Patriciannov08 5

Victoria Flying Club

November 2008

Between Kelowna and Kamloops, our beautiful country. (photo by Ted Krasowski). Let us remember all the veterans who fought to keep Canada free.

Inside

See Remembrance Day story, page 16.

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15

Short Final

Letters to the Editor

Bears Air

In My Travels

To Brazil with N54CC

All About Angel Flight

Riley Bennett’s First Solo

The

Patrician Newsletter of the Victoria Flying Club

Eleanor’s

S hort F inal

NOVEMBER 2008 Editor:

Eleanor Eastick PatricianEditor@shaw.ca Advertising inquiries: Bob Mace (250) 361-6996 or bmace@shaw.ca Publisher: Seaside Designs seasidedesigns@shaw.ca (250) 383-7777 Published monthly.

Unsolicited articles welcome.

The deadline for submissions is Thursday, November 20, 2008.

Board of Directors President Vice President Treasurer Secretary Directors

Paul Levie Doug Marin Lloyd Toope Colin Dormuth Eleanor Eastick Ellen Wood Sean Steele Jim Sutherland

Wow! Still no really bad weather yet! I love these fall days with sunshine and coloured leaves and very blue skies a lot of the time. There are still good days in the offing before we say good-bye to 2008.

Having remarked that the weather has been good – it sure wasn’t a good day on Thanksgiving Monday. I had planned for a little two-plane flyout to somewhere-or-other, but it was not to be.

However, the Labour Day flyout to Port Hardy, according to Ted Krasowski. “turned out pretty good – was cloudy on the way up but cleared as we came home. We went into Campbell River for lunch, then to Port Hardy then to Powell River via Desolation Sound and then home. I only got a couple of pictures, one of them a pretty good example of OTT.” “You might also be interested in a trip Don, Sam and I took to Kelowna and Kamloops on Sept 7. I am attaching pictures from that trip also.”

General Manager Gerry Mants Chief Flying Instructor Graham Palmer 1852 Canso Road Victoria, BC V8L 5V5

Phone:

(250) 656-4321 (250) 656-2833 (250) 655-0910 info@flyvfc.com www.flyvfc.com

Fax: Email: Web:

Opinions expressed are those of the authors alone. No part of this newsletter may be reproduced in any format without the written authorization from the publisher or author.

100 Years of Powered Flight in Canada!

creative communications solutions for YOUR business

250.383.7777 seasidedesigns@shaw.ca seasidedesigns.net

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SEASIDE designs & photography

Here is new information regarding a Cross Canada Century Flight in July 2009 to celebrate 100 years of powered flight in Canada. This Century Flight will be alongside John Lovelace, aviation journalist and creator of “Wings Across Canada” television show. The Flight will be from Boundary Bay Airport in BC to Baddeck Airport in Nova Scotia. You can join in for the entire Flight, or join in from any of the 8 scheduled cities along the way. If you ever wanted to be a part of aviation history, this may well be your big chance! Check out the poster on page 12.

Short Final cont’d p. 4

Letters to the Editor That’s the lovely paper mache Beaver hanging in the CYVR South Terminal. It’s very familiar to our Angel Flight Pilots - our clients meet us there to fly home after treatment in Vancouver. We do need to be careful to tell them it’s an airplane – early in our 7 year history one client went looking for an animal with a wide tail! YVR has been very supportive of Angel Flight – we’re the only non-sched aircraft now welcomed at the South Terminal.

While we’re at it – our thanks to Gerry and all at VFC for their support of Angel Flight.

Ralph Gorby Chief Pilot Angel Flight of Vancouver Island Be sure to see the Angel Flight article in this issue-ed Heya Eleanor, That plane is probably supposed to be a DHC-2 Beaver. I saw it over three years ago in the south terminal of Vancouver Intl. I flew myself and some friends over there not long after getting my license, and I got to fly and land a PA-31 Navajo with an aerial photography setup. It felt like a fighter jet.

Sam

Well, thanks guys. You’re right – I think it’s supposed to be a Beaver. That was a bit of Hallowe’en silliness, so let’s get serious for November and check out the new mystery plane-ed.

October mystery: I'm not quite sure what it is supposed to be but looking at the trailing edge of the wing and fuselage it has tangled with unkind handling.

Like the September mystery of the month it appears to be the iconic Canadian DHC-2 Beaver? And by looking at the ident letters it has something to do with Vancouver (CF-YVR) International. As to where it can be found I'd say the local trick and joke shop would be a good start. I'm sorry if I have offended anyone by my comments. I'm sure they have some other talents other than creating paper Mache airplanes, although it far exceeds my talents to create the same...

Rob Shemilt :-)

A Celebration of Firsts CBC /Radio Canada is producing an exciting four part documentary series celebrating the 100th anniversary of flight in Canada. It will air some time in 2009. ”First Flight“, will explore the wonder of flight by telling the stories of some of Canada's ”firsts“ -- from Alexander Graham Bell and his aviation group's amazing flying machine, the Silver Dart, to the thrill of traveling into space for the first time.

Part of the documentary will tell the story of the youngest pilot to fly across Canada. Emma Houlston soared into the history books when she and her dad Paul went from Victoria to Nfld in 1988. Twenty years later, Emma and her father still share a love of flying.

CBC would like to film the two of them flying together. Emma (Piayda) is now married and lives in Victoria once again; Dad Paul will be arriving on Friday, November 6th on the red eye from Medicine Hat via Calgary and he and Emma should be making their flight on the 7th or 8th November from the Victoria Flying Club.

A Celebration of Firsts

All across the country, flying groups from the Vintage Wings in the Gatineau to Air Canada in Montreal to Air Inuit in the north are helping CBC show off the achievements of Canadian aviation.

Emma's story was told in the Patrician several years ago, accompanied by a few fuzzy photos-ed.

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Short Final cont’d from p 2 And if you plan to fly across Canada, here are all the good reasons for living in each province: TOP REASONS TO LIVE IN BRITISH COLUMBIA 1. Vancouver : 1.5 million people and two bridges.

You do the math.

2. Your $400,000 Vancouver home is just 5 hours from downtown.

3. You can throw a rock and hit three Starbucks locations.

4. There’s always some sort of deforestation protest going on.

5. Weed...

TOP REASONS TO LIVE IN ALBERTA 1. Big rock between you and B.C. 2. Ottawa who?

3. Tax is 6% instead of approximately 200% as it is for the rest of the country.

4. You can exploit almost any natural resource you can think of.

5. You live in the only province that could actually afford to be its own country.

6. The Americans below you are all in anti-government militia groups.

TOP REASONS TO LIVE IN SASKATCHEWAN 1. You never run out of wheat.

2. Your province is really easy to draw.

3. You can watch the dog run away from home for hours.

4. People will assume you live on a farm.

TOP REASONS TO LIVE IN MANITOBA 1. You wake up one morning to find that you suddenly have a beachfront property.

2. Hundreds of huge, horribly frigid lakes.

3. Nothing compares to a wicked Winnipeg winter.

4. You can be an Easterner or a Westerner depending on your mood.

5. You can pass the time watching trucks and barns float by.

TOP REASONS TO LIVE IN ONTARIO 1. You live in the centre of the universe.

2. Your $400,000 Toronto home is actually a dump.

3. You and you alone decide who will win the federal election.

4. The only province with hard-core American-style crime.

TOP REASONS TO LIVE IN QUEBEC 1. Racism is socially acceptable 2. You can take bets with your friends on which English neighbour will move out next.

3. Other provinces basically bribe you to stay in Canada 4. You can blame all your problems on the ‘Anglo *#!%!’

TOP REASONS TO LIVE IN NEW BRUNSWICK 1. One way or another, the government gets 98% of your income.

2. You’re poor, but not as poor as the Newfies.

3. No one ever blames anything on New Brunswick .

4. Everybody has a grandfather who runs a lighthouse.

TOP REASONS TO LIVE IN NOVA SCOTIA 1. Everyone can play the fiddle. The ones who can’t, think they can..

2. You can pretend to have Scottish heritage as an excuse to get drunk and wear a kilt.

3. You are the only reason Anne Murray makes money.

TOP REASONS TO LIVE IN PRINCE EDWARD ISLAND 1. Even though more people live on Vancouver Island, you still got the big, new bridge.

2. You can walk across the province in half an hour.

3. You can drive across the province in two minutes.

4. Everyone has been an extra on ‘Road to Avonlea’.

5. This is where all those tiny, red potatoes come from.

6. You can confuse ships by turning your porch lights on and off at night.

TOP REASONS TO LIVE IN NEWFOUNDLAND 1. If Quebec separates, you will float off to sea.

2. If you do something stupid, you have a built-in excuse.

3. The workday is about two hours long.

4. It is socially acceptable to wear your hip waders to your wedding.

Blue Skies………………Eleanor

NOVEMBER Mystery of the Month This WW II aircraft was known as the Wooden Wonder or the Timber Terror. Even the Germans remarked,"They knock together a beautiful wooden aircraft that every piano factory over there is building, and they give it a speed which they have now increased yet again."

Send your educated guesses to

PatricianEditor@shaw.ca 4

Student Pilots and Grumpy Old Men

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f you’ve ever been a flight instructor, you can equate your students to those of an elementary school teacher. Usually. These young pilots are eager to learn, open to your advice and knowledge, they’re optimistic, accommodating, and almost always buy your coffee. The instructor is respected as the source of all aviation knowledge by these enthusiastic future airline pilots.

Real airline pilots, on the other hand, don’t worry about being respected by others. They respect themselves.

The joke about comparing airline captains with God (God doesn’t think he’s a pilot) is told over and over. The one about the bulge on top of a 747 being there so the pilot can sit on his wallet may not be too far from the truth. The bottom line on these guys is that they’re ‘grumpy old men’.

So why are students and airline pilots so different? I have my theory. It’s all because the young, inexperienced flyers have nothing to compare their life situation with. So everything they learn is unquestioned, and treated as normal, as the truth. It lies with attitude, and not the kind which defines how high the nose of the airplane is. The seasoned captains meanwhile, have been-theredone-that, and now things are changing; life isn’t what it used to be. The good old days are gone. Life is harder now, with smaller pensions and fewer company benefits. The airlines are laying off ground staff by the thousands. Can pilots be far behind?

I know about all this stuff, because I’m no spring chicken anymore. I can recall quite clearly some of my first flights when learning to be a private pilot. I remember the instructors and their names. The first airplane I ever flew (it’s long gone now, crashed by a student). I even remember the way that plane smelled

BEAR’S AIR Barry Meek

inside. That was all back in the early ‘70’s.

Many years later, the time seemed right to move up to a commercial license. By then, the instructors weren’t on pedestals anymore. They were just other pilots, some younger that me. One instructor kicked me out of his class. Although I kept my mouth shut and paid close attention, I think he was intimidated by my advanced age and experience. It was too bad, because I could have learned a lot from him. Instead, I moved on to find another flying school, where a confident, professional instructor tuned me up pretty fast. Then, feeling back in the saddle, and being an aircraft owner, it was time to hire a freelance class 1 instructor and get into a correspondence course. It really doesn’t seem to make much difference to employers how you obtain a license.

If it’s a commercial license, you’re hired. You’re on your way to becoming a grumpy old man.

If you’re a woman, you don’t become grumpy. For some reason, female pilots seem to be either very pleasant, or very assertive, but never grumpy.

Although I personally am not acquainted with many, I do hear them regularly on the radio.

Women are always polite with controllers, and controllers always seem to have a little more respect for the women than they do for me. I don’t have a problem with that, probably because I’m not grumpy yet.

On the subject of controllers, I recall an incident several years back when I was flying over central Vancouver Island, north of Nanaimo. I was talking to Victoria Terminal while VFR over top of a thin layer that topped at about 2,000 feet. Attempting to descend into Qualicum Beach airport, I spiraled down through a small hole to have a look underneath. That spiral caught the attention of the controller, who immediately called to check my status. Aware of the cloud cover, it probably appeared to him on his radar screen that I was already in a spiral dive, perhaps out of control and that a crash was imminent. After reassuring him I was all right, I thought that was mighty observant and story cont’d on p 6

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Bears Air cont’d from p 5 considerate of him, looking out for a small aircraft like that.

the term “going postal”, where someone is way beyond boredom and dissatisfaction.

That incident stands out in my mind because of the many stories told about how grumpy air traffic controllers can be. This fellow was definitely not grumpy, and one of the first I’d heard who went out of his way to help in a situation that appeared serious. That was many years ago, and since then I know of many, many instances of that standard in carrying out their jobs.

There’s much to be said for the on-going training and flight reviews a pilot must do to keep his job. The constant flow of new and better equipment and avionics is a good thing too, forcing us to keep the brain in gear and keep up with it all. The way our lives unfold however, isn’t decided by training, airplanes, new ideas or situations. It all comes from the attitude we adopt. And make no mistake, we do have control over our own attitudes. We can choose to be grumpy, or not. The mind is like a computer in that it will respond directly to the inputs it receives. Put in positive thoughts, and the brain will put out a positive attitude. At the end of the day, there is no way we should have a grumpy old man in the left seat. If there is, it’s his own fault.

The whole point of this is that as we learn and become more experienced in a job, in life in general, we become complacent, bored, and finally grumpy. The human mind needs fresh, new ideas and experiences to keep it working properly and to keep from becoming stagnant.

Doing anything too long is not human nature. I can’t think of any job that would be worse than an assembly line for instance, one where the worker repetitively attaches a nut to a bolt all day and does it for 40 years.

Does that still happen? And perhaps my point explains

Barry Meek bcflyer@propilots.net

Here is a great optical illusion photo taken of a Lufthansa 747-400 and a United 757-200 that were on simultaneous approaches to runways 28L and 28R at San Francisco (SFO).

The separation requirement for flying parallel and simultaneous approaches is 225 meters (about 750 feet).

These two aircraft are at a safe distance for the approaches they are each flying. Due to the 747 being three times larger than the 757, and being slightly behind, it gives this incredible optical illusion. submitted by Cliff Hatch, via Duncan Flying Club newsletter.

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VFC is pleased to announce it is

DISCONTINUING the

fuel surcharges

on rental aircraft.

$$ =

00

In My Travels

by Larry Dibnah

The Bristol Bolingbroke The Bristol Bolingbroke was a Canadian license-built version of the successful English Bristol Blenheim medium bomber.

The prototype Blenheim with its short nose section first flew in June 1936 as the Bristol 152, a private/ civilian venture financed by millionaire Lord Rothmore who aptly named it “Britain First”. A patriotic Rothmore then donated the aircraft to England and by 1939 several production models of the Blenheim were in service with the Royal Air Force. At the time, the Blenheim was quite an advanced aircraft with a top speed of 266 mph – faster than most fighter aircraft of the day. Bristol Blenheims remained in service with the RAF and other Commonwealth air forces performing many duties throughout WW2.

The Bristol-developed Blenheim Mark IV was initially adopted by the Royal Canadian Air Force for reconnaissance and anti-submarine patrols on both coasts. The Bristol Bolingbroke (Blenheim Mk IV) prototype first flew in Britain on September 24, 1937 and was subsequently shipped to Canada soon after. In the meantime, the Fairchild Aircraft Company of Longqueuil, Quebec had obtained from Bristol a license for production of the Bristol Bolingbroke in Canada. The Fairchild Company eventually produced a total of 626 Bolingbroke Mk IV’s for use as coastal patrol and training aircraft by the Royal Canadian Air Force throughout World War 2.

Western Air Command of the RCAF employed the majority of Bristol Bolingbrokes. Four bomber squadrons and one operational training squadron were based either at Vancouver (RCAF Sea Island) or at Victoria (RCAF Patricia Bay) and flew constant patrols up and down the coast of British Columbia. Other operational bases on Vancouver Island included Tofino, Comox and Port Hardy.

The British Columbia Aviation Museum has a Mark IV Bolingbroke, serial #9104, among its collection. Once based at RCAF Station Patricia Bay – now Victoria International Airport - this aircraft has a varied history. Bought after the war by local aircraft enthusiast Mr. George Maude, the Bolingbroke was sold to Mr. Edward Lacy and barged over to Salt Spring Island. Mr. Lacy disassembled the aircraft completely and used its parts all over his farm. The wings were used as shed roofs, the tail section became a shelter for his sheep, and the engine exhaust rings were used as strawberry planters. This was a much undignified end to a lovely aircraft, so it seemed.

In 1979 Mr. Lacy was approached by members of the BCAM and, after some negotiation, the remains of Bolingbroke #9104 were purchased by the Museum for the sum of $500 and transported back to Victoria International Airport. Since the fuselage had been cut in two, the Museum located another Bolingbroke fuselage in Lang Ruth, Manitoba. With financial assistance through the provincial GO BC program at the time, BC Aviation Museum members were able to complete the restoration of their Bolingbroke by 1996. The Museum’s ‘Boly’ is painted to represent an aircraft flown by RCAF No. 13 Operational Training Unit stationed here at Patricia Bay during WW2. This ‘Boly’ is one of only a handful of its kind left in Canada.

Specifications for the Mark IV Bristol Bolingbroke: Crew: three or four persons; Engines: 2 Bristol Mercury nine-cylinder radial engines of 920 hp each; Wing span: 56 feet 4 inches; References: Elwood White & Peter Smith. 2005.

Length: 42 feet 9 inches; Max. T/O wt: 13,100 lbs; “Wings Across the Water”, RCAF.com, and Service ceiling: 28,400 feet; the British Columbia Aviation Museum.

Max airspeed: 262 mph; Range: 1,400 miles; Armament: 1320 lbs of bombs plus one fixed and two flexible Browning .303 machine guns.

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March 16th

a z i l with N r B 54CC To

We arrive at the airport aiming for a 1400 departure, pay all the usual bills, file the VFR/IFR flight plan and wait for the clearance. Ceilings are 1000’ to 1500’ so we wait for a good 20 minutes before ATC finds room for us in the IFR system and start VFR up the Juliette corridor for the last time. Instead of flying the whole corridor VFR I have requested IFR from Pedagio, within the corridor, which is probably why we are being delayed for it is well inside the Sao Paulo TMA. But given the weather, IFR is the more sensible option. Once finally cleared to climb we are on top by 6000’, the first sunshine we’ve seen in days. We are cleared via a couple of local VORs that are NOTAMed u/s but this all seems quite normal; I suppose the controllers rely on our “G” equipment as much as we do.

16,000’ gives us 21.7gph so we climb to 18,000 which gives just under 20gph at 8.7 miles per gallon, not bad.

Scattered cumulus, the odd top around 20,000’ so we change our destination from Campo Grande to Corumba which is 100 miles further Westwards, tucked up against the Bolivian border. The Petrobras fuel agent is now really stealing money from us, charging 5 reals (US$3.00) per litre of Jet A1. When I reduce the order from 200 to 180 litres he tries to up the price again which I just ignore so he gives up. Great fish for supper.

Airport. FL160 works well. Density altitude is just over 18,000. The countryside is covered with Cumulus topped around 8000’ that looks just like a layer of popcorn spread across the countryside. Not too busy in Bolivia, we neither hear nor see anybody for the whole flight. Fuel here at $0.91 per litre is 30% of the cost in Brazil. The hotel is twice as nice as the hotel in Sao Paulo at half the price; this place has potential… The taxi driver charges us less than $2 for a 30 minute cab ride to dinner which with beer and a bottle of wine is less than $15.

The Peruvians have not accepted our overflight request e/mailed to them 4 days ago. Neither have the Ecuadorians. We spend another couple of days here in Santa Cruz trying to obtain clearances until we give up on them and fly off to Tabatinga. How could you not want to fly to a place with a name such as Tabatinga? West of Manaus there are many rivers that eventually merge to become the Amazon. One of these is the Rio Solimoes which started life as the Amazon to the West and changes its name back to the Amazon again at Manaus. Here the small, nearly naked men with blowpipes have been replaced by small, less naked men with Honda motor scooters. Tabatinga is a very small town tucked up against the Peruvian and Columbian borders. It is very poor and the kids make their living smuggling cocaine across the

March 17th Corumba to Santa Cruz The Corumba station agent is charging us twice as much for 12 hours parking as Sao Paulo was for 3 days. We have seen this sort of thing a lot in Brazil. To leave Brazil we need to pass through immigration to get the General Declaration and passports stamped. Immigration is at the bus station – ‘course it is, where else would it be?

Another uncontrolled airport so we broadcast and go, without the permission number the Brazilians think we should have, wondering if we will be met with a military escort from the Bolivians despite my e/mail to their DGAC. Half an hour later, deep into Bolivian airspace, we manage to talk with someone who cheerfully clears us as requested for the short flight to Viru Viru International

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4 Part

Popcorn Cumulus

river from Columbia at 4000 reals a trip, a fortune. This is one of the major gateways for the shipment of this drug into Europe. The 23 Federal police based here catch lots of kids and collect lots of cocaine but with such a large and porous border they tell me it is more of a gesture that anything else. 2am brings a huge, elemental Amazonian thunderstorm that rages for hours. Continual lightening and thunder with the rain bouncing 6” off the pavement.

I wonder what tomorrow will bring? Tabatinga to Panama is 1,055 nautical miles. This is 6 hours flying with 1 hour reserve assuming no headwinds and no altitude or routing

Tabatinga Garden Airport

problems. Fat chance! In the first 5 minutes the Peruvians deny us overflight permission over a really small patch of empty jungle which results in an 87 mile detour right off the bat - just because they can, I suppose. Then, at 18,000’ we run into a strange compressor problem we are experiencing in icing conditions. Down to warmer air at 14,000’ is costing us a bunch of gas, but there is no option. After an hour or so we climb back up to 16,000, then 18,000 and finally to 20,000. We do seem to be on somebody’s radar but as there doesn’t seem to be another aircraft airborne in Columbia we have no trouble straightening out the route.

Great controllers here. It is proving impossible to remain clear of icing conditions so down we go again. Now we are reaching the mountains and we do not have the altitude to meet the minimum enroute requirements clear of icing conditions so are beginning to think about landing options. Bogata is the best option, we can get there without having to climb back into icing conditions.

Continually in and out of cloud between layers we see a glimmer of a possibility to the West over Cali. After another half an hour the glimmer turns into blue sky

above the highest layer that looks to be around 15,000 so we turn left toward the Panamanian border and climb to 20,000’ to try to claw back some fuel. The isolated cells are growing rapidly with tops way above 40,000’ but there is a little space to weave our way between them. Once out over the Pacific the skies clear. Now we are looking for a fuel stop but our newly updated Garmins show no available Jet fuel between Cali and Panama. So Panama it is with a planned landing fuel of 13 gallons; 41 minutes.

We’ll see how much we put into the tanks after landing.

Transferring from the tips during descent seemed to yield a few more litres with the lower nose attitude. The tip tanks are not giving us the fuel advertised. There should be no unusable fuel in the tip tanks but we have found over the course of this trip there to be a couple of unusable gallons in each tank. These are newly installed tanks so perhaps the installation needs to be checked.

So, Panama on time, through the formalities which as usual take forever, then refuel the mains. One of Bob’s several degrees is accountancy and I shall never scoff at his messing with fuel figures to 3 decimal places again; we are within 1.3% of our estimated fuel burn! I don’t think Bob was too comfortable landing with so little fuel but one company I worked for told me that if I wanted reserve fuel I had to make it en-route, so I am used to landing with just a few minutes in the tanks. Now we are off to Ilsa Contadora before it gets dark there; we get there with 15 minutes to spare. Today has been spent cutting it fine; I wouldn’t mind fattening up the margins for the balance of the trip.

Conclusion of this amazing story next month!

Easter Weekend at Ilsa Contadora, Panama

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All About Angel Flight

by Ted Krasowski and Jeff Morris Ted: The Annual Angel Flight Seminar was held Saturday, October 18 in the President’s Lounge at the Shell Aerocentre, CYYJ. Approximately 20 active Angel Flight pilots and 3 potential pilots attended. Most of the group hailed from Boundary Bay, Nanaimo or Victoria.

Jeff Morris, C.E.O. of Angel Flight of British Columbia, started the day off with an overview of Angel Flight activities over the past year. To date there have been a total of 115 flights in 2008, with an average flight time of 2 hours 45 minutes and an average distance travelled of 208.88 nautical miles. Since its inception Angel Flight of British Columbia has flown 644 flights and has never missed an appointment due to a cancellation for reasons other than weather.

Jeff: I was hosting Lt. Governor Iona Campagnolo (on that rainy day) at our launch back in 2002 and when I suggested we stay inside to watch Jim Sutherland get airborne on an “Angel Flight” she responded, “Mr. Morris, I’m from Prince Rupert and this looks like a good day to me!”

Chuck Lovallo is our Founder and Chairman but is very busy with other things these days. I met Chuck back in

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1999 when he was setting up AF; I had recently retired from 22 years with Cathay Pacific and, with my knowledge of airline operations and my time in management with Cathay, after one meeting took over the Operations side of AF. It took us almost two years to obtain the necessary approvals/exemptions from the CTA/TC and we launched in April 2002. We carry principally cancer patients to and from their treatment appointments, at the moment we have two regulars from Powell River – one to Victoria and the other to Vancouver. We can carry others where they meet certain criteria, distance, lack of a scheduled carrier etc but all our clients must be fully ambulatory and able to climb into and out of a small aircraft unassisted. Our area of operations is defined as “suitable airfields on Vancouver Island, the Gulf Islands, Sunshine Coast and the Lower Mainland as far east as Hope”. We started as a purely VFR operation but as we have matured and demonstrated this to TC, we now have IFR capability where pilots are qualified and current, the aircraft is suitably equipped and the client is familiar with such flying.

I work closely with the authorities regarding changes to AF operations and am currently in discussions with them over one significant issue. I also work with the Volunteer Driver Agencies in Vancouver, Victoria and Port Hardy to arrange ground transport for our cancer clients. Vancouver International are very good to us and waive all our Landing and Parking fees as well as allocating designated parking spots for us at the YVR South Terminal. Comox are also very supportive of AF operations and approve operations into YQQ; other airports around the network, such as Nanaimo, also support AF and allow us to use Terminal facilities without charge.

story cont’d on p 11

Angel Flight from p 10 As a non-profit registered charity we raise all our own funds from a variety of sources such as Rotary, Lions etc as well as Foundations; I undertake a number of speaking engagements during the year, 17 so far in 2008, to raise awareness and funds and we accept no Government funds be it Federal or Provincial. Financially AF is very sound with an Annual Budget of approximately $58,000.00. We currently utilize 24 volunteer pilots from around our network who either own or rent their aircraft.

They are compensated for their direct operating costs, i.e. fuel for renters and fuel and oil for owners, plus any out of pocket expenses directly related to operating an Angel Flight. At each pilot base we have a cell phone, current charts, lifejackets, headsets and other items required to ensure that all AF operations are conducted in a safe manner and in accordance with regulations.

As mentioned all our pilots are volunteers, in fact all staff at AF are volunteers and we have no paid staff. A pilot must have at least 250 hours achieved in a timely manner to volunteer as an AF pilot, they complete an application form and then meet with myself and either Chief Pilot Ralph Gorby or AF Advisor Scott Eichel. The entire AF procedures are then explained, pilots logbook etc examined and relevant questions asked; this is also an opportunity for the potential pilot to ask any questions he or she may have. This process generally takes about an hour and if all parties are satisfied the next step is for the potential pilot to undertake a flight into YVR with either Ralph or Scott. This satisfies a number of criteria; whilst not examiners it does enable AF to observe the pilots abilities. It also ensures that the pilot is totally familiar with YVR ATC procedures, where to park at YVR, where to meet clients and where the Volunteer Driver will be. On return to YYJ, and provided all parties are again satisfied, the pilot is given an AF uniform and is “on the roster”.

Our clients contact AF via email, fax, telephone or the AF website; sometimes it is the Cancer Lodge or Clinic who make the initial contact and at other times a doctor’s office or social workers. A simple information form is completed and submitted, a waiver also needs to be signed by those who are travelling as well a doctor – this ensures the request is genuine – who confirms that the potential client is fit to fly. Once the client is assessed as being viable I then send an email to all pilots giving details of the upcoming flight such as timings, weights etc. At the same time I ask the client to formulate a backup plan in case the weather precludes AF from flying; it is important to remember that AF is an option and not a solution. From the backup plan I establish a Go/NoGo

time at which time the client requires the decision as to whether AF can fly them or they need to leave home and catch a ferry or bus. From the email I had sent out to pilots I review the volunteers and select a pilot to operate the flight.

On the day of the flight I evaluate the weather with either Ralph or Scott and the folks at Kamloops as well as the operating pilot.

The flight is monitored throughout by the operating pilot utilizing the cell phones provided to call me so that drivers, relatives etc can be kept informed with regard to arrival times etc.

As was mentioned to date AF has operated 644 client flights, 115 of those in 2008. In addition to the 644 we have cancelled a further 267 due to weather and 164 by the client or due to other operational reasons.

Ted: Gerry Mants, Manager of the Victoria Flying Club was made an honorary member of Angel Flight of British Columbia in appreciation of all his assistance to Angel Flight The Victoria Flying Club is the home of the Angel Flight office in Victoria.

Wouldn’t you rather be flying?

• Tax and financial planning • Rapid refunds (electronic filing) • Personal, corporate and estate tax

Owner Evelyn J. Andrews-Greene, CA Sustaining Member of VFC since 1983

386-4466 #202-31 Bastion Square Victoria BC V8W 1J1

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Join John Lovelace next summer in an historic 10 day Celebration of Canadian Aviation Between July 17, and July 26, 2009 we are holding a "Cross Canada Party" and you are cordially invited to attend!

Whitehorse

The occasion is the 100th anniversary of the first powered flight in Canada. On February 23, 1909 the Silver Dart, piloted by J. McCurdy, took off from the frozen surface of Bras d'Or Lake in Baddeck, Nova Scotia. In honour of this historic celebration, John Lovelace, the recipient of the 2008 COPA President’s Award, aviation journalist and creator of “Wings Over Canada” is inviting aviators to join him on a historic 10 day cross country flight. The flight will leave in July 2009 from the shores of the Pacific Ocean at Boundary Bay Airport, fly to COPA convention in Calgary, and conclude 10 days later at the site of Alexander Bell's historic flight at Baddeck, Nova Scotia.

Participants have the option to make the entire flight or to join up in any one of the 8 cities along the way.

The goal is to arrive in Nova Scotia with aircraft representing a crosssection of aviation in Canada today.

All aircraft, from ultralights, to light singles and twins to high performance military aircraft are invited to join in the celebration.

Aviators and aviation enthusiasts from every province and territory are invited to join the party. Along the way we will be picking up aviation artifacts covering 100 years of flight from each region of Canada to present to the Alexander Graham Bell Museum in Baddeck, Nova Scotia at the conclusion of the flight.

Yellowknife

Goose Bay Churchill St. Johns Edmonton

Vancouver

Quebec City Montreal Ottawa

Calgary Winnipeg

Toronto

The flight is intended to be a 10 day festivity where pilots and enthusiasts will share in new and old friendships set to the backdrop of our passion for aviation. The celebration will move cross-canada from opening ceremonies at Boundary Bay to the closing ceremonies in Baddeck, Nova Scotia.

We are working on an itinerary which is designed to accommodate VFR flight schedules in a Canadian summer. Between October, 2008 and April, 2009 our event coordinators will be detailing the cities and venues along the way and monthly updates will be forwarded by email.

Be a part of television history The entire flight will form the backdrop of a historical television event of the 100 Year Flight, produced and hosted by veteran TV producer John Lovelace.

The one-hour special will be a tribute to the aviators and aircraft that came together in the celebration and will stand as a lasting reflection of general aviation yesterday and today.

Registering The cost of registering is $150.00 per entry to cover administration of the event only. While we will be recommending hotels and accommodation along the way, all bookings , transportation costs, food and refreshments, will be the responsibility of each registrant. This fee entitles you to a registration number and decals for your aircraft.

It also includes a monthly email update preceding the flight, entry to all the events along the way, the official flight T-shirts and a certificate that you took part in the event. The fee is the same whether you make the entire flight or join in for just a single leg.

TO REGISTER CONTACT: Dave Fitzpatrick - Registrar 100 Anniversary Flight 604-657-0813 or dave@parkaviation.ca 600 - 890 W PENDER, VANCOUVER BC, V6B1H7 Tel 604.681.6867

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Baddeck Fredericton Halifax

Fax 604.687.1327

WWW.JOHNLOVELACE.COM EMAIL: ADMIN@JOHNLOVELACE.COM

First Solo as of October 25 • 08

Jayeson Magri (Tristan Nano)

Kevin Melling (Jeff Lightheart)

$ 3 0 0 0 i n B u rs a r i e s If you are furthering your aviation studies at any level from RPP to Private Pilot to ME/IFR, get your application in for one of the six bursaries available from VFC. There is $3000 to be given away thanks to the generosity of some thoughtful people.

Through the Smile Card program, Thrifty’s has donated three awards of $500 for students.

Pilots Betty Wadsworth, Claude Butler and Mike Cooper-Slipper are all gone now, but their memories and achievements live on through their bequests to VFC, which provide yearly $500 awards to up-and-coming aviation students.

Ask your instructor for an application form for the bursaries, or get one from Dispatch. Six lucky people will get a $500 credit on their accounts with VFC. The winners will be announced at the Wings Banquet, to be held on Saturday January 31st.

VFC Smile Cards The Victoria Flying Club is very excited to partner with Thrifty Foods in their successful

Smile Card Program.

Pick up your Smile Card today and 5% of all your Thriftys grocery purchases will go towards creating scholarships and awards for VFC members.

To date, we have been able to create three new bursaries!

Pick up cards for your family and friends too.

This is a great opportunity for VFC members.

We thank you for your support!

SMILE CARD TOTAL TO DATE

$7334

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P R I VAT E P I L O T G r o u n d s c h o o l Classes held Monday and Wednesday, 1900-2200

Nov

Dec

Jan 09

The Annual

Wings Banquet

DATE

TOPIC

INSTRUCTOR

03

Meteorology

Bryon Thompson

05

Meteorology

Bryon Thompson

17

Human Factors & PDM

Brad Fraser

Saturday, Jan 31, 2009

19

Flight Operations

Brad Fraser

24

Flight Operations

Brad Fraser

cocktails 6:30, dinner 7:30 at the

26

Navigation

Jeff Lightheart

01

Navigation

Jeff Lightheart

03

Navigation

Jeff Lightheart

08

Radio and Electronic Theory

Mike Chow

10

Review (Tower Tour/Written Seminar)

John MacConnachie

15

Review

Brad Fraser

05

Theory of Flight &

will be held on

CFB Esquimalt Wardroom Come and enjoy a great dinner and an exciting evening!

Free Admission to Wings Graduates.

Licensing Requirements

Ian Watt

Friends, Family and Club members welcome

07

Aerodynamics

Ian Watt

Call Dispatch for details.

12

Airframes and Engines

Mike Chow

14

Systems & Flight Instruments

Mike Chow

19

CARS

Yasuhiro Koide

21

CARS

Yasuhiro Koide

26

Meteorology

Bryon Thompson

26

Meteorology

Bryon Thompson

Note: No Ground School on Stat Holidays No Ground School on the Remembrance Day week, 10th or 12th

L indair Ser vices Ltd Specializing in Cessna, Piper, Beaver float and wheel equipped aircraft.

A high quality Service Department that is ready to complete any inspection or repair requirement you may have.

5180 Airport Road South, Richmomd, BC Tel: 1-800-663-5829 Fax: 1-800-667-5643

www.lindairservices.com 14

Riley Bennett’s First Solo with Instructor Brad Fraser September 21, 2008 Riley’s first solo photo should have been in the October Patrician, and it should have been front and centre, because Riley is only 14 years old, the youngest age at which one can solo.

The interesting thing is that he doesn’t come from a Flying Family, as most other very young flyers do. And he is not an Air Cadet. His Dad and Grandpa both had a keen interest in aircraft and took Riley plane-watching with them right from his toddler days. He even went to the Victoria Air Show at a very young age.

Riley has a collection of model warplanes and related books and is very knowledgeable about WW I and WW II aircraft. He’s in Grade 9 now, an A student and hopes to become a military fighter pilot. His Mom and Dad are justifiably proud of him and very supportive of his flying.

The next step will likely be an RPP at 16 and the PPL at 17. In the meantime, Riley has done more solo flying, finished two groundschool courses and will continue what he started at the tender age of 13.

Congratulations to a splendid young pilot!

at the

Pilot Shop T-shirts, leather jackets, books.

Lots of Christmas stuff in stock.

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photo Benoit Aubry, Ottawa

Remembrance Day us take time to remember all those in our Armed Forces LLet who are keeping the peace for Canada, all those who risked

At the 11th hour of the 11th day of the 11th month, the Armistice of World War I was signed in 1918. As we continue to fight the war on terrorism, it is important to remember and teach about the wars in which so many Canadians died.

in war. There is one for each of the wars: the South African War, World War I, World War II, and the Korean War. There is a separate Book of Remembrance for the Merchant Navy, and another one for Newfoundlanders, since Newfoundland did not join Confederation until 1949. The Seventh Book of Remembrance was dedicated in 2005 to honour Canadian Forces men and women who gave their lives for Canada since October 1947. It is ongoing and will honour Canadian Forces members who paid the ultimate sacrifice for generations to come.

Seven Books of Remembrance are kept in the Peace Tower on Parliament Hill to honour those Canadians who died serving Canada

To all our veterans, thank you from the bottom of our hearts.

their lives fighting for Canada and especially all those who lost their lives for us so that we could live in our free and beautiful Canada without fear or threat.

Th e S i l v e r D a r t

Achievements

100th Anniversary of Powered Flight in Canada

A

VIEW‌AND AIR PLA ITH A W NE M ST O O O R

First Solo

CPL Written Test

Kevin Melling

Sanu Krishnan

Jayeson Magri

Mohamad Motala

PPL Written Test

IFR Flight Test

Jeffery Pennington

Glenn Golonka

Jessica Dearman John Verbeeten

Recreational Pilot Permit

PPL Flight Test

Elmar Hegenauer

John Verbeeten

Private Pilot License

Multi-Engine Flight Test

Tyler Bishop

Karim Gharios

Jessica Dearman

INRAT Ian Watt

O!

Welcome New Members!

Open 8am 4pm daily

in the Victoria Flying Club

Join us for breakfast or lunch‌inside & patio seating 101-1852 Canso Rd 16

250.655.9395

Stacey Reeve

John Brouwer

Fedor Molnar

Bobby Breadner

Joyce Clarke

John Litherland

Daryl Medd

Franck Oddoux