![]() | This article includes a list of references, related reading, or external links, but its sources remain unclear because it lacks inline citations .(August 2015) |
The Aerospace Heritage Foundation of Canada is a federally chartered and non-profit organization based in Etobicoke, Toronto, Ontario, that is dedicated to preserving and promoting the achievements of the Canadian aerospace industry.
In March 1988 a group of ex-Avro Canada employees and other aviation enthusiasts held a 30th Anniversary Dinner and Reunion to celebrate the First Flight of the Avro Arrow. The then Science Specialist with Citytv Toronto David C. Onley, the current Honourable Lieutenant-Governor of Ontario, proposed that a full-scale replica model of the Avro Arrow be constructed. This would provide Canadians with a physical legacy for future generations to see and appreciate and to understand the technological base that became Canada's Aerospace Industry today.
As a result of this suggestion a committee was formed with Mr. David Onley as President along with James C. Floyd, former Vice President Engineering Avro Canada, Mario Pesando, Syd Britton, Nicholas Doran, Jim Mitchell, Eddy Metz, Bill Turner and Ray Gibson. Their discussions led to the formation in the summer of 1988 of the Canadian Aerospace Heritage Foundation.
In the spring of 1989 the name was changed to the Aerospace Heritage Foundation of Canada and the first Annual Report was presented in December 1989.[ citation needed ]
The A.H.F.C. is made up of a Board of Directors (consisting of a President and various Directors), General Membership, and various other volunteers. The Board of Directors meets approximately 9 times per year along with an Annual General Membership Meeting.
The A.H.F.C. also has had various Patrons over the years. In March 1990, James (Jim) C. Floyd was named Patron of the A.H.F.C. He resigned at the end of May 1997 and was succeeded by Colonel (hon) William (Bill) Coyle, O StJ, O.Ont. Bill Coyle was employed by Avro Aircraft Ltd. Malton Ontario in the Experimental Flight Test Engineering Group and is Honorary Colonel Canadian Forces School of Aerospace Technology and Engineering.
A major focus of the A.H.F.C over the years has been the organizing of Dinners and Reunions to commemorate Avro and Orenda's achievements including such things as the founding of Orenda, the first flight of the Avro Jetliner, Avro CF-100 and the Avro Arrow.
Another area of contributions has been in awards and bursaries. March 1990 saw the establishment of the "James C. Floyd Award for Outstanding Contribution to Canadian Aerospace" with Test Pilot Janusz Zurakowski as the first recipient. The issuing of the award was passed on to the Aerospace Industries Association of Canada in 2010 with it being awarded for the first time through them in October 2010.
The A.H.F.C. supports the 845 Avro Arrow Squadron of the Royal Canadian Air Cadets by sponsoring two annual awards, "The James C. Floyd Trophy" for Outstanding Engineering Excellence and the "Janusz Zurakowski Trophy" for Gliding Excellence. A bursary is also presented to the recipients for each of these awards .
The A.H.F.C. also conducts various educational efforts including displays at various venues and lectures to interested groups. They loan out selected artifacts from their collection to museums. Some of these items can be seen at places like the Ontario Science Centre and the Canadian Air and Space Museum.
In 1995 for the 50th Anniversary of the Avro Canada CF100 the A.H.F.C. raised monies for the refurbishment of a CF100 mounted on a pedestal at Derry Road next to the Orenda Plant in Malton Ontario.
Over the years since its formation the A.H.F.C. has also conducted an underwater search in Lake Ontario in an attempt to recover one or more of the Avro Arrow Aerodynamic Test Models fired aboard a Nike (rocket) over the lake. Much interest in this project has been expressed with programs such as the History Channel, Discovery Channel, and the National Geographic Channel. The Sea Hunters have also produced a program on the A.H.F.C. involvement in the ongoing search for the models. In 2004 the Canadian Navy along with A.H.F.C. members, using two Navy vessels as a training exercise, conducted searches of areas previously identified in 2003. Search efforts have continued in a limited capacity in the years since through other organizations.
A memorial is currently in progress in tribute of the memory of Flight-Lieutenant Bruce Warren of Toronto and Avro Engineer Bob Ostrander of Brampton both of whom died in the crash of the second prototype Avro CF-100 #18102. It crashed on Thursday April 5, 1951, at 10:50am near Komoka Ontario.
![]() | This section is empty. You can help by adding to it. (June 2011) |
The Avro Canada CF-105 Arrow was a delta-winged interceptor aircraft designed and built by Avro Canada. The CF-105 held the promise of Mach 2 speeds at altitudes exceeding 50,000 feet (15,000 m) and was intended to serve as the Royal Canadian Air Force's (RCAF) primary interceptor into the 1960s and beyond.
Avro Canada was a Canadian aircraft manufacturing company. It was founded in 1945 as an aircraft plant and within 13 years became the third-largest company in Canada, one of the largest 100 companies in the world, and directly employing over 50,000. Avro Canada was best known for the CF-105 Arrow, but through growth and acquisition, it rapidly became a major, integrated company that had diverse holdings.
Hawker Siddeley was a group of British manufacturing companies engaged in aircraft production. Hawker Siddeley combined the legacies of several British aircraft manufacturers, emerging through a series of mergers and acquisitions as one of only two such major British companies in the 1960s. In 1977, Hawker Siddeley became a founding component of the nationalised British Aerospace (BAe). Hawker Siddeley also operated in other industrial markets, such as locomotive building and diesel engine manufacture. The company was once a constituent of the FTSE 100 Index.
The Avro Canada C102 Jetliner was a Canadian prototype medium-range turbojet-powered jet airliner built by Avro Canada in 1949. It was beaten to the air by only 13 days by the de Havilland Comet, thereby becoming the second purpose-built jet airliner in the world, while both were preceded by the Nene Lancastrian, and the Nene Viking, both of which were conversions of piston engine airliners. The name "Jetliner" was chosen as a shortening of the term "jet airliner", a term which is still in popular usage. The aircraft was considered suitable for busy routes along the US eastern seaboard and garnered intense interest, notably from Howard Hughes who even offered to start production under license. However, continued delays in Avro Canada's all-weather interceptor project, the CF-100 Canuck, led to an order to stop working on the project in 1951, with the prototype Jetliner later cut up for scrap.
Malton is a neighbourhood in the northeastern part of the city of Mississauga, Ontario, Canada, located to the northwest of Toronto.
Janusz Żurakowski was a Polish fighter and test pilot. At various times in his life he lived and worked in Poland, the United Kingdom, and Canada.
The Avro Canada CF-100 Canuck is a Canadian twinjet interceptor/fighter designed and produced by aircraft manufacturer Avro Canada. It has the distinction of being the only Canadian-designed fighter to enter mass production.
The Canadian International Air Show (CIAS) is an annual air show in Toronto, Ontario, Canada. The show is an aeronautical display of military, government and civilian aircraft, primarily from Canada and the United States. The show takes place along Toronto's waterfront for three days during the Canadian Labour Day weekend. The show began in 1946 and has been held at Exhibition Place since 1949.
Victory Aircraft Limited was a Canadian manufacturing company that, during the Second World War, built mainly British-designed aircraft under licence. It acted as a shadow factory, safe from the reach of German bombers.
The Arrow is a four-hour television miniseries produced for CBC Television in 1997, starring Dan Aykroyd as Crawford Gordon, experienced wartime production leader after World War II and president of Avro Canada during its attempt to produce the Avro Arrow supersonic jet interceptor aircraft. The film also stars Michael Ironside and Sara Botsford. The mini-series is noted as having the highest viewership ever for a CBC program.
Canadian Forces Base Trenton, formerly RCAF Station Trenton, is a Canadian Forces base located within the city of Quinte West, Ontario. It is operated as an air force base by the Royal Canadian Air Force (RCAF) and is the hub for air transport operations in Canada and abroad. Its primary RCAF lodger unit is 8 Wing, commonly referred to as 8 Wing Trenton. CFB Trenton is Canada's largest Air Force base and most southerly air base.
Orenda Engines was a Canadian aircraft engine manufacturer and parts supplier. As part of the earlier Avro Canada conglomerate, which became Hawker Siddeley Canada, they produced a number of military jet engines from the 1950s through the 1970s, and were Canada's primary engine supplier and repair company.
Boeing Canada is the Canadian subsidiary of Boeing, with operations in Winnipeg, MB, Richmond, BC, Montreal, QC and Ottawa, ON. Boeing employs more than 1,600 people in Canada. Boeing Aircraft of Canada Limited was formed in 1929 by the American Boeing Airplane Company.
James Charles Floyd is a British-Canadian retired aeronautical engineer. He became the Avro Aircraft Ltd. (Canada) chief design engineer and his involvement, ultimately as vice-president (engineering), in the design and development of the Avro Canada C-102 Jetliner, Avro Canada CF-100 Canuck and Avro Canada CF-105 Arrow aircraft, occurred during a period which is viewed by many as the "Golden Age" of the Canadian aviation industry.
The Orenda PS.13 Iroquois was an advanced turbojet engine designed for military use. It was developed by the Canadian aircraft engine manufacturer Orenda Engines, a part of the Avro Canada group. Intended for the CF-105 Arrow interceptor, development was cancelled, along with the Arrow, in 1959.
John Dennis Hodge was a British aerospace engineer. He worked for the CF-105 Avro Arrow jet interceptor project in Canada. When it was cancelled in 1959, he became a member of NASA's Space Task Group, which later became the Johnson Space Center. During his NASA career, he worked as a flight director and planner. As the on-shift flight director of the Gemini 8 spaceflight crewed by Neil Armstrong and Dave Scott as it entered a spin, Hodge was credited with the safe landing of these astronauts.
Frederick Thomas Smye was a Canadian businessman. He was the president of Avro Aircraft Limited (Canada).
The Canadian Air and Space Conservancy was an aviation museum that was located in Toronto, Ontario, featuring artifacts, exhibits and stories illustrating a century of Canadian aviation heritage and achievements. The museum was located in a hangar that once housed the original de Havilland Canada aircraft manufacturing building, but in September 2011 the museum and all of the other tenants in the building were evicted by the landlord, the Crown Corporation, PDP. The site was slated for redevelopment as a new sports centre but after closing the museum the development was placed on hold. The museum is developing a new location and its collections are currently not available for public viewing.
The Avro Canada CF-103 was a proposed Canadian interceptor, designed by Avro Canada in the early 1950s as a development, and possible replacement of the company's CF-100 Canuck, that was entering service at the time with the Royal Canadian Air Force (RCAF). Although intended to be capable of flying at transonic speeds, the CF-103 only offered a moderate increase in performance and capability over the CF-100; subsequently, the aircraft never progressed beyond the mock-up stage.
Screaming Jets is an 11-minute 1951 Canadian documentary film, made by the National Film Board of Canada (NFB) as part of the postwar Canada Carries On series. The film, directed by Jack Olsen and produced by Sydney Newman, depicted the contemporary Canadian and international aircraft in production and on the drawing boards. The film's French version title is Avions à réaction.