2013 CAHS National Convention Silent Auction

By CAHS

The 2013 CAHS National Convention & Annual General Meeting - "The Big Five O" - will take place from 11-15 September 2013 in Ottawa-Gatineau. Due to the generosity of corporate and individual donors, CAHS National is able to hold a silent auction at the 2013 convention!

Viewing will begin on Wednesday 11 September 2013 during the reception and items will be on display during the day Thursday 12 September and up until noon on Friday 13 September. Winners will be announced at the end of lunch on 13 September.

How does one participate? There will be bidding sheets for each item. Just put your name and bid amount down on the items you want. Keep checking back throughout the convention to see if you have been outbid in order to place another higher bid. There are no limits on the number of times you can bid or the number of items you can try to win. The highest bidder for each item at the close of the auction will be declared the winner.

So bring your cheque book; empty out your piggy banks; check those sofa cushions for extra change, and come prepared to take home some great deals on some great items! Many thanks to the following donors for their generous contributions!

List of Silent Auction Items

Each item represents a separate auction.

• Air North (Yukon's Airline) - One $200 gift certificate for airfare on any route, two $100 gift certificates for airfare on any route
• Aviaeology - Canadian Aircraft of WWI by Carl Vincent, Dragons on Birds Wings: The Combat History of the 812th Fighter Air Regiment, Early Canadian Military Aircraft Volume 1
• Canadian Aviation Hall of Fame - They Led the Way (3 volume set with 2013 updates)
• Frontenac House - Yukon Wings (by R.B. Cameron)
• Harbour Air Seaplanes - $360 gift certificate for round trip on the Vancouver to Victoria route
• Laskin Publishing - Editorial Evaluation of a manuscript of up to 50,000 words (up to five pages in length)
• LCMSDS (Wilfrid Laurier University) - 3 Battlefield Tour Guides (First World War), 4 Battlefield Tour Guides (Second World War), 3 Battlefield Tour Guides (Italy), 3 Battlefield Tour Guides (Normandy, France, & Belgium/Netherlands/Germany), 1-Year Subscription to Canadian Military History (4 issues) plus 4 back issues (past year)
• CAHS Vancouver Chapter - CAHS Journal set from 1990 to 2012 (92 issues)
• Allan Botting (artist) - Framed Print: "Andy's Spitfire"
• Alistair Reeves - 2 Avro Arrow Pencils originally owned and used by Avro design engineer Ross Richardson
• Chris Terry (collector) - Framed Print: "Banshees over Bonaventure" by Steve Snide (Number 162 of 200), 11 other unframed prints/posters
• Danielle Metcalfe-Chenail - For the Love of Flying (signed copy of the book, pen, mug, and silver airplane desk clock)
• Helene Girard (artist) - Unframed Print: "Friendly Giant", Unframed Print: "Winter Blues", Unframed Print: "Peaceful"
• Sydney Baker - My 53 Years in Civil Aviation

To attend this year's Convention, simply download and complete the Registration Form and Schedule of Fees and return with your cheque to the address indicated. You can also check the Program of Events.

You can also find the registration form and more information on CAHS website under "Events".

Ottawa Flying Club 55th Annual Fly Day Saturday 28 September 2013

From Ottawa Flying Club

It's that time of year again! Saturday 28 September 2013 the Ottawa Flying Club will once again host its Annual Fly Day event supporting The Rotary Club of Ottawa. Members of the public will be able to register the morning of the event to take a sightseeing tour of our beautiful city for $40 per person.

Pilots Needed!

We need you! Fly Day is a great opportunity to give back to the community by volunteering your time as a pilot. We are seeking as many pilots and 4 seat or larger aircraft as possible. A tax receipt will be provided to pilots for their fuel used during the event. For more details please contact Marc Desjardins

Volunteer opportunity!

The OFC is seeking energetic people to assist with multiple tasks during the day of the event including passenger escort and aircraft marshalling. At a minimum volunteers who will be airside require a student pilot's permit. We can still use volunteers for other non-airside tasks! For more detail please contact Julie Marion.

The OFC has been supporting the Rotary Club of Ottawa for more than thirty years through the annual Fly Day event. The Rotary Club is a not-for-profit international organization with a mission of assisting families with physically challenged kids by providing respite care services. Over the past 10 years the OFC has helped raise more than $85,000 through the Fly Day events with 100% of the proceeds being donated to the Rotary Club of Ottawa.

Fly Day is a fun and popular way for the community to learn about the Ottawa Flying Club while doing something great for a local charity. This year's proceeds will benefit the Ottawa Rotary Home, long known for offering short-term respite care to families who have children with disabilities and the Rotary Club of Ottawa.

Tour tickets are $40 for per person. The gates open at 0830 hrs and the first flight is at 0900 hrs.

Events (apart from the Flying) will include:

• Ground Displays and Demonstrations
• Colouring Contest for the Kids
• Breakfast and Barbeque, and food services
from our excellent Lunch Pad Café
• Information about learning to fly

For more information, please contact Margot Nichols of the Rotary Club of Ottawa at 613 860-1521.

Ottawa Flying Club Pilot Wins Webster

An Ottawa Flying Club pilot has won the 2013 Webster Memorial Trophy to be named the Top Amateur Pilot in Canada.

Takashi Hirose competed in the Webster finals held in Winnipeg, Manitoba, between 20-24 August and emerged the final winner in the hotly contested event.

You are Invited to the 2013 Barnyard Fly-In

From Recreational Aircraft Association, Oshawa District

Barnyard Fly-In 2013
Hawkefield, Orono, Ontario
Sunday, 8 September 2013

This is an RAA-sanctioned event put on by the Oshawa chapter. Come out and enjoy with us the biggest and friendliest gathering of pilots and aviation enthusiasts in the Oshawa area. Join our friends and families to celebrate our 18th annual Hawkefield Barnyard fly-in. All types of aircraft included. Hawkefield is a very well-kept 3,300 ft grass strip situated just outside of Orono, ON, privately owned by Hannu and Karen Halminen.

Note the runway 18 threshold is displaced 300 feet to avoid parked aircraft Keep all circuits to the west, avoiding residential areas. The traffic advisory frequency is 122.775 MHz.

NORDO aircraft are to follow standard arrival procedures. Circuit height is 1600 feet ASL. Please keep safety as a first priority and comply with Transport Canada regulations.

• Co-ordinates are N 44 00 W 78 39
• Food Concession
• Free corn on the cob
• For more information, please contact James Morrison at 905-434-5638

SmartPilot.ca, the single source web portal for safe flying is live!

Media Release

Canada’s single source web portal for all things related to flying safely is now live! This site is a one-stop source for information, interactive courses and videos, all focused on helping pilots stay fresh and current.

Best of all, use of the site is open and free to all. The website has information for all levels of pilots, from student to experienced aviator.

Through the financial support of the Government of Canada, under the Search and Rescue New Initiative Fund (SAR NIF), SmartPilot.ca has been several years in the making and encompasses a wide variety of aviation subjects.

Examples of the site content include airmanship, human factors, flight training, specialty aircraft (including float flying and ultralights), avionics, maintenance, weather, navigation, search and rescue and much more.

The project has been developed in co-operation with many leading sources and associations including Transport Canada, The Transportation Safety Board, Canadian Aviation Search and Rescue Association and a board of advisers of recognized aviation community leaders.

The content and site functionality was also the subject of rigourous focus group research over several sessions. According to project development leader Ted Rankine, "this is a well advanced site that allows access materials quickly from a single source. In the past accessing such material involved lots of search time on the web. We have eliminated that and bring everything within a click or two. We have sourced and posted materials that serve to inform, educate and encourage safe flying under all circumstances. Just the ability to do your Recency test on-line with us in a self-paced manner and get the certificate instantly is a step in helping pilots."

SmartPilot.ca will continue to be updated, with new articles, purpose-designed videos and courses added. Working with the Canadian Owners and Pilots Association (COPA) and the US Aircraft Owners and Pilots Association (AOPA), SmartPilot.ca has made it easy for users to quickly find information, including the AOPA Safety Institute courses. Upcoming COPA projects are expected to be added, too. Similar co-operative relationships with other organizations will result in additional articles being made available through the SmartPilot.ca portal in the future.

As Rankine says, "SmartPilot.ca does not replace recognized training from an established flight education institution. It is, however, a great way for people to build their knowledge and keep up to date about flight safety matters and procedures. If just one life is saved by something that was taken in through our site, we have done our job."

For additional information or comment, please visit the website. SmartPilot.ca is also found on Facebook and Twitter.

External link

• SmartPilot.ca

Ottawa Flying Club Staffing News

By Bryce Hanna, General Manager, The Ottawa Flying Club

Effective 2 July 2013, I am pleased to announce the following appointments approved by Transport Canada on June 26:

• Andrew Simpson, Chief Flight Instructor
• Morgan Ross, Assistant Chief Flight Instructor
• Charles Shaw, Assistant Chief Flight Instructor
• John Porter, Manager, Development
• Blair Spooner, Ground School Supervisor

Andrew Simpson is highly qualified in depth of experience, competence and credentials. In his previous position as Assistant Chief Flight Instructor, he has been a prime mover in developing, managing and improving our flight training operations as well being dedicated to achieving the highest level of quality in our programs. In his new capacity as CFI, Andrew will be in an even stronger position to lead improvements and innovations in OFC flight training.

Morgan Ross is an outstanding and exemplary senior flight instructor and, as Ground School Supervisor, has been instrumental in improving the quality of instruction in that area as well as attracting students to the courses and motivating them to continue and quickly begin flight training in parallel with their ground instruction. Morgan is in the process of finalizing and implementing an improved OFC Multi-IFR program and has been promoted to Assistant Chief Flight Instructor as he continues his work.

Charles Shaw has demonstrated a high level of dedication competence and maturity in becoming one of our senior instructors. Charles will be a key asset to Andrew in managing and improving our flight training and the flight training experience of our students.

John Porter is a pro-active champion and ambassador for the OFC with extensive experience and knowledge of both OFC operations and other key organizations in the aviation community. In his new capacity, John will be in a position to both build our profile in the industry and develop new business from organizations and groups that we presently do not reach. He also has the capability to work with and build relations with the regulatory bodies that affect our business and operations.

Blair Spooner, graduated from Algonquin College, became an instructor at the flying club last November. After assisting at the college through volunteering and peer tutoring of students for the ground-schools and administration roles at the club, he has taken the role of Ground-school Supervisor for the Flying Club. Through his charismatic attitude and drive for student success, he fit perfectly for the role of helping student pilots achieve their goal to become professional pilots.

Congratulations to John, Morgan, Andrew, Charles and Blair. Please give them your support as we progress in building the finest flying club and flight-training unit in Ontario.

WikiProject Aircraft

There are a lot of interesting things happening over on Wikipedia and at least one of them involves aircraft, or at least articles about aircraft.

One of the aspects of Wikipedia that casual readers don't see is that there are many organized WikiProjects, where a group of editors work together to create new articles and to make existing articles better within a related topic area. WikiProject Aircraft is one of those projects and it has some goals that will be of interest to any aviator. The project has 348 signed up members, of which a couple of dozen are really active these days, making it a relatively small group. Aside from working on articles about aircraft components, history, engines, aerodynamics and so on, the project members are also putting together articles on aircraft designs, by type.

That aspect started a few years ago when it was pointed out that we had about 10,000 aircraft type articles and it was suggested that we finish off the task, by writing articles on the rest of them. That was readily agreed to, but no one knows how many distinct aircraft types have ever been built. We discussed it and my best guess was about 25,000. That meant that we hadn't even got half way at that time.

So we set to work, with about a dozen of us dividing up the work by area of interest and access to references to work from. The main challenge at that time was that all the easy and well-known types had been done, like the Cessna 172 and the Boeing 747. It was the odd, rare and obscure types that needed completing and that called for editors with access to detailed, published works about rare aircraft.

Everyone has their own areas of interest and expertise. Some editors set to work filling in the one-of-a-kind pre-First World War pioneering types, others the experimental World War Two aircraft, while others specialized in 1950s French homebuilts or 1920s light aircraft. For my part I started work on ultralights, gliders, hang gliders, trikes and homebuilts, mostly because I have the references available and no one else was working on those aircraft.

In the last few years the project members have probably added another 6000-7000 type articles, listing them as they are written, for peer review on a special list page. As can be seen there, the articles that are being written are on fairly unusual types these days.

So the goal continues - to have an article on every aircraft type that has been flown, developed or was even just proposed by an established aircraft manufacturer.

How will we know when we are done? A good question. Probably when we can't find any more aircraft in any references to write about we might be close to done. Of course every year new aircraft designs are announced, developed and flown, so the work will never be totally complete.

As the project members get closer to the goal it makes Wikipedia more and more the first stop for information on different kinds of aircraft. Our hope is that it will become the best source of aviation information and, of course, it will always be available to everyone for free.

Red Bull Flugtag - Yes or No?

Red Bull has held one of their Flugtag ("airshow") events in Ottawa before, on 3 August 2008 and this Saturday, 27 July 2013, they will hold another one.

The event is, of course, sponsored by Austrian "energy drink" manufacturer, Red Bull. It consists of teams that create "aircraft" to be launched from a barge equipped with a runway, like an aircraft carrier, anchored near the Museum of Civilization in the Ottawa River. The aircraft are really "art projects" and aren't intended to fly away from the barge, but instead all just fall into the river. Teams are supposed to be judged on the basis of distance, creativity and showmanship, but not for anything relevant to aeronautics. Spectators laugh as each and every one is pushed down the runway and predictably plummets into the river, with its crew, to be rescued by the boats attending. None of them flew, all of them crashed. That's it. Nothing else.

Perhaps you need a Germanic sense of humour to find this amusing?

In 2008 about 100,000 Ottawa-Gatineau residents and tourists crowded the river on both sides, plus the Alexandria bridge to see this event. Naturally Red Bull got lots of exposure for the their products.

Other than being amazingly pointless, does this event do any harm? My opinion is that it hurts aviation. These "art projects" are supposed to look like small aircraft and there is some expectation that this is related to aviation in some way, which is why it is called a "Flugtag", and so 100,000 people now associate light aircraft with crashing instead of flying.

Needless to say I won't be attending this year's event.

External links

• Wikipedia

Continental Purchases Thielert

On 23 July 2013 Continental Motors announced that they had purchased Thielert Aircraft Engines for an undisclosed sum.

At first blush this purchase by Continental looks like a great match. Thielert has been in bankruptcy for five years now and run by a temporary administrator who has been looking for a buyer through the Long Recession. The company has other concerns, as founder and ex-president Frank Thielert has been charged with fraud over misrepresenting the value and finances of the company during earlier attempts to find buyers and investors. Frank Thielert was arrested and jailed in mid June 2013 by a German bankruptcy court judge as a potential flight risk.

Continental Motors has been pursuing diesel aircraft engine technology itself and is actively working on its TD-300 engine, a derivative of the French SMA SR305-230 diesel engine. So with that interest in diesel engine technology and Thielert's need for a buyer, the purchase seems like a good move for both companies.

But there are also larger forces at work here. It helps to recall that in December 2010, Continental itself was purchased by AVIC International, and AVIC is wholly owned by the government of the People's Republic of China. That all adds up to the Thielert purchase being just another part in the Chinese government's large and growing portfolio of western aerospace firms. At this point it isn't clear how far they want to go in buying up companies, but time will tell if they just want a slice of the light aircraft business or something larger than that.

As part of the purchase the Thielert name will disappear. The company will become a division of Continental and will be called Technify Motors GmbH. Given the troubles the company has endured this is probably a good move on Continental's part.

Here is my revised current list of western aerospace firms bought out so far by non-western interests:

• Cirrus Aircraft - Government of the Peoples Republic of China
• Continental Engines - Government of the Peoples Republic of China
• Enstrom Helicopter Corporation - Chongqing Helicopter Investment Co, China
• Epic Aircraft - Engineering LLC, Russia
• Flightstar Sportplanes - rights, tooling and parts inventory purchased by Yuneec International, China
• Glasair Aircraft - Jilin Hanxing Group, China
• International Lease Finance Corp - 90% New China Trust Co Ltd, New China Life Insurance Co Ltd, P3 Investments Ltd and China Aviation Industrial Fund
• Liberty Aerospace - 75% owned by the Kuwait Finance House, a wholly owned subsidiary of Kuwait Finance House of Bahrain
• LISA Airplanes - 75% owned by Heima Mining Company, China
• Piper Aircraft - Government of Brunei
• Superior Air Parts - Weifang Tianxiang Technology Group, China
• Thielert Aircraft Engines - Government of the Peoples Republic of China

External links

• AVweb
• Continental Diesels: Crunching the Numbers, by Paul Bertorelli, AVweb
• Wikipedia

Vintage Wings: "Calling All Volunteers"

By Dave O'Malley, Vintage Wings of Canada

It's just 8 weeks until the first vintage aircraft touches down here at Gatineau for the Wings over Gatineau-Ottawa en vol Air Show. Just 8 weeks to prepare and there is still lots to do. We are looking for volunteers of all ages to move mountains, spread the word, impress guests, inspire children, look good, escort veterans, secure aircraft and show lines, put up signs, park cars, pick up trash, sing songs, sell swag and share smiles.

WE NEED YOU!

You'll get a cool shirt, new skills, lasting memories, lots of sun, and a heart full of pride.

External link

• Vintage Wings: "It's Showtime Baby and We Need You"

Further Details About the 2013 CAHS National Convention and AGM

by Timothy Dubé, CAHS Convention Chairman

The Canadian Aviation Historical Society (CAHS) returns to Ottawa-Gatineau for its 50th Convention and Annual General Meeting on 11 - 15 September 2013 - the Big Five O!

Both the Program and Schedule of Events has been finalized and can be downloaded by following the links below or on the CAHS website under "Events." To be part of this very special five-days, complete the Registration Form and Schedule of Fees and return it with your cheque to us today.

More information on the event - including awards ballots and 50th Anniversary mechandise pre-order forms - will be distributed to CAHS Members shortly.

For more information, please contact the Convention Chairman, Timothy Dubé.

We hope to see you in September for the Big Five O!

Event Schedule and Details

Celebrating 50 years is a BIG deal and the Big Five O promises CAHS members just that – a BIG deal!

In addition to two-days of historical presentations (see links to view the Program with the list of speakers and their subjects), the Big Five O will include a number of special events and tours. These begin on Thursday evening with a BBQ and tour of the Canada Aviation and Space Museum (CASM), with the bonus of seeing the ongoing restoration of Canadair C-54GM North Star 17515. On both Friday evening and all day Saturday, the CAHS will be special guests at Vintage Wings of Canada's Wings Over Gatineau-Ottawa air show. On Sunday, CAHS members will return to the CASM to be witness to the annual Battle of Britain parade and flypast. The BIG FIVE O wraps-up on Sunday evening with an early-Autumn Harvest Feast and the presentation of CAHS awards.

Program of Events (217 KB PDF document)

Registration Information

To attend this year's Convention, simply download and complete the Registration Form and Schedule of Fees and return with your cheque to the address below! The forms can be downloaded below or at www.cahs.ca under "Events".

Registration Form and Schedule of Fees - 2013 CAHS Convention (78 KB PDF document)

Location and Accommodations

Headquarters for the Big Five O will be the Albert at Bay Suite Hotel in downtown Ottawa. Each newly-renovated, one-bedroom suite includes one or two queen-size beds, a spacious living room (some with a pull-out couch), private bath, and a fully-equipped kitchen. We have secured a rate of just $139.00 plus taxes, per night, single or double occupancy. Make your reservations now by calling 1-800-267-6644 or 613-238-8858 and asking for the "CAHS Annual Convention" Group Rate. The deadline to secure this rate is 12 August.

Is Your Aviation Document Booklet Expiring?

by Patrick Gilligan, COPA

Did you know your Aviation Document Booklet (ADB) must be renewed every five years from date of issuance?

This fall, pilots, flight engineers and air traffic controllers will begin renewing their Aviation Document Booklets (ADB). Transport Canada first introduced the ADB in 2008 with a five year expiry date, so the majority of ADB holders will need to renew their booklets this year.

How do applicants renew their ADB?

To renew an expiring ADB, applicants are required to submit a completed Application for an Aviation Document Booklet form (TP 26-0726) and a passport style photograph to the TCCA regional office that holds their pilot licensing file. Transport Canada requires four to six weeks to process a completed application. Applicants should submit their applications at least 90 days before the expiry date. There is no fee for renewing your ADB.

Background

Transport Canada provides an ADB to flight crew members and air traffic controllers in order that they may exercise privileges of aviation-related permits, licences and ratings, and possess evidence of medical validity. Note that a Student Pilot Permit (SPP) is a standalone document. Students should not apply for an ADB if they only hold a Student Pilot Permit (SPP).

The ADB replaced paper licensing documents. The ADB enhances the security of licensing documents and provides pilots with a more durable product.

The ADB must be renewed every five years to ensure the photograph is current. Some ADB holders may require earlier renewal for other reasons (for example, if a pilot holds a Level 4 Language Proficiency).

External link

• TC Aviation Document Booklet webpage

More About The 2013 CAHS National Convention and AGM

The 50th Canadian Aviation Historical Society National Convention and Annual Meeting will take place in Ottawa from 11 - 15 September.

Final planning is underway and a detailed event program, schedule, and registration form will be issued in a separate CAHS e-Newsletter bulletin shortly. This same information will also promptly be mailed out to Members as a hard-copy Convention Registration Package.

Some general information on the Convention:

• The event opens with a meet and greet on Wednesday evening.
• Thursday and Friday will feature speakers' presentations.
• Thursday evening will feature a tour of the Canada Aviation and Space Museum.
• On Friday evening and Saturday, convention attendees will be special guests at the Vintage Wings "Wings Over Gatineau - Ottawa Air Show."
• The convention concludes on Sunday with a visit to the CASM for the Battle of Britain parade, and our annual awards dinner.

External links

• CAHS Convention webpage
• CAHS Homepage

Reviving Aerobatics Canada Chapter 5

By Jonathan Rotondo

We are reviving Chapter 5 (Ottawa-Gatineau) of Aerobatics Canada!

We will be holding a meeting during the first week of July at the Rockcliffe Flying Club.

Here are the details:

• Where: Rockcliffe Flying Club, main classroom
• Date: Tuesday, July 2nd at 7:00pm
• Time: 1900 hrs

We will be joined by former president and Canadian aerobatic champion Jay Hunt as well as local aerobatic pilot Peter Ashwood-Smith. Many of you have seen Peter fly routines in his Pitts S-1T at Gatineau.

Jay and Peter will give us a brief talk about the benefits of reviving the Chapter, what goes into running one and what we need to do.

Here is a brief meeting agenda:

1. Elect 2 or 3 people to serve in leadership roles
2. Agree upon a small membership fee
3. Set a goal for the season (practice day and judging clinic in the fall)
4. Discuss how we can continue to spread the word about the chapter so that more pilots can join us
5. Take a group photograph

We may add any other points as they come up. Please let me know if you are able to attend and whether you wish to take on a leadership role.

I hope to see you on July 2nd!

Rockcliffe Canada Day Fly-in Is On

There was some confusion last year as to whether the Rockcliffe Flying Club was continuing its tradition of running a Canada Day fly-in or not. Despite the lack of announcements in 2012 the fly-in was held, although attendance by aircraft flying-in was predictably quite light, due to the lack of publicity.

Even though RFC's calender once again doesn't indicate the event exists, there is a volunteer recruitment page for the event and it is mentioned on the club's Facebook page as well, so it seems to be on again this year!

So here are the details:

• What: Canada Day Fly-in Breakfast
• Where: Rockcliffe Airport, Ottawa
• Organized by: The Rockcliffe Flying Club
• Date: Monday 01 July 2013
• Time: 0700-1200
• Also: The Canada Aviation and Space Museum will be offering aircraft rides to the public

See you there!

External link

• Rockcliffe Flying Club website

Rockcliffe Flying Club Starts An IFR Club

By Rockcliffe Flying Club

The idea of an IFR Club stems from a suggestion from one of our club members. The purpose of the informal meetings is to bring together IFR pilots (or someone thinking about becoming IFR rated) to meet once a month and discuss what they are passionate about….flying and not just flying but instrument flying. Come out and meet experienced IFR pilots and newly rated IFR pilots and have a coffee, relax and enjoy the conversation.

Here are just some examples of the things that might be discussed:

• IFR in Canada and the USA: how does it differ?
• A number of us feel more comfortable in the IFR system and file IFR even on completely clear days. Is this a VFR-cowardice?
• Does the 2-year re-ride deter Canadian pilots from getting IFR ratings? They don't have it in the USA and a much greater percentage of private pilots are IFR-rated. Is the re-ride useful?
• Does anyone understand the new preferred low-level routes in the Toronto/Ottawa/Montreal corridor? Does it matter, do we just file "direct" and see what comes anyway?
• What are the minimum number of instruments with which you feel comfortable flying IFR?
• Is an ADF anything more than additional and unnecessary weight these days?
• Below what temperature in the winter do you feel comfortable that you're not going to meet ice in a cloud?
• Is an onboard StrikeFinder or StormScope needed any more now that we have uplink weather information on our GPSs? Which is better: the immediate response of the StrikeFinder or the bigger picture of the uplink weather?
• When are we going to get ADS-B in Canada? Is it worth buying a portable ADS-B unit for flying in the USA?

Details

• Where: Rockcliffe Flying Club Lounge
• When: Last Thursday of the Month
• Time: 1930 – until finished!!

Drop by last Thursday of every month! See you there!

Iroquois Fly-In Breakfast 21 July 2013

by Keith Poore, Iroquois Flying Club

The Iroquois Flying Club will be having its annual fly-in breakfast on Sunday 21 July 2013.

Here are the details:

• Event: Breakfast is served at the campground
• Location: Iroquois Airport (CNP7)
• Time: 0730 – 1130 hrs.
• Menu: Eggs, Ham, Baked Beans, Roll, Coffee and Juice.
• Price: $6.00, children 6 and under $3.00

Innovative VProp Finds New Home

The VProp automatic variable pitch propeller was originally designed by Thomas Strieker and produced by Silent Aircraft GmbH of Verl, Germany, but has been unavailable since it went out of production in 2011.

Intended as a purpose-designed propeller for the Jabiru 2200 and 3300 engines, in its two and three-bladed version respectively, the rights to the design have now been passed to the well-established propeller manufacturer, Hoffmann Propeller GmbH & Co. KG of Rosenheim, Germany.

Hoffmann are not currently offering VProps for sale, but are engaged in further developing the design to make it available for a wider range of engines with a wider range of power outputs. Hoffmann Propeller Technical Engineering's Stefan Bichlmeyr is leading the development effort.

The innovative VProp design uses aluminium blades mated to an aluminium hub through vibration dampened ball-and-socket joints. The pitch of the blades is controlled automatically, without pilot input. The blades are kept at an optimal angle of incidence through a co-axially-mounted, counter-rotating vaned spinner mounted in front of the blades on the hub. The vanes drive an internal generator which measures the prop's rpm and the speed of the aircraft. An electronic control unit mounted inside the hub takes this information and compares it to optimal profiles set on the ground and then uses an electric motor-driven pitch change actuator to optimize the blade pitch for the aircraft's speed and engine rpm.

The VProp's pitch range is limited by mechanical stops and if electronic control is lost it mechanically reverts to a safe pitch angle automatically, as a fail-safe.

Because there are no cockpit control runs the VProp is entirely self-contained and internally powered, making it simple to install and maintain. In flight it reduces pilot workload over traditional constant speed propellers, as there is no pilot input required.

In the past the VProp has been available only for experimental installations, but Hoffmann hopes to eventually certify the design.

Note

This article also appeared in the August 2013 edition of COPA Flight.

The Ottawa Flying Club Needs You!

From the Ottawa Flying Club

In reality we need you, your hands and your skills!! The club is in need of repairs, cleaning, just general cleanup, so if you can help out it would be greatly appreciated.

Date: Saturday 15 June 2013, 1000-1500 hrs, with a thank you BBQ at 1500 hrs

Some tasks that need to be done:

• Painting window sills outside
• Painting and repairs inside
• Raking
• Sweeping
• Window washing
• And much more

Members and students are all welcome to chip in!!

Contact Marc Desjardins if you are able to give us some of your valuable time.

Does your SPOT Leave Crumbs?

Flight 8 member Chuck O’Dale’s followers did not get the 1300 miles of bread crumbs promised by his SPOT. He is still waiting to hear SPOT’s explanation. He wonders if he inadvertently disabled the bread crumb feature. If so, folks should be aware how easily and unknowingly this can happen. If not, then why, and how often, does SPOT disable this important safety feature without the knowledge of users?

Chuck notes that, “the people that I rely on to check on my position reports got the following message:

Feed with Id: 0bf8QgAGfWBUNBPU9KmvdPDTACicaqCFm not found.”

On the positive side, Chuck also notes that OK messages were received, but not his position reports. And all the bread crumbs were ultimately stored in his SPOT account.

Is SPOT the ELT supplement that many of us believe it is?

2013 CAHS National Convention and AGM Update

By Conference Chairman Tim Dubé

The Canadian Aviation Historical Society (CAHS) returns to Ottawa-Gatineau for its 50th Convention and Annual General Meeting, 11 - 15 September 2013 – the Big Five O in Ottawa, Ontario.

Celebrating 50 years is a BIG deal and the Big Five O promises CAHS members just that – a BIG deal! In addition to two-days of historical presentations – you’ll have to wait for the Program and Registration Form for our list of speakers and their subjects – the Big Five O will include a number of special events and tours. These begin on Thursday evening with a BBQ and tour of the Canada Aviation and Space Museum (CASM), with the bonus of seeing the ongoing restoration of Canadair C-54GM North Star 17515. On both Friday evening and all day Saturday, the CAHS will be special guests at Vintage Wings of Canada’s Wings Over Gatineau-Ottawa air show. On Sunday, CAHS members will return to the CASM to be witness to the annual Battle of Britain parade and flypast. The Big Five O wraps-up on Sunday evening with an early-Autumn Harvest Feast and the presentation of CAHS awards.

Headquarters for the Big Five O will be the Albert at Bay Suite Hotel in downtown Ottawa. Each newly-renovated, one-bedroom suite includes one or two queen-size beds, a spacious living room (some with a pull-out couch), private bath, and a fully-equipped kitchen. We have secured a rate of just $139.00 plus taxes, per night, single or double occupancy. Make your reservations now by calling 1-800-267-6644 or 613-238-8858 and asking for the “CAHS Annual Convention” Group Rate. Final planning is underway now and we expect to have the Registration Forms, with full program details and costs, in CAHS members hands by mid-June.

External links

• PDF of this full announcement
• More information will be posted on the CAHS Events webpage
• CAHS Homepage

Flight 8 Diaspora May Update

A month ago I described that I was working on boosting Flight 8's presence on Diaspora (D*), attracting new followers there.

By the 10th of April I had managed to attract 120 followers. In pursing this strategy of following anyone interested in aviation subjects we now have 217 followers and growing each day.

As I previously reported D* is a very active, interesting and dynamic on-line community, with lots always going on. The focus does seem in general to be more European, left-leaning and oriented towards issues like free software, politics and human rights, but Flight 8 does create lots of aviation content there. This should make the community more interesting to a greater number of people and hopefully attract more users to come and join us there.

Of course, since all my posts are public, anyone can search for and read them without signing in or creating an account, just by viewing Flight 8 on Diaspora.

Anyone who would to join D* can sign up for an account on any one of a number of pods. My personal account is on Diasp.org and that seems to be a good pod. The Flight 8 account is on the main pod: joindiaspora.com.

External links

• Flight 8 on Diaspora (no need to log in to view the Flight's public posts)
• My personal account on Diaspora (also no need to log in to view my public posts)

Further to: Can You Trust the TC AIM?

On 4 April 2013 I posted a complaint about Transport Canada’s AIM, specifically with respect to inconsistencies between two sections dealing with proper radio techniques. See http://copa8.blogspot.ca/search?q=eighteen for details.
Well Transport Canada agrees with my comments as noted in Ron Carter’s message to me. Thanks Ron Carter for getting back to me in a timely fashion.

“Dear Mr. Shaw,
As you are aware, the concerns you expressed in your submission of April 5, 2013, were entered into the Civil Aviation Issues Reporting System (CAIRS) and were assigned file number GO-2476. Your concerns were with respect to the current AIM, which says to say “runway eighteen” on one page but says to use digits, as in "runway one eight" on another page. As a result of my review of the file I would like to take this opportunity to provide you with the following information:
I believe RAC section 4.5.6 “Use of MF and ATF” has it wrong, and the wording in RAC 4.5.6 will therefore be amended to read as follows: "runway one eight", effective October 17, 2013.
I would like to take this opportunity to thank you for sharing your views, as all comments we receive are appreciated.
Sincerely,
Ron Carter
Chief of Flight Standards / Chef des normes de vol Telephone / téléphone: (613) 998-9855 Facsimile / télécopieur: (613) 954-1602 TTY / ATS (613) 990-4500 ron.carter@tc.gc.ca Transport Canada | Place de Ville (AARTA), Ottawa, Ontario K1A 0N8 Transports Canada | Place de Ville (AARTA) Ottawa (Ontario) K1A 0N8 Government of Canada | Gouvernement du Canada

Project North Star To Visit CFB Trenton

By Bill Tate, Vice-President, Project North Star

Our first planned Special Event is for Friday 14 June 2013, which is a trip to 426 Thunderbird Squadron at CFB Trenton.

While at 426 Squadron our tour will take in the training aspects of the new C-130J Hercules that the RCAF is taking delivery of, replacing the older C-130 models.

The tour will consist of:

• 10:00 Arrival and welcome by 426 Squadron Commanding Officer, Lieutenant Colonel Damon Perrault, in the foyer
• 10:05 Intro to the Sedley S. Blanchard Air Mobility Training Center (AMTC)
• 10:15 AMTC Tour (split group)
• 12:00 Lunch (Yukon galley) - $10 per person
• 13:00 AMTC Tour (split group)
• 14:00 Departure

Here are some of the tour highlights:

• Fuselage Trainer (FuT)
• Integrated Procedures Trainer (IPT)
• Tactical Flight Training Device (TFTD)
• Weapon System Trainer (WST)
• Hercules Observer Trainer (HOT)
• Night Vision Integrated Simulator (NVIS)

After 426 Squadron we will visit the RCAF Memorial Museum along with the restoration shops where we will have the opportunity to talk to their volunteers.

After the museum tour we will have an early dinner at Tomasso's Italian Grille before returning to Ottawa. At this time we have only 11 seats left.

For booking please email to confirm you are coming and mail a non-refundable deposit of $30.00 payable to PNSAC and a post-dated cheque (14 May 2013) for $40.00 payable to PNSAC and in the cheque memo please indicate Trenton trip.

Please mail the completed booking information, including Name of Participant (in full), Date of Birth (dd/mm/yyyy), Preferred Contact Information (e-mail or telephone) and cheques to:

PNSAC
PO Box 44005
541 Montreal Rd
Ottawa ON K1K 4P8

Flight 8 Diaspora April Update

As I mentioned in my last post a month ago, about Flight 8's presence on Diaspora (D*), I was about to commence a new strategy to attract followers there. This is my report of the last month's efforts.

As I noted previously, I had not pursued finding followers on D* and had instead just simply posted interesting content daily and waited to see how may people would just pick it up and follow my posts there. That resulted in a total of 38 followers accumulated over a year of postings, which isn't too bad on a network of 405,000 people, by just passive means.

In the last 30 days though I set out to find more people to follow and thus to attract more to follow the Flight 8 posts. I did this by mostly signing up people who commented on items posted by people I was already following. I wasn't very diligent about this, but it has resulted in the account now having 120 followers!

Since this has been fun to do over the last month, I will continue this approach and see how many I can sign up over time.

D* remains a very active, interesting and dynamic on-line community, with lots always going on. The focus does seem in general to be more European, left-leaning and oriented towards issues like free software, politics and human rights, but I think organizations like Flight 8 bring some diversity and balance to content there. This should make the place more interesting to more people and hopefully attracting more users to come and join us there.

One thing that is worth mentioning is how polite everyone is on D*. Even though we come from many different places, have different points of view and many people post under pseudonyms, I have yet to see really anything in the way of incivility there, let alone even one single flame. People are remarkably respectful of diversity and that makes it a fun community to belong to.

As you can tell, I think it is fun project to be part of. The software works well and is still being steadily developed by a community of programmers. The two things D* really needs are more users and good quality content. I am enjoying contributing!

Anyone who would like to interact with interesting people from around the world on D* can sign up for an account on any one of a number of pods. As mentioned before, my personal account is on Diasp.org and that seems to be a good pod, in addition to joindiaspora.com, where the flight account is.

External links

• Flight 8 on Diaspora (no need to log in to view the Flight's public posts)
• My personal account on Diaspora (also no need to log in to view my public posts)

Ottawa International Freezes General Aviation Fees

The Ottawa International Airport Authority has announced that they will not raise GA fees at the present time.

The Airport Authority had indicated last year that they intended to raise fees in line with the Consumer Price Index (CPI), which a year ago had been running at 2.5%. With the cooling economy though the CPI registered only 0.5% over 2012. The authority explained:

We are pleased to announce that, because this increase was so small, we have decided to defer the increase until February 1, 2014. February 1 coincides with the timing of our annual changes to all other aeronautical rates. Accordingly, at the end of November We expect to announce an increase in general aviation fees as Well as any applicable changes to other aeronautical rates, to take effect on the following February 1. We will base the increase in general aviation fees on the increase in CPI from January 2012 to October 2013. On a go forward basis, We plan to continue to use February 1 for any subsequent fee changes for General Aviation. We trust that you will find this deferral to be acceptable.

Canadian Owners And Pilots Association President and CEO Kevin Psutka responded to the announcement, saying, "thank you for deferring an increase. Any relief on the cost of aviation is appreciated."

Can You Trust the TC AIM? With Caution!

TC’s Aeronautical Information Manual, (AIM) is getting more and more out of date. If it is not doing its job get rid of it! I find it depressing to constantly find inconsistencies in TC’s venerable, Aeronautical Information Manual (AIM). Aside from the fact that I was assured they would make section 4.5.2 Traffic Circuit Procedures — Uncontrolled Aerodromes, more adequately reflect the Canadian Air Regulations, that has not happened yet. My suggestion is to follow the regulations not the AIM!

Here is another example of TC’s lack of care. In the section describing how we are to talk on the radio, the newest AIM, and likely all previous editions, says in section 5.7 Use of Numbers,

“All numbers except whole thousands should be transmitted by pronouncing each digit separately.”

That is certainly how I was taught. Fair enough, but then why a few pages earlier in Section 4.5.6, Use of MF and ATF, does it give this example of correct usage,

…“Examples:
Directed: FREDERICTON RADIO, THIS IS PIPER FOXTROT
X-RAY YANKEE ZULU BEACON INBOUND LANDING
RUNWAY EIGHTEEN.”

Hey TC it’s “runway one eight”.

Come on Transport Canada, Canadians, hell pilots, expect and need better!

COPA Flight 8 and Twitter

Adam Hunt said, “COPA Flight 8 has now been doing social networking on Twitter and Diaspora (D*) for about 14 months, having started in January 2012, so I thought this would be a good time to give an update on how it is going. I manage the flight's D* account, while Mike Shaw handles Twitter, so I will leave it to him to provide an update on that.”

OK, ok, I will bring the Twitter business up to date. First, Twitter, as you likely know is a business that allows free access to sign up, tweet and read tweets, i.e., Twitter postings. I am far less active on Twitter than Adam is on Diaspora.  (The name “Diaspora” sounds like a digital laxative, or something.) Adam does a posting every day or so. I managed a tweet every three days or so. My tweets tend to be topical although several include photos of aircraft taken in China’s Aviation Museum.

I have 107 followers, not many by Twitter standards, but given my limited activity not bad. Most are in North America, a few in Europe and a couple in places like New Zealand. I follow 153 twitter users, most again in North America. I tend to follow users that point to news items, interesting stories or publish interesting photos. For example, Canadian astronaut Chris Hadfield’s postings from the Space Station are amazing. I also follow non-aviation twitters associated with photography and video. As well I follow some economic tweeters. I would follow other COPA Flights but I can only find one other flight using Twitter, Flight 10 from the Saskatoon area.

I haven’t put much effort into seeking followers. I have had almost no comments or re-tweets and I have not commented on many tweets by others. I do not automatically follow those who follow me. I find the number of tweets is just overwhelming even though I follow  a mere 153 others. I like most on Twitter I lurk. I find the newsy links to be especially interesting.

The bottom line, I doubt that twitter has brought any new members or a great deal of interest in Flight 8, but I have found it a fun interesting experience. Certainly better than Facebook. I will continue my limited Twitter efforts. See you on Twitter at @copaflt8.

Large hangar available at Waterloo

By Robert A. Kozlowski

I am trying to get the word out about the availability of our hangar at Kitchener/Waterloo Airport (CYKF) within the aviation community.

You might know the history behind the Millard family and how they have contributed to Canadian aviation.

The latest venture was an MRO to service Boeing 737s and Airbus A320s at Waterloo.

Unfortunately just as the MRO was getting started, the president Wayne Millard passed away and the family decided to shut down the MRO.

That has left the family with a very large hangar and we are looking for tenants.

Ideally it is best suited for an MRO and/or airline, we are open to referrals and ideas.

Contact:
Robert A. Kozlowski
Vice President of Operations
Millard Properties Ltd/Millardair Inc.
416-986-4686
email

Foreign Ownership - Huh?

After struggling along financially though the recession of 2008-2011 Cirrus Aircraft was running short of aircraft orders, cash and laying off staff. Things at the Duluth, Minnesota aircraft builder were not looking good. Then in February 2011, Cirrus was sold for US$210M to China Aviation Industry General Aircraft (CAIGA), a subsidiary of Aviation Industry Corporation. CAIGA is wholly owned by the Government of the People's Republic of China.

At the time AVweb's Russ Niles said "Chinese participation in the aviation industry isn't necessarily a bad thing and the folks in Duluth and Grand Forks could have suffered a worse fate. In the absence of a sale, bankruptcy was a real possibility for Cirrus and it might have been hard for a trustee to justify operating the business with the numbers it was showing. As for where it leaves current Cirrus owners and those thinking of buying one, the sale is probably a positive thing." I posted about this event and I agree with Russ, it was either Chinese ownership or the company was probably finished.

Every time North Americans buy Chinese goods, at places like Walmart, the Chinese government makes money and then uses that cash to buy up North American companies. That is just the way whatever we have that passes for free enterprise works these days, at least regarding Chinese state owned companies.

So Cirrus got settled into being owned by probably the richest entity of any kind on the planet, the Government of the People's Republic of China. Suddenly investment was available for mothballed programs like the Cirrus Vision SF50 single engine jet, workers were recalled and production increased. All well and good and as expected.

Then, in early March 2013 it seemed that the company was going, hat in hand, to the city council of Grand Forks, North Dakota, where Cirrus has its secondary plant, asking for a US$950,000 loan to buy a new autoclave. The company already has large outstanding loans from the city and this loan would have just increased the payments.

Even more surprising was the way it turned out, with council initially refusing the loan, concerned about the company's ability to repay it, then relenting, apologizing for the doubt and granting the loan. So now Cirrus can go and order their new autoclave, something they claim will create ten new jobs in Grand Forks.

Personally I don't really get it. Since when is a US city council now a bank, loaning money to companies? Since when do small US municipalities, in one of the most indebted nations on earth, the USA, lend tax money, collected from their residents, to the communist Government of the People's Republic of China, as I noted, probably the richest entity on earth right now? Is this what is meant by capitalism and free enterprise in the 21st century?

I realize that this is all tied to jobs and if Grand Forks wants manufacturing jobs to stay in the city then they have to pay companies to stay there or else some other municipality will lure them away, but the way this loan looks, I think it is really time to rethink that whole flawed premise. Foreign buyouts and investments should not turn out to be a hostage taking.

Americans always tell me how much they hate communism and love their free enterprise system, where anyone can build up a business though sheer determination and hard work. To me a US municipality lending money to the Chinese government to build airplanes to sell to rich Americans doesn't seem to fit any notion of capitalism I know of, no matter how hard I squint.

Feel free to tell me that I am wrong!

Background

• Wikipedia

Pontiac Airpark House and Hangar News

By André Durocher

At the Pontiac Airpark residents have lots of house and hangar options!

One option is to build just a hangar home and live in it, with no need to build a separate house. The hangar just has look similar to a house, which is very easy to do with a few windows, the use of colour, etc. Decorative hangar doors, available from suppliers such as Higher Power Hydraulic Doors and Hydroswing, can help you to achieve this.

You can also build your garage first, then you will have one year to build your actual house.

Buildings on one lot can be owned by more than one person or family, meaning that a group of pilots can buy a lot together and build their hangar.

More information:

• Pontiac Airpark Homepage

Ottawa Flying Club to Host Captain Clair Maxwell

From the Ottawa Flying Club

Attention Women in Aviation!!

The Ottawa Flying Club will be hosting a talk on the experiences of women in the field of aviation. The keynote speaker for the afternoon is RCAF Captain Clair Maxwell, a commercial helicopter pilot who now specializes in helicopters and UAV accident investigations.

In addition, Major Pascale Cloutier, the president of the Ottawa-Gatineau Women in Aviation Chapter will be here to discuss their scholarship program.

Details

• When: Friday March 15 at 1330 hrs
• Where: OFC basement classroom

Social Networking - A Year Later

COPA Flight 8 has now been doing social networking on Twitter and Diaspora (D*) for about 14 months, having started in January 2012, so I thought this would be a good time to give an update on how it is going. I manage the flight's D* account, while Mike Shaw handles Twitter, so I will leave it to him to provide an update on that.

The background on D* and what it is, is explained in my first post about it. Basically it is like a combination of Twitter and Facebook, but built on free software, community owned and run, with no ads. Unlike Facebook, D* doesn't make money selling your data to advertisers and instead relies on donations and T-shirt sales to get by. I have made a couple of small donations in the flight's name to help the project out. Also unlike Facebook, D* has attracted people from all over the world to exchange ideas, rather than write about what they had for lunch. This all makes it a very interesting place to be, even though it is a smaller community than Facebook is.

I gave an early look at how things were going for Flight 8 on D* in March 2012.

On D* it is easy to control who can see things posted. For Flight 8's posts I have made all the content public, meaning anyone on the internet can see all the posts at www.joindiaspora.com/u/copaflight8.

My approach has been to post something pretty much every day, usually first thing in the morning. In general I have been posting aviation photos from fly-ins from my own collection and also photos contributed by Flight 8 members Michael Dixon and Nathalie Huard. To give a break from photos I have posted aviation videos about various types of aircraft, focusing on amateur video. I have also posted flight news, like upcoming meetings and when write-ups on meetings have been made available on the flight 8 website. I also occasionally repost other people's aviation posts, although I try to keep reposts to a minimum. The overall effect I have been going for is to present an interesting and positive look at personal aviation though photos and video.

In terms of attracting followers my approach has been passive, to just post good content with very broad tags and see how many people I could attract to follow the postings. The result has been that after more than a year I have three Flight 8 members and 35 other people following the account, which is not too bad for no direct effort to attract people beyond posting content.

I have used the flight account to "like" and comment on other people's posts, which in turn has attracted more followers. The one thing to be careful of though is what is commented on, as I have been trying to avoid "inappropriate material" that the flight might not want to be associated with. Unlike Facebook, which is pretty heavily censored, D* is uncensored, meaning you find a real diversity of material posted, especially under tags like #nsfw.

Of the followers that I have, about a half a dozen regularly comment on posts I make, which adds some worthwhile interaction. Many of the followers are from Europe, with a couple from Canada as well, all with some interest in aviation.

Of course there maybe many more people who see the posts through following some of the really broad tags I use such as #aviation and #aircraft, as well as non-signed in people who see them on the open internet as well, but these are difficult to quantify.

Overall I think the flight's presence on D* has been very positive. The account has attracted a small group of fairly dedicated followers and some worthwhile interaction, but naturally it could be improved upon as well!

To that end I plan to embark on a more active campaign to attract followers to the flight 8 account. I'll make another post here in a month or so when the results can been seen!

In the meantime anyone interested in joining us on D* can sign up for an account on any one of a number of pods. My personal account is on Diasp.org and that seems to be a good pod, in addition to joindiaspora.com, where the flight account is.

Rockcliffe Flying Club to Hold 52nd Anniversary Wings Dinner

The Rockcliffe Flying Club will hold their 52nd Anniversary Wings Dinner at the Canada Aviation and Space Museum on Friday May 3, 2013 at 1815 hrs.

The event will celebrate the achievement of club members over the past year, including licences and ratings earned.

Details:

• Cocktails 1815 hrs
• Banquet Dinner 1900 hrs
• Children’s Programming & Pizza Dinner ($5/child)
• Silent Auction to raise money for the RFC Scholarship Fund. To contribute items, contact Kathryn Buchan
• Reservations required
• Tickets: $45/per person, purchase tickets at RFC Dispatch
• RSVP: by April 22, 2013 to Kathryn Buchan or at RFC Dispatch at 613-746-4425

Winter Horseback Riding at Pontiac Air Park

By André Durocher

Above are some recent photos from the equestrian farm's winter activities next to Pontiac Air Park.

Air Park residents and visitors can participate in these activities, riding your own horse or with a rented one. For more information on activities at the equestrian, visit the Élevage Fabie website.

For the latest news about the Pontiac Airpark please check the airpark website.

Ottawa Flying Club To Hold 85th Annual Wings Dinner

from the Ottawa Flying Club

The Ottawa Flying Club will hold its 85th Annual Wings Dinner on 11 May 2013, so mark the date in your calendars now!

The Wings Dinner is the Ottawa Flying Club's annual celebration to mark the achievements of our student pilots in earning their private, commercial, multi, IFR and other ratings.

The dinner will be held at the Restaurant International - the culinary school's restaurant at Algonquin College.

As well as the awarding of wings for those who have completed their private licenses, other licenses and ratings since since May 2012 the evening will include other awards and a guest speaker, whose name will soon be announced!

Cocktails will be available at 1800 hrs and supper will be served at 1900 hrs. There will be a cash bar.

Tickets will go on sale soon and will cost $35 for students and instructors and $45 for members and guests.

For more news:

• OFC website

RFC Volunteer Opportunity: Girls' Day at the Airport and Museum

From Rockcliffe Flying Club

The Ottawa chapter of the 99s, the Rockcliffe Flying Club and the Canada Air and Space Museum are holding a number of activities at the Aviation Museum as part of Worldwide Women in Aviation Week. See the website for more information on this event.

We are hosting a flying event on Saturday March 9th (with a rain date on Sunday March 10th). The objective is to introduce girls/women to their first flight. The flights are provided at no charge to the participant. All flights will depart/arrive on Delta, next to the Museum building.

Rockcliffe instructor Jean Rene de Cotret has already recruited pilots for this event, but we are recruiting volunteers for:

• Registration: To book participants for a time slot for their flight and complete any required paperwork prior to the flight
• Escorts: To walk the passengers to and from the aircraft and ensure all individuals on the taxiway are accompanied at all times
• Marshallers: Using standard hand signals, guide aircraft to and from boarding positions to maximize safety and minimize turnaround time
• Photographers: To take a number of candid pictures throughout the day, as well as photograph each participant for our "photo logbook" and validate our claim for number of passengers flown.

All shifts are for 4 hours (0900-1300, or from 1300-1700). We have listed all shifts for both the primary day (Saturday) and for the rain date (Sunday) – if the event proceeds as planned on Saturday then there will be no shifts on Sunday. If you can volunteer for one day but not the other, no problem, please sign up for what you can.

To indicate your interest in volunteering, sign up on the RFC Volunteer Management System, and indicate the shift of your choice – they are listed under the "Sign Up" tab, under "Girls Day at the Airport and Museum 2013". If you do not yet have an ID in the RFC VMS then you will need to register first at the same link.

When Foreign Takeovers Fail

I have written quite a lot about the middle and far eastern buyout of North American and European aerospace manufacturers recently, but then there has been lots to report! Back in 2011 it was announced that Diamond Aircraft Canada had been purchased by the Medrar Financial Group of Dubai. Things went bad, though and the repercussions are just being felt this week.

In the 2010-11 period Diamond had embarked on a program of developing new aircraft designs, like the DA50 Super Star, the twin-engined DA52 and especially the D-Jet, its single-engined jet program. This all required capital and the company was running short of money. During the May 2011 Canadian federal election campaign Diamond threatened to close its London, Ontario plant if government help was not forthcoming. The Conservative government didn't bite, said no and the company finally settled on the buyout by Medrar instead in November 2011.

But it was just today that it was officially revealed by Diamond that the deal with Medrar was never completed and no cash changed hands. Diamond had not previously announced that, just quietly taken down the original press release on the deal, although the announcement can still be seen on Archive.org. There was a rumour on 19 February 2013 that the deal with Medrar had failed so I wasn't totally surprised when the lay off announcement quickly followed.

It seems that the company has been surviving on its own shareholder funding for the last 16 months, while it looked for alternatives. That money seems to have run out this past week and Diamond has now laid off the majority of its workers, leaving only those building ordered aircraft and the parts department, to keep the existing fleet flying. The company has indicated that it needs to restructure and then hopes to bring back the majority of its workers. I guess we will see how that pans out over time.

In general I have stated that these sorts of foreign buyouts are good for the aerospace industry, because investment from North American and European sources seems to be totally absent these days. Without these middle eastern and far eastern buyouts companies like Cirrus and Continental would probably not be in business today. Diamond obviously needs some investment and right away, or it may not be in a position to reopen its doors and carry on its development projects.

In a way it is too bad that Diamond's management took such a secretive approach to the Medrar buyout, not announcing that it had failed, because a potential buyer may have seen that and come forward on their own. With this secretive approach I think most people reading the aviation press would have thought that everything was rosy and no help was needed, until the announcement of the lay-offs this week. Perhaps there is a lesson there for other companies?

Hopefully Diamond will find a buyer quickly and get their employees back to work soon.

Here is my revised current list of western aerospace firms bought out so far:

• Cirrus Aircraft - Government of the Peoples Republic of China
• Continental Engines - Government of the Peoples Republic of China
• Enstrom Helicopter Corporation - Chongqing Helicopter Investment Co, China
• Epic Aircraft - Engineering LLC, Russia
• Flightstar Sportplanes - rights, tooling and parts inventory purchased by Yuneec International, China
• Glasair Aircraft - Jilin Hanxing Group, China
• International Lease Finance Corp - 90% New China Trust Co Ltd, New China Life Insurance Co Ltd, P3 Investments Ltd and China Aviation Industrial Fund
• Liberty Aerospace - 75% owned by the Kuwait Finance House, a wholly owned subsidiary of Kuwait Finance House of Bahrain
• LISA Airplanes - 75% owned by Heima Mining Company, China
• Piper Aircraft - Government of Brunei
• Superior Air Parts - Weifang Tianxiang Technology Group, China

Further reading

• AVweb
• Wikipedia

Pontiac Airpark Acquires More Land

By André Durocher

Pontiac Airpark has expanded. Seven parcels of the old Canadian Pacific Railway (CPR) were recently added to the project.

The importance of this acquisition is not the size of the lots, but their strategic location. The 3 km of the old railroad will give access to about 7 km of public road and to Gatineau Park. The trails that will be constructed will be of use to horseback riders, hikers, snowshoers, crosscountry skiers, etc.

This addition is another attractive feature for the future golf, hotel, restaurant and spa project for which I am looking for a developer.

• Pontiac Airpark website

Changes to Remote Communications Outlets (RCO) in Southern Ontario

By Kevin Psutka, COPA President and CEO

Normally, COPA does not announce changes of this sort because members should be making it a regular habit of checking the Aeronautical Information Circulars (AICs) and Service Project Announcements instead of relying on COPA to do that job for them. However, these changes on 7 March affect a large concentration of our members and they present an opportunity to re-emphasize the need to periodically check these important sources of information so that you are not surprised by changes and unable to communicate in a time of need.

COPA has a link on the bottom of the front page of our web site regarding the RCO project and it has been there for several years. The link explains why the system is changing as well as provides links to Nav Canada’s web site where more information as well as maps of the RCO frequencies can be found. Another way to find out what frequency is available for an FIC in the area where you fly is to check the current CFS. Frequencies are listed under the name of the FIC (Pacific (Kamloops), Edmonton, Winnipeg, London, Quebec, Halifax, Whitehorse, Arctic (North Bay)).

Members should note in their calendars the dates when AICs are introduced and check the AICs on these dates for the latest updates. For changes to the RCO network and other service projects, announcements will be made here. Note, for example, the increase in size of the restricted area around Petawawa, which will impact those who fly up the Ottawa River VFR corridor when the larger area is in place by NOTAM, and the airspace review underway in Alberta.

Don’t get caught with a need to reach an FIC but wondering why you can’t reach them. Stay in the know by checking AICs and Service Announcements.

Another Aircraft Manufacturer Take-Over

I keep asking which western aircraft manufacturer will be the next one bought up and I never seem to have to wait long for the answer.

This week the answer is LISA Airplanes of France. The company is a relatively new start-up that has been working on developing the very sleek and innovative, if expensive, LISA Akoya amphibian. The Akoya is intended to be a two-seat light-sport design with a price tag of US$350,000.

Development had been going well and the design had attracted ten orders already, but in the summer of 2012 the company ran out of money, laid almost everyone off and was placed in receivership. As usual no western investment was forthcoming and things were not looking good for the company until the Heima Mining Company of Leshan City, China offered US$20 million for a 75% stake in the company, controlling interest and the right to name the chairman.

The Heima Mining Company is, well, in the mining business, but has indicated that it is interested in future aerospace acquisitions.

The Heima investment seems to have put things back on track at LISA, the staff rehired and talk of two more production lines being added. The buyout happened just in time, it seems.

So here is the current list of western aerospace firms bought put so far:

• Cirrus Aircraft - Government of the Peoples Republic of China
• Continental Engines - Government of the Peoples Republic of China
• Diamond Aircraft - majority owned by Medrar Financial Group, Dubai
• Enstrom Helicopter Corporation - Chongqing Helicopter Investment Co, China
• Epic Aircraft - Engineering LLC, Russia
• Flightstar Sportplanes - rights, tooling and parts inventory purchased by Yuneec International, China
• Glasair Aircraft - Jilin Hanxing Group, China
• International Lease Finance Corp - 90% New China Trust Co Ltd, New China Life Insurance Co Ltd, P3 Investments Ltd and China Aviation Industrial Fund
• Liberty Aerospace - 75% owned by the Kuwait Finance House, a wholly owned subsidiary of Kuwait Finance House of Bahrain
• LISA Airplanes - 75% owned by Heima Mining Company, China
• Piper Aircraft - Government of Brunei
• Superior Air Parts - Weifang Tianxiang Technology Group, China

So, who will be next?

Further reading

• AVweb
• Wikipedia