By Jim Shilliday, author

A Vintage Wings treatment of an excerpt from my new book, A Memory of Sky: A Pilot’s View of Canada’s Century of Flight, is available at http://www.vintagewings.ca/page?s=63&lang=en-CA  . The last chapter treats Vintage Wings and Hawk One.

The book (200 pages, about 100 photos) is a basic history of Canadian flight, from 1909 on, with an extensive section on Canada’s Sabre squadrons during the early Cold War—an aviation story I believe has been too long ignored in mainline history books

A Memory of Sky was written to mark 2009’s 100^thanniversary of flight in Canada. The book toasts J.A. Douglas McCurdy, who made the first flight in Canada on Feb.23, 1909. It tips the hat to telephone inventor Alexander Graham Bell who founded the Aerial Experiment Association that kick-started the aviation industry in both Canada and United States and made the Wright Brothers look like amateurs. And the book cheers the country’s advanced position today in aerospace. Canada is a heavy-hitter in the aviation world—it was a huge contributor to keeping the world free during the Cold War, an effort surpassed only by a magnificent effort in the Second World War; in civil aviation, Canada developed one of the most successful aircraft manufacturing companies in the world, Bombardier.

 The book became available in October 2009. Orders can be made at Great Plains Publications, e-mail info@greatplains.mb.ca . It is also available at Amazon, or you can contact me at sabre6@mts.net.mb.ca

Cheers and good reading,

Jim Shilliday.

A former RCAF pilot who once flew our very own Sabre, 23314, has sadly passed away.  MGen (Ret’d) BR Campbell, former Golden Hawk (961 and 1962) once flew with the 2 Wing Sky Lancers Aerobatic Team in Grostenquin, France in 1955. MGen Campbell enjoyed an extensive RCAF career. He will be remembered. The following is the excerpt from his obituary published today, 17 November.

CAMPBELL, Borden Ross “B.R.” - Air Vice Marshal RCAF (Ret’d) CMM, CD Peacefully, Monday, November 16, 2009, at age 78. Cherished husband of Ann (nee MacTavish). Predeceased by parents Ross Campbell and Mae Bell (Morphy) and his first wife Mary. Loving father of Mary-Ann (the late Brian Kruse), Lynda (Mike Quesnel) and Martin. Proud grandfather of Laura, Alex, Scott, Brianna, Miranda, Erin and Leah. Grieving B.R.’s passing are his brothers and sisters, John (Edith), Mitzi, Margaret, Kenny (Sylvia), Billy, Barbara (Gerald) and predeceased by Bernice and Edna Mae. He will be fondly remembered by his many nieces and nephews. Friends are invited to visit the Central Chapel of Hulse, Playfair and McGarry, 315 McLeod Street (at O’Connor) Wednesday from 2 to 4 and 7 to 9 p.m. Funeral Service Thursday in the Chapel at 11 a.m. For those wishing, donations can be made to the Heart and Stroke Foundation of Ontario.

By Mary Lee
While many of us are still taking in the events of Hawk One’s inaugural year and trying to decide what to do with ourselves, some are already making headway and headlines. Yes, there is life after Hawk One and here are just two individuals who are making a big difference in their communities.

On Sunday 1 November, just two days after the Hawk One Year-End dinner, Réal Turgeon became the newly elected Mayor of Saint-Isidore in “la belle province”. Most of us didn’t even know he threw his name into the campaign, let alone win; and by a landslide.

To know Réal is to realize he doesn’t do anything half way. He has to do it big and better than the last guy and that’s why it came as no surprise to learn that Réal scored 66 % of the votes (851 to 432). Quelle victoire! We also know he has a tremendous sense of humour so the correspondence that ensued following his announcement was wrought with sarcasms and wit from his beloved team mates. So here is the conundrum that Jeff Hill so cleverly pointed out, what do we call Réal now?

Your Excellency, El Jefe, Your Highness, Your Eminence, Your Emissivity, Your Immenseness, Your Highness, , Your Majesty, Your Lovliness, Your Greatness, Your Rotundness, Supreme Leader, O Fearless One, Emir, El Dulce, Sir King, Your Lordship, Duke baby, Mr. Viceroy, Cannon Turgeon, Marquis de St. Isadore, Le Count, Executive Director of the Universe, O Great One, Supreme Being, El Presidente, Mr. Big, Number One, Numero Uno, Enchilada Grande, Big Burrito, Big Cheese, Your Worship, Your Holiness, Cardinal, My Leige, Tsar, Ville Meister, Uber Colonel, Prince, Gulag Kammandant, El Capitano, Mucho Suave, Le Chef, Maestro?

On the other end of the country, another fearless leader was doing other great things for his country. Dave Scharf, Crew Chief, picked up the torch, literally, and ran a leg in the Olympic Torch Relay. As luck would have it (misfortune for the poor other guy), Dave was selected last minute due to an illness that befell a fellow 409 Sqn. member. And so, Dave donned his lovely Olympic jogging apparel complete with Hawk One fleece underneath and went for a little jaunt in the wee hours of the morning across the gusty cold plains of northern Alberta. Dave vowed not to sell the torch on EBay. Rather, it will be displayed proudly amidst his Snowbirds and Hawk One memorabilia. Not too many guys can say they have that set sitting on top of their toolbox in the garage. Way to go Dave!

Read more about Dave’s Torch Run on the Air Force website at http://www.airforce.forces.gc.ca/4w-4e/nr-sp/index-eng.asp?id=9630

So what will the rest of us be up to next? Check in here from time to time to find out more. Perhaps Janet, our amazing photographer and highly acclaimed wedding shooter will be snapping her own nuptials? The world is full of endless possibilities. It’s the story behind Hawk One, after all.

Photo: Peter Handley / Vintage Wings of Canada

The flight suits hang silently in the Vintage Wings locker room as the Hawk One team closes out the year. In total, Hawk One made 60 appearances including air shows, static displays and flypasts - a considerabley higher than anticipated season. The 2009 Centennial of Flight celebrations will forever be etched in the hearts of aviation enthusiasts as one of the most extraordinary events and will go down in aviation history as being simply brilliant.

By Mary Lee, November 3, 2009

This is the hardest blog entry I have had to make all year. Each time I posted an article from a local paper featuring one of our show appearances or a static display of Dan’s I couldn’t help but feel overwhelmed. Reading through the many lines of text splashed across pages and pages of newsprint, one could only feel proud of what our jet accomplished. We thrilled thousands of spectators, relived many magical moments for former Sabre jocks and help a nation pay homage to 100 years of incredible aviation history. We made it happen. A team of 24 volunteers of various backgrounds and talents meshed all together in one package called Hawk One. A team drawn together through a interesting network of connections that were woven over a span of more than 20 years of military history. The Six Degrees of Separation theory could never be truer than what lies behind the scenes of the Centennial of Heritage Flight project.

And, on 30 October, at the Hawk One Year-End dinner, we raised a glass to our success and reminisced over our incredible journey - one that began three year prior but really only happened this year. It was a night to always remember. I laughed and I cried as Steve Swill Will read over the highlights of our season and gave personal thanks to each and every member of the team. “I find myself running out of adjectives,” describes Swill. “Hawk One is part of a story with a beginning, a middle and an end. The Hawk One story actually began February 23^rd, 1909.” As Swill poured over the remarkable history that led to the creation of the Centennial Heritage Flight project, I feverishly wrote down notes on little sheets from a sticky pad someone kindly tossed in my direction. I didn’t want to miss a word. It was pointless. My emotions were too strong. This night was good-bye and we knew it. It wasn’t a night to play PAO/reporter. It was a night to celebrate with my team, and we did. However, there was one special message that does resonate from Swill’s eloquent speech that was also expressed by LGen André Deschamps. There is a future for Hawk One. “Suffice it to say, the Hawk One dream will not stop here,” stated Swill.

Stay tuned…

The images that follow tell the story of our celebration evening. I invite you, our readers and fans, to share comments and email us your special memories from the season.

Photo: Ruth Dempsey

On the only occasion the entire Hawk One team came together was for the Year-End dinner held in Ottawa, 30 Oct. It was an opportunity not to pass up for one final 2009 team photo.
Front Row (L-R): B. Granley, D. Taillon, R. Turgeon, R. Tomsett, M. Lee, S. Greenwood, and J. Trost.
Standing (L-R) B. Coyle, D. Dempsey, P. Kissmann, S. Will, J. Hill, T. Leslie, and C. Hadfield.
Wing kneeling (L-R): C. Adams, T. Forster, J. Maillet, and A. Janik.
Back Row (L-R): B. Schwindt, M. Gauvin, M. Underwood, D. Scharf, and R. Rader.

Photo: Ruth Dempsey

The Men in White

Photo: Ruth Dempsey

Deputy team lead presents team lead with a bottle of Macallan Single Malt Scotch, compliments of his team for a job well done.

Photo: Ruth Dempsey

Gerald Haddon shares a special image of his late Grandfather, J.A.D McCurdy to Michael Potter and gives thanks to him and Dan Dempsey for helping celbrate 100 years of aviation greatness in Canada.

Photo: Ruth Dempsey

Dan Dempsey stands with Jim Belliveau, the man with the incredible talent behind the Century Hornet and the Hawk One Sabre paint scheme. Jim sports his masterpiece on a tie that’s fit for the occasion.

Photos: Peter Handley / Vintage Wings of Canada

During the Year-end ceremony and dinner held at the RCAF Mess in Ottawa, LGen André Deschamps, Chief of the Air Staff, presented a cheque in a amount of $50,000 to the Military Families Fund on behalf the entire Hawk One team. With CAS were the following sponsors who made the project and donation all happen due to their generous donation: (L-R) Jim Strang, Sabre Pilots Association of the Air Division (SPAADS); Brad Martin, Magellan Aerospace Corporation; Dave Jennings, President and Chief Executive Officer Discovery Air, CAS; Michael Potter, Vintage Wings of Canada; John Irving, Irving Oil; Denny Roberts, Raytheon; and Jack Irving, Irving Oil.

Photo: Sam Reid

Dave O’Malley’s CoF logo was so popular, even the steak was branded! That’s taking Common, Look and Feel to a whole new level.

Photo: Peter Handley / Vintage Wings of Canada

The Radio-Canada film crew gather footage at Vintage Wings of Canada for the CBC/SRC documentary. Episode four, airing 29 Oct 09, will include footage of Hawk One filmed during the first flight of the F-86 Sabre, a day in the life of Paul ‘Rose’ Kissmann on test-flight day and various other footage shot early on in the Hawk One season. Stay tuned!

In celebrating the Canadian Centennial of Flight, CBC Television and Radio-Canada have produced an aviation documentary, Canada Above And Beyond: 100 Years of Aviation (Série Aviation: Pour l’amour du ciel). The production is a four-part documentary series that explores the revolutionary impact of aviation on this country and our great passion for flight.

The series will be aired in English on CBC Television, beginning Thursday, 8 October at 8 p.m. for four consecutive weeks.

Photo: Mary Lee

Filmed in high-definition, Canada Above And Beyond captures extraordinary stories of flight told by passionate individuals—from fighter pilots learning to navigate the CF-18 Hornet at 4 Wing Cold Lake, Alta. to a dedicated paediatrician who flies to remote native communities to treat young patients.

An encore presentation of the English four-part series, Canada Above And Beyond: 100 Years of Aviation, can be seen on CBC Newsworld, each Friday beginning 9 October, at 10 p.m. ET/PT.

For more on the series, visit www.cbc.ca/canadaaboveandbeyond

For more information on the Air Force Centennial of Flight celebrations visit www.airforce.canadiancentennialofflight.ca

Pour célébrer le centenaire de l’aviation au Canada, le réseau de télévision de CBC et de Radio-Canada a produit un documentaire sur l’aviation, intitulé Pour l’amour du ciel (Canada Above And Beyond: 100 Years of Aviation). La production est une série documentaire de quatre épisodes qui porte sur l’incidence révolutionnaire de l’aviation sur le pays et notre grande passion pour l’aviation.

La série en anglais débutera le jeudi 8 octobre à 20 h HNE/HNP pendant quatre semaines consécutives sur le réseau de télévision de CBC.

Tournée en haute définition, la série Pour l’amour du cielprésente les récits extraordinaires de passionnés d’aviation – de pilotes de chasseurs qui apprennent à naviguer le CF18 Hornet à la 4^eEscadre Cold Lake, en Alberta, au pédiatre dévoué qui se rend en avion dans des communautés autochtones éloignées pour soigner de jeunes patients.

 La séries de quatre épisode en anglais, Canada Above And Beyond: 100 Years of Aviation, sera rediffusée sur la chaîne CBC Newsworld chaque vendredi à compter du 9 octobre à 22 h HNE/HNP.

Pour de plus amples informations sur la série, visitez le   www.cbc.ca/canadaaboveandbeyond.

Pour de plus amples informations sur le Centenaire Canadien de l’aviation (Force aérienne), visitez le www.forceaerienne.lecentenairecanadiendelaviation.ca

Photo: Mr. Reid

OCdt Logan Reid, second year RMC cadet who will be training as an Air Force pilot upon graduation, was among thirty fellow cadets to sit in the cockpit and learn abut the Sabre and the Centennial of Flight project from Dan Dempsey, RMC class of ‘74. Hawk One paid a visit to the Kingston flying club Sunday, 4 October following a flypast Saturday over the college during the badging parade. OCdt Logan shared his special thanks for the experience, ‘”Just wanted to send a quick thanks for the Hawk-One walk-through and static display yesterday. Everyone I talked to seemed to really love it, and the fact that you stuck around for all those people means a lot. Even though the weather [wasn't] really cooperative, your visit definitely helped RMC raise its love for the Air Force this weekend!”

Excerpt from the KFC website

KFC Fly-in Breakfast & Hawk One Display, 4 Oct

While the day’s weather didn’t co-operate, the enthusiasm for the visiting Hawk One F86 Sabre was still pretty high. The folks at Vintage Wings Canada were kind enough to supply some extra Canadian heritage for the RMC Reunion Weekend ceremonies held on Saturday (Oct 3rd). Knowing the aircraft would be on display at the Kingston Flying Club on Sunday, the Club created a Heritage Day event around its visit - with the public invited.

KINGSTON, Ont. ─ A memorial service to honour RMC ex-cadets who died while in the service will be held at the Memorial Arch of the Royal Military College (RMC) of Canada on Sunday, October 4, at 11:00 a.m. 

The ex-cadets, lead by members of the Old Brigade, will start from near the Canadian Defence Academy and march along Verite Avenue and turn left onto Highway 2, just east of the pedestrian overpass and continue along the Highway to the road leading into the Memorial Arch.  On completion of the memorial service, the ex-cadets will then march to the RMC Parade Square while first-year officer cadets line the route and present arms to the RMC ex-cadets as they march by.

At the parade square the ex-cadets and Cadet Wing will witness the presentation of the Captain Nichola Goddard and Captain Matthew Dawe memorial swords.  

The media, alumni, parents and friends are asked to be present no later than 10:50 a.m. at the Arch. Parking is available at the Kingston Military Community Sports Centre located across RMC and Highway 2 or in the main parking area in front of the Sawyer building and all are welcome to attend.

In addition, fly pasts by Hawk One, an F-86 Sabre Jet and three Second World War aircraft from Vintage Wings of Canada will also take place during the Arch ceremony.

Media wishing to attend are asked to contact Captain Daniel Madryga, RMC Public Affairs Officer, at (613) 541-6000 ext 6484 by Friday, October 2, 2009.

KINGSTON, Ont. ─ Approximately 1,000 officer cadets will attend the traditional Badging Parade on Saturday, October 3, from 10:30 a.m. to 12:00 p.m., on the Parade Square at the Royal Military College of Canada (RMC) in Kingston, Ontario.  Approximately 190 first-year officer cadets will receive their RMC insignia known as “cap badge”, from ex-cadets, members of the “Old Brigade”.  During the parade, awards recognizing accomplishments in leadership, academics and athletics will also be presented to selected officer cadets from all academic years.  

The Badging Parade is the official ceremony where officer cadets who have successfully completed the First Year Orientation Period are symbolically recognized as cadets of RMC by members of the “Old Brigade”, a group of ex-cadets who entered RMC 50 years ago, or more. 

Family members, ex-cadets and spectators from across Canada are expected to attend this event.  It is requested that everyone be seated no later than 10:15 a.m.  Parking is available at the Kingston Military Community Sports Centre located across RMC and Highway 2 or in the main parking area in front of the Sawyer building.  In case of inclement weather, the ceremony will be held in the Field House of the Kingston Military Community Sports Centre.

In addition, fly pasts by Hawk One, an F-86 Sabre Jet and three Second World War aircraft from Vintage Wings of Canada will also take place during the parade.

Media wishing to attend are asked to contact Captain Daniel Madryga RMC Public Affairs Officer  at (613) 541-6000 ext 6484 by Friday, October 2, 2009.

By Dan Dempsey
Dear Friends:
I thought you might be interested to know that I will be flying Hawk One to Kingston this weekend to participate in the annual ex-Cadet weekend at RMC, as well as an Open House at the Kingston Flying Club on Sunday, 4 October to help celebrate their 80th anniversary.

Aside from the Snowbird year-end celebrations in Moose Jaw later, on 23 Oct, this will mark our last event of the season as our 100th anniversary of powered flight celebrations draw to a close.

For anyone that might be interested, here is my tentative schedule (weather permitting):

Friday, 2 Oct - arrive over the Kingston area at 1100 ET, landing by 1130.

Saturday, 3 Oct - flypasts over RMC in conjunction with their annual First-Year ”Badging Parade”. The parade starts at 1030 ET with the flypasts occurring at the end of the parade (anticipate between 1130 and 1200). 

Sunday, 4 Oct - flypast over the RMC Memorial Arch in conjunction with the annual Memorial Service. The parade commences at 1100 ET at the Arch which is at the entrance to the college. Following this flypast, I will be returning to the Kingston airport where Hawk One will be on display until 1700. Following the static display, I will be meeting with local Air Cadets.

Please note that we are hopeful that three additional Vintage Wings of Canada Warbirds will be participating in the weekend flypasts as well - a Corsair, Spitfire and Mustang, all flown by ex-Cadets as well. For those who have never seen these parades at RMC, they are highly worthwhile.

For additional information about our Hawk One team and our sponsors, please browse our website. Later in November, I will post an article about the ex-RMC cadets who are on our team or who have been instrumental in the Air Force Centennial of Flight celebrations. The article will first appear in Veritas, the RMC Newsletter.

Photo : Janet Trost

Chris Hadfield présenta une lithographie de Hawk One à M. Harold Guay, maire de Sainte-Marie de Beauce le 15 septembre. Étaient présents Réal Turgeon, coordonnateur de l’équipe Hawk One et Mme Pauline Vachon, présidente de La Maison Dupuis. Cet évènement eu lieu alors que l’Escadrille du patrimoine centenaire, avec Chris Hadfield aux commandes du F-86 Sabre, eu joint l’Équipe de démonstration aérienne les Snowbirds des Forces canadiennes les 15 et 16 septembre, pour effectuer une série de défilés aériens spectaculaires au-dessus de plusieurs municipalités du Québec, afin de souligner le centenaire de l’aviation au Canada, contribuant ainsi au programme « 100 villes pour 100 ans » des Snowbirds.

par Pierre Asselin, Le Soleil

Reprinted from Le Soleil, 16 September

Aux commandes d’un vieux F-86 Sabre, un des premiers chasseurs à réaction de l’histoire, l’astronaute canadien Chris Hadfield réalise un rêve d’enfance : piloter le tout premier avion qu’il a vu dans le ciel.

“Le tout premier souvenir que j’ai de l’aviation, c’est quand j’étais un enfant, de voir l’escadrille des Golden Hawks [prédécesseurs des Snowbirds]. Et cet avion-ci en faisait partie.” Chris Hadfield est arrivé hier à Québec aux commandes de son Hawk One, un des trois avions qui forment l’escadrille du patrimoine centenaire, avec un F-18 et un Tutor. Ces trois avions accompagnent les neuf Tutor de l’équipe des Snowbirds à des événements pendant l’année.

En tout, le programme du centenaire prévoit que 100 villes seront survolées pour souligner ces 100 ans. Le centenaire commémore le premier vol propulsé au Canada, réalisé par le Silver Dart à Baddeck (en Nouvelle-Écosse) le 23 février 1909.

La douzaine d’avions se posaient hier à l’aéroport de Québec après avoir survolé la Beauce, la Rive-Sud et la capitale. Ils doivent survoler Québec à nouveau aujourd’hui à l’heure du dîner.

Photo : Janet Trost

L’astronaute Chris Hadfield de l’Agence spatiale canadienne, l’invité d’honneur, s’adressa à 150 personnes le 15 septembre à La Maison Dupuis de Sainte-Marie de Beauce - un Centre d’interprétation des pionniers de l’aviation qui contribuèrent au progrès et à l’évolution de l’aviation civile au Québec et au Canada.

Le Hawk One est le seul F-86 Sabre au pays qui soit encore en état de voler, et Chris Hadfield est l’un des cinq hommes formés pour le piloter. Leur formation se limite à un manuel d’instructions. “C’est un monoplace et le premier vol se fait tout de suite en solo, mais nous sommes tous des pilotes habitués à des avions de haute performance. J’ai volé sur 75 différents avions auparavant, alors ça ne m’a pas posé de problème.”

“C’est un des avions les plus agréables à piloter, poursuit-il. Sur un F-18, il faut que les commandes passent par un ordinateur afin que l’avion soit capable de faire ce qu’un F-86 peut faire naturellement. Piloter cet avion, c’est comme voler avec ses propres ailes…”

L’histoire du F-86 est d’ailleurs étroitement liée à celle de notre aviation. Le Canada a en effet fabriqué près de 1800 exemplaires de cet avion, à Montréal, pendant les années 50 et 60. Le Tutor des Snowbirds est quant à lui canadien à 100 % puisqu’il a été conçu et fabriqué ici.

L’ex-pilote des Forces armées souligne la place importante que le Canada a su se tailler pendant ces 100 ans. “Il faut se rappeler que De Haviland est à l’origine de Spar, qui a construit le bras spatial. Et c’est tout cela qui fait qu’aujourd’hui une Canadienne comme Julie Payette se voit confier le rôle d’ingénieure de vol sur un vaisseau spatial. Tout ça arrive en droite ligne de notre histoire.”

Chris Hadfield ne passe que deux jours cette semaine à bord de son avion. Il retourne ensuite à la NASA, avant de partir pour la Russie la semaine prochaine en prévision de la mission à laquelle participe Guy Laliberté.

M. Hadfield s’occupe de la famille de l’astronaute américain Jeff Williams. Il a toutefois eu l’occasion de côtoyer et d’apprécier Guy Laliberté. “J’aime bien Guy Laliberté. C’est un homme intelligent et il est en parfaite condition physique. Ce n’est pas n’importe qui qui accepterait de passer six mois dans une petite ville de Russie pour travailler, étudier et s’entraîner loin de tout son confort. C’est un homme de vision et j’espère qu’il va pouvoir partager son expérience avec d’autres.”