At 10am on Wed, Apr 4, Vintage Wings founder Michael Potter, along with Ottawa Airport President and CEO Paul Benoit, cut the ribbon on Vintage Wings’ new Gear Up retail boutique.

Located in the main concourse, downstairs in Domestic Arrivals, the store is the first of many to be established across the country in the new few years.

“It’s about getting our message out,” said Michael Potter, about Vintage Wings’ mission to Commemorate, Educate and Inspire Canadians, especially young Canadians, about our rich aviation heritage.

Offering quality aviation heritage clothing, including t-shirts, jackets, sweaters, and caps, the store is the …

Dave O’Malley, the genius behind all of the marketing and branding at Vintage Wings, the man who has donated over 6,000 of volunteer time to Vintage Wings, the pen that writes most of the weekly articles you receive in your inbox, recently took the plunge and got married.

After a 41 year courtship (and a few marriages) Dave and Susan tied the …

Mon, Mar 12, 2012

You know spring is in the air when the hangar doors do not remain tightly sealed against the bitter winds, but sit cracked open a few feet, allowing soft, warm breezes to percolate into Vintage Wings headquarters, flowing in and around the aircraft in various states of disrobement.

In a nutshell, here is the status of our aircraft:

F-86 – Waiting for ejection seat parts to arrive from Cold Lake, but other than that annual is almost done. Noise making (run-up) scheduled for tomorrow.

Spitfire Mk XVI – Currently sitting on jacks, without an engine. Spitfire …

Adapted from “High Flight: The story of John Gillespie Magee” by Richard P. Bentham, from the Summer 1996 edition of the Journal of the Canadian Aviation Historical Society, Vol. 34 No. 2.

All photos from the public domain.

“Nothing that John Magee was involved in was ordinary,” wrote R.P. Bentham.

“John Magee had ties with the United States, England, and Canada. He was an American citizen by …

By B.Reid
As the winter progresses, the annual inspections at Vintage Wings of Canada progress. One by one, the aircraft are taken apart to a certain extent and looked over in accordance with manufacturers recommendations and government directives for any evidence of deterioration.
Overall, the aircraft, which flew extensively, last year across Canada on the Yellow Wings program, was in very good shape with one exception. One of the cylinders in the Pratt & Whitney R-1340 engine is in need of replacement.
Of the five Yellow training aircraft in the Vintage Wings collection, the Harvard is easily the most powerful. It …

By B. Reid

After a serious refurbishment
involving a complete teardown of the Vintage Wings Tiger Moth due to corrosion
issues, our swept wing biplane has returned to the skies of eastern Ontario and
western Quebec. And it is about time after being grounded for almost 7
months.

Our most experienced Tiger Moth pilot, Dave Hadfield with flying
time in both the A and C models was on hand for her first flight several days
before her scheduled participation in the 22nd Annual Montebello
Challenger Ultralight Rendezvous 30 miles to the east not to mention the very
local upcoming 23rd annual Mo’s fly-in, both of which are on the …

During the 28-29 of January, Vintage Wings held their first Warbird U Ground School of the year. The two-day course was focused on the Harvard aircraft, a WWII trainer.

Participants attended lectures on Saturday, learning about the British Commonwealth Air Training Plan and the history of the Harvard, the R1340 radial engine components and operation, as well as the fuel, gear, hydraulic, electrical and flight control systems. The lectures were
interactive and absorbing, and were accompanied by meticulously detailed and skilfully animated PowerPoint presentations.

Sunday morning comprised a step-by-step walk through of a flight in the Harvard, including aerobatics, followed by an afternoon …

How does one get up in the air? What mysterious forces are at work that allow one to partake in the miracle of flight? As comedian Louis C.K. stated, “[You can go] New York to California in 5 hours. That used to take 30 years.”
There is no denying that the act of flight has changed the way people live and get around. But how does it actually work? How does something that you can’t see support that which is now often so big the eye can’t even take it in? What forces are at work that allow you to …

By B. Reid

There seems to be no end to the interesting and diverse maintenance related tasks being performed by the staff at Vintage Wings of Canada. In addition to their dedicated work, there is a small team of volunteers that have made a significant contribution and continue to do so. For example, a large portion of the restoration of the Lysander was done by a team of volunteers.

Recently, a small out of the way project has been slowly but steadily progressing. It has no deadline but has kept several of the volunteers busy under the watchful eye of Oscar Verdugo. This …