Aviation Memorabilia Newsletter

The U.S. Air Force graduates its largest class of female test pilots and engineers in its 76-year history.

They are the small cadre of flight test pilots who graduate from the US Air Force Test Pilot School (TPS) at Edwards Air Force Base in California; and this year they include a group of five women, a record number. 

Known by their call signs, Hulk, Tumble, Booster, PsiPhi and Shade,  Captains Casey Horgan, Rachel Williams, Sarah Vorgert, Kalyn Tung and civilian Raina Duncan are the newest female flight test pilots and engineers to graduate from TPS.

Source: www.cnn.com

Terry Baker, co-founder of the NetLetter scours the internet for aviation related Trivia and Travel Tips for you, our readers, to peruse.

Answer for the mystery airline in Odds and End.

Kenya Airways Ltd., more commonly known as Kenya Airways, is the flag carrier airline of Kenya. The company was founded in 1977, after the dissolution of East African Airways. Its head office is located in Embakasi, Nairobi, with its hub at Jomo Kenyatta International Airport.

Source: www.kenya-airways.com

Roger Slauenwhite shares this information -

A follow up to the NetLetter #1450.

The aircraft picture from Whitehorse Flying School is definitely a Fleet Canuck.

At Central Airways Flying School in Toronto, we operated 6 Canuck airplanes. I have flown them all many times when working as a Flight Instructor at Central Airways, sometimes called the “Chinese Airforce”.

(Editors' Note: See Wayne's Wings for more on the "Chinese Airforce" reference.)

Many TCA/Air Canada pilots took their first flying instruction on this aircraft. We processed over 100 student pilots for the airline. The Canuck was a good aircraft for training and could take a “hard landing” that you could walk away from.

I have flown the aircraft on many photography flights with the passenger door removed. The control stick on the right hand side was also removed to provide more room for camera equipment.

'WINDY - COLD - NOISY'.

With the door removed, your “fastened seatbelt” was your first priority, especially in a tight turn! You would not want to exit the aircraft before your passenger at 500 feet, because your seatbelt wasn’t securely fastened.

Photography flights taken for the Toronto Star and Telegram newspapers were:

• TCA Viscount crash in Malton, Ontario years ago.
• Jail break at Kingston Penitentiary.
• Cattle train wreck in Scarborough, Ontario - cows running all over the place.
• Several major fires.

A newspapers reporter always wanted you to fly at least 500 feet below DOT minimums to get a better picture. A tricky situation to say the least.

Roger Slauenwhite,
Ex-Flight Instructor and AC Pionair.

English country pile with a set of wings.

The amazing estate comes with a third of an acre of manicured gardens, so there's plenty of outside space to enjoy, but that's not all.

One of three properties inside the private 70-acre Upper Harford Estate, Pooh Corner also shares access to a private landing strip and hangar, making weekend getaways a breeze.

Source: msn.com/en-ca/money

Canada’s OWG launches with initial flight to Cuba.

The inaugural revenue flight of new Canadian airline OWG has taken off from Toronto’s Pearson International airport, headed to Santa Clara Abel Santamaria airport in Cuba.

The airline is a project of Canadian passenger and freight charter carrier Nolinor Aviation, which announced plans to launch the new brand in July, in the middle of the coronavirus crisis.

According to flight tracking website Flightaware.com, flight N5730 left Montreal’s Trudeau International airport at 11:11 local time, arriving in Toronto at 12:08 local time. It then left Toronto at 13:23 local time, and is due to land in Cuba about three hours later. It was unclear if the flight from Montreal to Toronto was also a revenue flight or if the aircraft had been repositioned.

Editor's Note from Bob Sheppard: My curiosity prompted me to find out that OWG means -  Off We Go.

Source: flightglobal.com