 The NetLetter
For Air Canada Retirees
(part of the ACFamily Network)
November 12, 2011 - Issue 1187
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First Issue published in October 1995!
(over 5,400 subscribers)
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Donation Information
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Send cheques payable to "ACFamily Network" to:
ACFamily Network
#800 - 15355 24th Ave, Suite 523
Surrey, BC V4A 2H9
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Pay by Credit Card
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| Greetings! |
We welcome you to allow the NetLetter to be your platform, and opportunity, to relive your history while working for either TCA, AC, CPAir, CAIL, PWA, AirBC, Wardair. etal. and share your experiences with us!
The NetLetter is an email newsletter published every weekend and contains a mixture of nostalgia, current news and travel tips. We encourage our readers to submit their stories, photos and/or comments from either days gone by or from present day experiences and trips. If we think that the rest of our readers will enjoy it, we will publish it here
We also This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it. in regard to anything we post here. Many readers have commented with additional information, names and personal memories from the photos and articles presented here.
The NetLetter, which is free, is open to anyone that wishes to subscribe but is targeted to retired employees from Air Canada, Canadian Airlines and all the other companies that were part of what Air Canada is today. Thanks for joining us!
Terry & your NetLetter Team
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| CAHS Upcoming Events - Compiled by Alan Rust |
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Pionair Meetings and Events - Compiled by Alan Rust
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 The Air Canada Pionairs have ongoing Coffee Club Meetings in the following Districts; Vancouver Island, Vancouver, Okanagan, Edmonton, Calgary, Man-Sask, SW Ontario, Central Ontario, Ottawa, Quebec, New Brunswick, Nova Scotia - P.E.I., Newfoundland, UK - E.C. and the USA - Caribbean. For full information, click here.
Meetings provide an opportunity to meet old friends, learn the latest news regarding Air Canada and your pensions or hear a variety of guest speakers speaking on topics of interest to retirees.
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 One of the photos that Shirlee Schacter sent us, showing the trophy winners, and printed in NetLetter nr 1185 had the incorrect identities. Here is the corrected version - with our apologies.
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| Our first 70 years - Compiled by Terry Baker |
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1957
- June - White topping of the aircraft fleet gets underway.
- August - New service pins for 5, 10,, 15 and 20 years issued.
1949 - Dec 2nd - Inauguration of service to Barbados with North Star equipment.
1974 - The company abandoned their intention to purchase a one third interest in Wardair.
1975
- Jan - Revised pass priority introduced.
- Distribution of newspaper in economy class discontinued except for Rapidair.
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| Reader Submitted Photos - Compiled by Terry Baker |
 Reader Submitted Photos - The photos and information below was sent to us by our faithful readers. If you would like to send us some old photos you have lying around. we will consider them for publication in a future NetLetter. We prefer good quality airline related photos, with descriptive text included with the submission. |
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 Robert Arnold sends us this photo -
This photo shows some of the little hand out models I have in my collection along with the TCA towel seen above the models. These are all TCA handouts which represented the aircraft in the fleet back in the day. I remember during the early eighties when I stumbled on a bag of about 30 of these models and at the time only paid about 50 cents for the lot. It was quite a find. I hope your readers will enjoy having a brief look into the past.
With Kind Regards from Winnipeg.
Robert.
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 Norman Hogwood has sent us these photos with the following information -
The packages were handed out as I was boarding the DC-8 back in 1960 when the DC-8 was in LHR on crew training/famils. We did a return flight to Shannon one evening and it was my very first flight in any sort of airplane. I was so impressed! I well remember standing a half-crown coin on the its edge on my tray table, the flight was so smooth.
One of the documents is a recipe for "Original Shannon Irish Coffee" of which we had a few while in the transit lounge. The flight home reminded me of a sports team bus outing with lots of singing and laughing in the back seats!
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 Your chief pilot who also worked in LHR adds -
I well remember the fam flight to SNN. my father called me and asked if I was going as he was, so I put my name down. My father was the Chief Customs Officer at LHR, and my co-workers would slide up to him in SNN and ask him what they could take back to LHR from the duty free. Naturally, he was non committal.
During the landing roll at SNN, I noticed how near the engine pods seemed to be to the runway lights, and pointed this out to Stan Hewit, VP Ops from YUL, who immediately scuttled up to the flight deck - apparently there was plenty of clearance.
I was impressed with the duty free offers at SNN, which included a Jaguar car.
When we returned to LHR, the customs people just waved everyone through without question - my name was mud for a few days afterwards by some of the guys who missed the opportunity for duty free.
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| TCA/Air Canada People Gallery - Compiled by Terry Baker |
 Musings from the "Between Ourselves" and "Horizons" magazine, an Air Canada publication from years gone by, and various in-house magazines.
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Issue dated - July 1957
Extracted from "Between Ourselves" magazine -
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 INVITED GUESTS On Viscount courtesy flights were treated to on aerial view of the arrival of the Mayflower II, which coincided with the introduction of Viscount service to Boston last month.
Significantly, this also marked the 10th anniversary of scheduled TCA service into "The Hub".
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 "FIRST PASSENGER" for Stewardess Winnie Imrie was her dad, Angus "GUS" Imrie, Foreman, Maintenance Base, Vancouver. Winnie's graduation as a TCA Stewardess last month marked the latest father and daughter team in TCA. |
 A QUARTER CENTURY of service with TCA is represented here by Captain Ken Harling and his father Herb Harling of Toronto District Sales. Ken has recently achieved his captaincy and has been with the airline for seven years while his dad joined the Company in 1938. |
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Issue dated - January 1975
Extracts from "Horizons" magazine -
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 In an effort to cut costs, the Barbados Maintenance team developed its own hop on wheels designed to give maintenance supervisors mobility on the ramp.
Featuring a carry-all box for tools, aircraft spares, oil cans etc. the three-wheel scooter can zip between aircraft and hangar at a flat out speed of 18 m.p.h.
In the photograph, John Longo presents the new scooter to Barbados Manager Ken Esselmont who is driving. Helping in construction of the vehicle were, from the left: Eric Cumberbatch, Franklyn Cummins, Martin Crichlow, Tom Field, George Stoute and Dalton Wall.
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 First graduate of the Company's "Professional Management Development Program" (PMDP) are pictured on completion of the intensive four-part training program in Montreal which they began in April, 1974 The managers are members of a pilot group of 100.
Standing, from the left, are: Keith Hoover, In-Flight Service Montreal, Roy Dicaire, Eastern Region, Dorval; Walter Garrett, Marketing, Montreal; Lloyd Constable, Central Southern Region, Toronto; Jim Wonta, In-Flight Service, Dorval; Gilles Lafreniere, Flight Operation, Dorval; and work shop leader, Kent Swedell, Sr. Management Development Consultant.
Seated, from the left are: Charlie Fitzgerald, District Manager, Boston; Pat Tapson, District Manager, London, Ontario; Gray Dales, Marketing, Montreal; Dorm Dionne, In-Flight Service, Dorval; Lane Bickel, Computer & System Services, Montreal; and Norm Carter, Purchasing & Facilities , Toronto. Scotty Stewart, Supervisor, Audio-Visual Communications, Dorval , (inset right side) was missing at the time the photo wa taken.
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| Alan's Space - by Alan Rust |
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| Alan Rust |
The Beautiful Babes of WWII
Nice series of slides of WWII aircraft. Make sure you select the full screen setting to see them at their best. To do so after you're on the web site, see the full screen image (see arrow below for position).
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| Click on image for SlideShow |
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Canadi>n/CP Air/PWA, Wardair, etc. People & Events
- Compiled by Terry Baker |
 News and articles from days gone by gleaned from various publications from C.A.I.L. and it's "ancestry" of contributing airlines. |
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John Carleton, a Transair pilot sends us this information -
The following web site depicts a number of slides collated by Al Nelson of the Mid West and Transair era.
A great number of the Netletter members may recall this period of flying history - for others it epitomizes the way it was in the past.
Regards John Carleton,
Transair Pilot.
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Extracts from the "Info Canadian" magazine -
Issue dated March 17, 1988
- Canadian Airlines applied to be the second Canadian airline to offer service between Toronto and Chicago.
- Canadian Partner to operate service between Toronto and North Bay Ont commencing April 3rd.
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Issue dated - March 24th 1988
Canadian Airlines announced its 1988 summer schedule effective May 1st that will have more departures to Canadian destinations than Air Canada.
- B737 fin 766, a 19 year veteran, will end its service April 1st, and has been sold to AIG Leasing of Hackensack NJ USA
- Service to Portugal by CP is due to end on October 26th with flight CP63 outbound from Lisbon to Toronto. The service was inaugurated May 30th, 1957.
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 Executives of Commercial Services, North America, at a recent strategy meeting, from left, Brian Lambertson, director, airport handling services, Vancouver; Blaine Coffyne, director, Vancouver airport ; J. P.Gelinas, director, Dorval airport ; Denis Clements, director, Toronto airport; John Rusinko, director, Edmonton and northern airports ; Joe Tessmer, director, regional airports, B.C/U.S.A. ; Dunc Fischer, vice president, western region ; Gerry Goodridge, manager, public relations, western region; John Bidlake, senior vice president, commercial servIces, North America; Peter Barker, vice president, central region; Gail Nielsen-Pich, manager, manpower and budget control, Vancouver; Paul Pelletier, vice president, eastern region; Larry Filipek, manager, regional administration (western), Edmonton; Rod Dewar, director, airport services, prairies, Winnipeg; Peter Casement. director, airport support services, Vancouver. Not available for the photo were Don Maclean, director, airports, Atlantic Canada, Halifax; Mike Dukelow, manager, public relations, central, Toronto; Steve Bullock, director, Calgary airport.
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Issue dated - April 1990
Acquired 100% of Wardair Inc April 25th 1989.
During 1989 Introduction of new services to Nagoya, Copenhagen, Chicago, B767-300ER to Europe.
Arranged for the sale of 12 AirBus A310-300 and 2 B747-100 aircraft for delivery between May 1990 and July 1992.
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| Reader's Feedback - Compiled by Terry Baker |
Every week we ask our readers for their stories or feedback on what they have read here in previous issues. Below is the feedback we have received recently.
Allen Knapp sends us his comments on the Reservations System photo submitted by Juanita Ollivier in NetLetter nr 1185 -
Hi,
The picture is of the VSIB (visual space indicator board). I cannot identify the female but YYZ reservations were never at YYZ airport. The incident took place at 347 Bay St in YYZ. Reservations later moved to The Austin Building at Church and Yonge near Canadian Tire. I started there in teletype in 1946 and later worked in YYZ res and space control.
Cheers Allen Knapp
Continuation of the story by Jim Griffith started in NetLetter nr 1186 -
The normal summer flight pairing included a four hour and ten minute turn-around in Lethbridge before heading back north. The layover was just short of the time, by ten minutes, that the airline was required to provide hotel accommodation condemning the crew to sit around a dusty, closet sized, airless room in the old WWII hangar that served as the company operations base. Wandering aimlessly around the old buildings one fine summer day with their hands in their pockets two pilots came across the DOT radio shack. The radio operator who was lounging in the doorway smoking a fag casually enquired,
"Hey! You guys want something to do?"
"Depends.", replied the fifty nine year-old Captain.
"Come into my den said the spider to fly: I've got something to show Ya!" invited the operator.
Once inside he pulled a twelve gauge, seven shot, pump-action Cooey shotgun from a steel cabinet.
"This"... "Gentlemen", he said scornfully, "Is our airport bird control system". With that he handed them two boxes of number six, shot gun shells.
"Boys", he whined, "I haven't got time to go out and shoot gulls so if you want you can kill some time by murdering seagulls. If you're up to it that is?"
"Gee whiz really?"... "Wow!" exclaimed the twenty two year-old First Officer excitedly.
Only a fool would hand a shot gun with live ammunition to two pilots with wildly disparate seniority numbers, nevertheless off they went.
After about an hour they returned the gun and empty cartridge boxes. Both pilots unscathed, except for sore shoulders, proudly claimed a combined score of thirteen kills and twenty probables between them.
"Not a bad afternoon's work boys" cheered the DOT man.
(Still more to come next time - eds)
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Terry's Trivia and Travel Tips - by Terry Baker
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| Terry Baker |
One of the very many offerings from Ceasar Airways Interline
Castle Estate in Tuscany - 7 nights
from us$999 in Winter / from us$1199* in Fall.
Includes round trip airfare, castle hotels and car.
Enjoy a visit to beautiful Tuscany, Italy's most celebrated region, where you'll be immersed in the rare beauty of the Chianti countryside from your vantage point at Montegufoni Castle, only 13 miles from Florence.
Set on a large estate with vineyards and olives, you'll be able to explore Tuscany's breathtaking countryside or nearby cities of international fame such as Florence, Siena, San Gimignano, Certaldo, Pisa, Lucca, and Arezzo.
Perched atop a gentle hill and set amidst Italian gardens, lemon trees, olive groves and the world famous vineyards of Chianti, historic Montegufoni Castle transports you to a fairy-tale world in the hills of Tuscany. Experience this vacation of a life time in 2-bedroom accommodations, where some rooms have authentic ceiling frescos.
Rates shown are from New York, call about other departure cities
Nov. 1 - Feb. 20 from us$999*
Feb 21 - March 31, 2012 from us$1049*
Price shown is based on 4 people traveling, airline taxes are additional.
1 800 422 3727 www.caesarhotels.com
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Smileys - Compiled by Terry Baker
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As we surf the internet and back issues of airline magazines we regularly find airline related jokes and cartoons. Below is our latest discovery.
Bill Wood sent us details of this web site -
NO-FRILLS AIRLINE
Want to have a good laugh! Try this................
Did you book a "no-frills" seat? See what you are in for!!!!
Carol Burnett, Harvey Korman and Tim Conway were ahead of their time!
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| Carol Burnett Show- No Frills Airline |
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Disclaimer: Please note, that neither the NetLetter or the ACFamily Network necessarily endorse any of the airline related or other "deals" that we provide for our readers. We would be interested in any feedback (good or bad) when using these companies though and will report the results here. We do not (normally) receive any compensation from any companies that we post in our newsletters. If we do receive a donation or other compensation, it will be indicated as a sponsored article or link.
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We hope you have enjoyed this issue of the NetLetter, see you next week!
Sincerely,
Your NetLetter Team
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First published in October, 1995
- Chief Pilot - Terry Baker, Nanaimo, B.C.
- Co-pilot - Alan Rust, Surrey, B.C.
- Flight Engineer - Bill Rowsell, Londesboro, Ontario
To contact us, send an email to This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.
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