Bessy leaves home

	Bessy prepares to leave Woodstock for Tillsonburg. Photo courtesy CHAA Collection
	Bessy’s spectacular arrival at Tillsonburg, CHAA’s Home Base. Photo courtesy CHAA Collection
	An enthusiastic crowd welcomed Bessy. Happy Ferry Pilot Kent Beckham, at left, raises his thumb on high! Photo courtesy CHAA Collection
	Airpark Secretary, Bruce Prior, announces the Delta RAAC Awards.       Photo courtesy Jean Prior
	Newsletter Editor Joan Cox receives the Peter Chick Award from RAAC President Gerard Van Dijk (R) and Airpark Chair Terry Wilshire (L). Photo courtesy Jean Prior
	Aviation ladies Eleanor Spence and Mary Swain chat at the banquet.               Photo courtesy Joan Cox
	Club President Gerard Van Dijk thanks speaker Hugh ‘Huge’ Roberts.      Photo courtesy Joan Cox
	A young Art Lee hand-props 'Huge' Roberts's  Skelton special by the RAA workshop at Delta, circa 1976. Photo courtesy Swain Archive
	The Caretaker’s delighted Mum-in-Law, Anastasia, wins the Flying Club Cap! Photo courtesy Tony Swain Collection
	Harvard display pilot John Mrazek (Mr. Magic) finally presents Tony Swain with the NWCAS Presidents Award 2006, at the Delta Breakfast. Photo courtesy Tony Swain Collection
	Delta pilot Lyn Zeleschuk enjoys her grand-kids by her cherished Piper Colt. Photo courtesy Tony Swain Collection
	An idyllic Delta scene in 1975 . Larry Thompson's  Volksplane,  Dan McGowan's Flybaby, plus one, taxi for take-off. ...Note the Delta Air Force Triangle! Photo courtesy Tony Swain Collection
	The Delta Baby Ace being walked in by Chapter 85 enthusiasts Beat Meyer (R) and Grant Thorkelson Circa 1975. Photo courtesy Tony Swain Collection
	Hardy Staub and grandson Alex dream of the future… Photo courtesy Tony Swain Collection
	The Copaguy’s Round Engine inspiration, the Blackburn Roc, 1940. (The Roc is a diving bird) Photo courtesy the Swain Scrapbook
	Tony and the historic Vampire in the Canada Aviation Museum in Ottawa. Memories are made of this! Photo courtesy Bob Kirkby

The Mary and I nervously watched our Bessy’s progress across Canada with mixed feelings. Like our only daughter was moving back east to a fantastic new job. And she’s only 54, barely out of the barn! You know how it is.

Off she went with this handsome stranger, Kent Beckham, and we just had to accept it. What you gonna say? Keep your oil warm and your battery charged every night. It’s difficult. When she stopped with friends in Chilliwack for Christmas, we relaxed, as word got back regular she was OK.

But, come February, suddenly, in the midst of winter, she was off east through bitter cold and blinding snow to God knows where with this bloke! And didn’t even call. What’s a couple of old folk to do? We fretted some. Would he warm her sump, pump her prime, and turn her crank?

There was a bit in the Thunder Bay News about her stopping in at Canada Car & Foundry to see her birthplace in the old Harvard Hall maternity ward. Five hundred Harvard 4’s came out of that hallowed place in 1952/53-ish, and precious few get to drop by.

Anyway, when Kent came to take her away, she resisted a bit, flattened her tail oleo, refused to talk on the radio, and cried oil on the windshield. But this Kent is a patient guy, and coaxed her over the last big hop to his place at Woodstock, to freshen up before meeting new friends at her new job in remote Tillsonburg, with the Canadian Harvard Aircraft Association in Ontario.

And what an arrival it was… Her best lemon yellow outfit sparkling in the sun, flaunting the Red Nose Flashes of Currie Field’s ‘A-flight’, Delta Air Force green triangle, and her precious campaign decals, she swooped and rolled over the welcoming throng. This was home. Friendly folk, a warm hangar, and lots of action. What more can an old gal want! We’ll be out in June when she’s settled in to see she’s OK, …Sigh!

Some will ask, what’s this ‘FISH LADY’ nose art all about?

Well, ‘The Mary’ ran her Royal Seafoods in West Vancouver for over 35 years, and was known there as ‘Aunty Mary’ or ‘Mary Fish’ to a surprising number of prominent Canadians. And it was she who had Tony rescue Bessy from the weeds and bird nests, and then sponsored 15 years of air show flying for 20321 Bessy with the Great Western Warbirds. Those were the days!

BE A HARVARD HERO

Anyway, Bessy’s to be put to work right away. The few minor glitches were soon fixed, and after a bit of a polish, a new experience for her, she’s ready to roll. It’s amazing to think that I’ve been the sole pilot for 36 years!  But now she’ll be back to checking out new wannabe Harvard pilots at the CHAA’s training school. Kent tells me there’s a class of 10 starting next week.

Amazingly, Kent says the CHAA are short of pilots to fly these grand old birds! It’s best that Harvards be flown regularly, and Pilots must be current on type, which requires some effort.

Not everyone taking check-outs is able to fly on a continual basis. Some just don’t meet the standard. Some simply see it as a one-time thing. But I tell you… It costs way less than owning one! $50 Annual dues, and $250 an hour. That’s a good deal. Too bad there isn’t a CHAA Wing in Vancouver! Double Sigh!

DELTA AWARDS BANQUET

Delta’s Chapter 85 RAAC kindly invited The Mary and I to their Annual Awards Banquet at the Sundance Hall last month, which always serves a scrumptious meal. The M/C for the evening was Airpark Chair Terry Wilshire, who kept things moving right along.

Everyone shared fun with the winners of the door prizes, both useful and not so useful. How is it that there are always tickets drawn that no-one owns up to? One of life’s mysteries.

The awards were presented in the light-hearted manner usual among flying friends, and reward members who have impressed the membership with their flying, workmanship, or volunteer work.

So Dan Weinkam got the Safe Flying Award for his flight to Oshkosh, Terry Elgood, the Craftsmanship Award, the ‘Old Frank’ Award to Chris Cox, the Irie Jamison Award for ‘work about the place’ to Bernie Herman. The Peter Chick Memorial Award automatically goes to the Newspaper Editor, this year, Joan Cox.

The Outstanding Member Trophy went to John Mcready, who certainly has been very busy about the club and airpark.

The speaker for the evening was Hugh ‘Huge’ Roberts, who was local Cessna Representative for many years, and a very enthusiastic club member in the early 1970’s. Everyone chuckled at his stories about delivering airplanes, and adventures with his less than perfect ‘one design’ homebuilt, the Skelton Special, which can only be described as a reluctant flyer.

Much deep research uncovered the image shown here of an early engine start. With some stunned onlookers beyond. No reason can be ascertained for the intriguing rope lashed around the engine cylinders and tied back to the starboard gear leg. Such are the secrets of experimental aircrafting.

BREAKFAST AT THE AIRPARK

Delta’s monthly breakfasts are now a popular tradition, and it was the Boundary Bay Flying Club’s turn to do the honours, a.k.a. the cooking. About 90 people turn up, flying folk, dog walking people, bird watching people, and those who simply walk or ‘Bike the Dike’ of GVRD’s Linear Park. It’s an eclectic lot with lots of chatter, and you can’t hear yourself think in there.

BBFC Pres. Lowell Brecken distributed a bunch of door prizes, and the caretaker’s delighted mother in law, Anastasia, won a club cap.

John Mrazek, a.k.a. ‘Mr. Magic,’ turned up to present me with the Great NWCAS Presidents Award. Everybody kindly cheered again. John and President Bud Granley used to hang about Delta in those halcyon days of the early ‘70’s when John had a Jodel.

The variety of ‘wood and rag’ aircraft those days was fascinating, because things of wood always have differing personalities.

People bring their grand-kids to The Breakfast, and so can enjoy value family time together later. Hardy Staub brought his Alex, and Piper Colt pilot Lynn Zeleschuk brought her two grand-kids. It’s a wonderful relaxing place.

WHY, WHAT & WHEN

We often ponder our first encounter with airplanes, and whence came our biases in later years. When I was little, maybe six or seven, all kinds of airplanes were zooming around, dropping bombs, bellying in on the local golf course, and stuff.

However, our hero ‘aeroplanes’ those days were, without a doubt, the Blackburn Skua and Roc. The factory was just down the road at Brough, about seven miles away, where lots of local Dads and Moms worked. (It’s pronounced Bruff, …English, y’know).

Even Mr. Tiplady, right next door, did something secret there. It was exciting to share his air raid shelter during some of the raids. We were convinced ‘The Jerries’ were looking just for him! The FW 190 that scrunched into our golf course was obviously on such a mission.

Anyway, the point is, the Blackburn Roc had a round engine, hence my subtle druthers for that configuration. S’obvious!

The last plane I flew in the RAF was the Vampire FB5, examples of which are dotted about the country, as the RCAF Reserves flew them here. They were a fine little airplane, but after the ten ton T-Bird, felt a bit light. I was delighted to see a nice one in the National Aviation Museum at Rockcliffe, and felt quite grand having my picture took with it. Sigh, those were the days, etc. etc.

Well, I guess that’s it. Fly Safe. See you at Oshawa.

Tony Swain is a COPA director representing B.C. and Yukon. He has also been a COPA member for more than 20 years and has been an active participant in many aviation groups. He flies many types of aircraft and is concerned about the rights of sport pilots.