April 7, 2025: This year marks a special milestone for the Canadian Harvard Aircraft Association, as it celebrates its 40th anniversary. That’s 40 years of preserving aviation history and honouring our Second World War veterans at their facilities at Tillsonburg Regional Airport.
Tillsonburg residents are treated to a piece of history when the association’s “yellowbirds” fly overhead. The distinctive roar of their powerful 600-horsepower radial engines is a legendary sound echoing back approximately 85 years when the “roar of the Harvard” often rumbled over air bases across the country. Their history is significant and their legacy continues to resonate today.
In December 1939, Canada, along with the UK, Australia, and New Zealand, created the British Commonwealth Air Training Plan, commonly known as “The Plan”. Canada’s portion of this ambitious program eventually established more than 230 training locations across the country, turning out over 130,000 aircrew from Canadian and Commonwealth Forces to become pilots, gunners, navigators and more for the Second World War.
Before earning their wings and going overseas to fly bombers and fighters like the Spitfire and Hurricane, pilots trained on a range of aircraft including the two-seat Harvard, the most advanced, single-engine trainer of its time.
Dubbed “the pilot maker”, the distinct yellow Harvard was a familiar sight and 40 Years of Preserving History and Honouring Veterans sound at air bases across Canada, an unmistakable symbol of dedication and skill.
More than 15,000 Harvard aircraft were produced between 1938 and 1955, including more than 2,500 that were built in Montreal and another 555 in Fort William, Ontario, now Thunder Bay. After a long and productive career, the Harvard retired from the RCAF in 1965.
During the 1960s,hundreds of Harvards were sold through Crown Assets into civilian markets around the world. Approximately 30 still fly with private owners in Canada. The Canadian Harvard Aircraft Association’s fleet of eight Harvards is the largest collection in North America.
Today, our volunteers dedicate their year-round efforts to maintaining the Harvards in flying condition and preserving their rich legacy. Keeping these historic warbirds flying is a living tribute to the young men who flew them and worked on them and served our country.
Everyone is invited to visit the Canadian Harvard Aircraft Association at the Tillsonburg Regional Airport on Tuesdays and Saturdays. There is no admission charge. During the flying season, from May to November, visitors are encouraged to attend an event, book a group tour, or best of all, take to the skies for a flight experience you’ll never forget.
Visit www.harvards.com or check Facebook at #canadianharvards.
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Article by Diana Spremo, volunteerm Canadian Harvard Aircraft Association.