum mem-bers as a Lockheed C-121A Constellation.This aircraft (msn 48-609) is still flyingtoday, it has since been modified to VC-121A standards and now wears the MATSConnie paint scheme. Congratulations toDave McMahon and Ken Brown, whoidentified the aircraft within 10 minutesof each other. Dave was at my house andgave the answer to me about the sametime Ken e-mailed it in. The photo camefrom the Lockheed Constellation book bySteve Pace.

Above:Here is the November Quiz, its a ratherinteresting view of this type of aircraft.Rememeber in order to qualify as a cor-rect answer, both the aircraft and the manu-facturer must be correctly identified.Submit your answers to the editor at:[email protected] or by using the snailmail address on the cover.

Good Luck!

ID Quiz Fox Harbour Follow-upBy: Alan MacDonald

Jetport Inc is an executive charter andsupport service located at Hamilton’sMount Hope airport. Jetport was estab-lished by Ronald V. Joyce, a formerHamilton policeman who had partneredvery early on with one Tim Horton in theestablishment of a chain of doughnutshops. He went on to buy the companyafter Tim Horton’s death and took it to itscurrent ubiquity.

He started Jetport because he didn’tneed his Challenger all the time andwanted to put it to work. (It is no surprisethat the Jetport Hanger has a 24 hour TimHorton’s shop.)

Ron Joyce was born and grew up inWallace, Cumberland Co, leaving at avery young age to seek his fortune andeventually to join the Navy. After theNavy he moved to Hamilton and becamea policeman. After Tim Horton’s pros-pered and fortune smiled upon him hebegan the Fox Harbour project which in-cludes among its many amenities a run-way for the Challenger. His investment issignificant but then he sold Tim Horton’sto Wendy’s for about $600m in stockmuch of which has been liquidated tosupport his many ventures, business andcharitable, such as Jetport and FoxHarbour.

Joyce lives in Hamilton, Calgary, FoxHarbour and warm places in the Winter.

When once you have tasted flight, youwill forever walk the earth with youreyes turned skyward, for there youhave been, and there you will alwayslong to return.

- Leonardo da Vinci

Right: This AN-12 “Cub” was visitingHalifax International in mid-Oct. Theaircraft is believed to be wearing regis-tration code UR-UCK, although the angleit was parked on made it difficult to tell.The aircraft is owned by Air CharterService in the UK.

(Rob MacIlreith, Photo)


Page 20


Guest Speakers Needed!

Do you know someone thatwould make a good guest

speaker?Then drop our President a line.

[email protected]

Corrections- The registration on the AN-24 and AN-26 photos in last months newslettershould have read YN which is a Nicara-guan registration.- The Cessna 208 in the Fox Harbour Storywas incorrectly identified as C-FHBRwhen it is actually C-FHRB.

My apologies - The Editor-

67 Words Enough to Defend By?-Editorial-

On Sept. 30th, the Gov. Gen, AdrienneClarkson, read the Chrétien Government’sThrone Speech. The 14-page speech con-tained just 67 words to cover the entireMilitary.

“In the face of rapid change and un-certainty, the government must engageCanadians in a discussion about the roleCanada will play in the world. Beforethe end of this mandate, the governmentwill set out a long-term direction on in-ternational and defence policy that re-flects our values and our interests andensures that Canada’s military isequipped to fulfill the demands that areplaced upon it.”

The Gov. Gen, who is the Com-mander-in-Chief , must have been verydisappointed to read those words.

TheGov Gen, has lobbied the govern-ment on behalf of the Military for an in-crease in defence spending, particularlyin the post 9-11 world. To date, the Liber-als have only increased Military spend-ing by $750,000, a drop in the proverbialbucket when compared to what is needed.

Meanwhile, Defence Minister JohnMcCallum had the gaul to say to report-ers, “I think it’s very positive on defence.”With the military over $1 Billion in debtdue to increased op tempos and in des-perate need of new equipment, modern-ization and man-power increases, one hasto wonder how the Minister could be sopositive. It’s wonderful to make such astatement but where is the plan to back itup? Why does the government continueto hide it’s plans? Makes one wonder.

Above: Canadian Helicopters has begunconstruction on a new hanger in HIAA’snew airside sub-division. This crane wasbeing used to lift pieces of the building.Note: Danny Price standing next to it.

- The new terminal building of the GreaterMoncton Airport was opened by QueenElizabeth II during her Jubilee Visit inOctober. The Queen flew down toMoncton by Griffon Helicopter from 403Squadron. Unfortunatly, GMA did notprovide a press release packet of theevent when the Editor requested infor-mation and photographs. He was told theregular media covered the eventadeqately, which left no information forthe Museum to put on file in our library.

- Congratulations to the Aircrew Asso-ciation on the dedication of their statueof a World War II era aircrew member. Thededication took place at CFB Greenwood.Greenwood was selected as a Royal AirForce training base in 1940. Greenwoodwas turned over to the RCAF in 1944 andhas been in service ever since. The Air-crew Association has been fundraisingfor a number of years to complete thisproject. Congratulations to all involved.Below: Canadian Helicopters Hangersite in a panaramic view.

News Shorts:

Documents

The Atlantic Canada Aviation Museum The November meeting ... · 11/1/2010 · The de Havilland Dragon Rapide. Engines: 2x DH Gipsy Queen 2 or 3 6-cyl. inverted inline engines of