CHAA’s 2011 Annual Awards & Fundraising Banquet – Saturday, April 23, 2011

Location:

Royal Canadian Legion Branch 55,

576 Brant Street, Woodstock ON

Time:

4pm: Meet & Greet -- 5pm: Dinner

Guest Speaker:

Lieutenant-Colonel (Retired) Fern Villeneuve

the RCAF pilot who organized the Golden Hawks into a flight demonstration team

and served as their team leader in 1959-1960.

To learn more about this member of the Canadian Aviation Hall of Fame, go to www.youtube.com/watch?v=m9_3CwBfFp4

Tickets:

$30 each & available by contacting

Pat Hanna at 519-658-5464 or at This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it

Auction Donations:

being accepted at this time by

Marg Hollister This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it and Sandra Sparkes This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it

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1. Members’ Monthly Meeting: The next CHAA members' meeting will be held on TUESDAY, APRIL 19 at 7:30pm. Guest Speaker will be Jim Trautman, an historian of the Boeing 314 Flying Boats. He is the author of "The Pan Am Clippers – The Golden Age of Flying Boats" published by the Boston Mills Press. He will have some copies with him and will be pleased to sign any purchases. Should be an interesting speaker -- hope to see you there.

As this will be the last members’ meeting before our Awards Banquet and Auction on April 23, last minute shoppers will be able to get their tickets from Pat, and Marg and Sandra will be pleased to accept any donations for the Auction. The generosity of the membership is truly appreciated.

2. The 2011 Bingo dates are: May 2, June 3 and September 11. Bingo is an important CHAA fundraiser and is held from 5pm to 10pm at a hall in London. If you are able to volunteer, please call Torben Haarbye at 519-679-1733 for all the details. Mark these dates on your calendar, call Torben and plan to help with this fundraiser.

3. The ROAR: will be coming out soon. Thank you to all the contributors and to Wayne Wilkins for all the efforts necessary to make this happen. Did you know this document is available through email rather than having it mailed to you in hard copy? In email form, you receive the edition sooner and can print it off or just save it on your computer for future reading. For the printing and stamps, the ROAR costs our organization approximately $1200 for each mailout. Sending it by email costs nothing. That savings would be a sizeable amount to keep for other costs, as gasoline and so much more is on the rise. Think about it. If you decide you want to help our organization save on this cost, email Marion Bennell This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it with this info and she will be pleased to add your name to the growing list who have already made the change.

4. 2011 Flying Season

Backseat Chair: Bob Trowell will be looking after bookings of rides in our historic aircraft for this season. Contact Bob at 519-425-1510 or This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it for availability and pricing. If you wish to be on Bob’s email list to be among the first to know about upcoming backseat opportunities, send him an email and he will be pleased to add it to his growing list.

CHAA Fly Days will be held at the hangars: Sat. May 21, Sat. July 30, Sat. August 27

CHAA’s Wings & Wheels Day: Sat. September 24

June 6 – there is a planned CHAA formation flight over the official opening and dedication of an overpass in London dedicated to the late Charley Fox (more info to follow as it becomes available). Crew rides are available for this flight. Contact Bob for all the details.

August 26 – CHAA’s Harvards have been asked to perform a flypast as part of the dedication of the new Woodstock Hospital.

5a. Become a Thunderbird! Rather than paying a carbon offset organization to offset the CO2 produced by our flying activities, CHAA has opted to keep our contributions local and have direct involvement in the Town of Tillsonburg’s "Keep Tillsonburg Beautiful Day" described below. Board member George Wilson has become involved in this timely project and CHAA members are asked to help with the May 7 project by coming out to assist with the planting of trees and/or to contribute to the purchase of trees. Any member making a cash donation to this project will receive a Robert Davidson Thunderbird patch. $10 supplies 10 seedlings or 2 small saplings. Some mature trees will be planted and they cost from $100 - $200. Join the growing list of members making up the CHAA Thunderbirds who are helping to offset the CO2 produced by our aircraft!

5b. Keep Tillsonburg Beautiful Day: Sat. May 7, 2011 from 9AM to 12 Noon at the Memorial Park Pavilion. For those wishing to take part, you are encouraged to come dressed for the outdoors, bring a labeled spade shovel and be prepared to help clean up, plant a tree and explore the trails. For more info go to: www.tillsonburg.ca

6. On Saturday, May 14 at 9:30AM a Service Crew Refresher Course is being given at the hangar by Service Crew Chief Jack Viau. This course will focus on tractor training, service crew practices and safety techniques as well as learning the appropriate skills required when dealing with the public and being good ambassadors for CHAA at all times. If you are interested in this course, contact Jack This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it 519-633-9440

7. On Thursday, April 28 the 153 Vanavair Air Cadet Squadron (Tillsonburg) is coming to our hangars for a tour (approx 6:30pm – 9pm). Their sponsorship committee will meet first, followed by a tour for the Squadron. Members who live in the area and are interested in being there to assist with the tours are being asked to contact Lori Van Parys This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it 519-842-2547 who is coordinating this evening event.

8. PR Report: Bob Trowell

-Fly Day flyers have been distributed to media and to bus and motorcycle touring firms.

-Tourism Oxford is doing a great job in assisting CHAA with publicity by advertising our Fly Days to their membership as are listed on their website and Facebook pages.

-The Woodstock Quality Inn has placed our flyers throughout their hotel.

-We will take part in a Father’s Day promotion with Heart FM radio in Woodstock.

-Fly Day information is being posted on various radio stations’ websites in the free public service and announcement sections.

-An ad will be posted in the Old Auto Magazine for our September Wings & Wheels.

-Radio commercials are being produced for airing on Easy 101 radio in Tillsonburg.

9. Canadian Tire Money is being collected by our Restoration and Maintenance Crews to be used toward necessary purchases. If you have some to spare, please consider donating it to CHAA. Either drop it off at our hangars or mail it to C Tech O Bill Ritchie at the CHAA address listed at the top of this newsletter. Thank you to all those who support CHAA in this manner.

10. CHAA’s 2011 Board of Directors: Thank you to the following Board Members who are giving of their time for CHAA:

President: Bill Shepard; Vice-President: Pat Hanna, Secretary: Bob Trowell, Treasurer: Ray Whittemore, Directors: Bill Ritchie (C Tech O), David Martin (Chief Pilot), George Wilson (Maintenance Chief), Shane Clayton (Archives), Tom Kaufman (Fundraising Chair) and Tony Donnelly (C Ops O)

11. On Saturday March 26 we had a student from her final year of the "Aviation Technology – Flight" Program at Sault College in Sault Ste Marie fly into Tillsonburg Airport as part of her required Cross-Country Flight. She had to receive special permission to land at Tillsonburg, and it was granted as her head flight instructor likes Harvards (wise person!).

An interesting aside about this flight: the pilot was flying a Zlin 242L. Combine that with our own WPK is Harvard 242 AND WPK was based out of Sault Ste Marie from 1968-1972, it all adds up to a nice story and a great connection.

As a further connection, who is this pilot and why did she want to land in Tillsonburg? She is Dianna Clayton from Woodstock. Along with her brother Shane and parents Carl and Sharon, she is a CHAA member and crazy about Harvards. Through this program at Sault College, Dianna has received her private license, night rating and multi-engine rating and is working towards her instrument rating and commercial license sign-off. She was accompanied on this flight by fellow student Claire Buxton.

What lead Dianna on the path to be a pilot? Well, Shane thinks it had a lot to do with him buying her an introductory flight certificate at Waterloo, which he bought for her at CHAA’s Silent Auction in 2006. The rest of her flight experience prior to college was in the backseat of one of our Harvards. Dianna graduates from her program at the end of the month and we wish her every success.

Shane has sent along some photos he shot on March 26 at Tillsonburg Airport:

http://i373.photobucket.com/albums/oo174/rcaf_100/CHAA/photo_01.jpg

http://i373.photobucket.com/albums/oo174/rcaf_100/CHAA/photo_02.jpg

http://i373.photobucket.com/albums/oo174/rcaf_100/CHAA/photo_03.jpg
http://i373.photobucket.com/albums/oo174/rcaf_100/CHAA/photo_04.jpg

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Until next time, clear skies, smooth flights and safe landings!

Sandra Sparkes, CHAA Member