|
|
For retirees of the Air Canada family
July 11th, 2009
We first published in October 1995, 14 years ago.
4,333 subscribers
Chief Pilot - Vesta Stevenson in Victoria, B.C.
Co-pilot - Terry Baker in Nanaimo, B.C.
Flight Engineer - Alan Rust in Surrey, B.C.
our email address is This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.
|
|
|
|
|
|
Vesta's Jump Seat
 Why not allow the NetLetter be your platform, and opportunity, to relive your history while working for either TCA, AC, CPAir, CAIL, PWA, AirBC etal. and share your experiences with us!
Lou LeBlanc sent us this tribute to the cabin crews of CPA
A TRIBUTE TO THE CLASS OF 1969
 Remember when "Coffee Tea or Me" first came out, everyone was so intrigued by what was in the book and the comments made to the crews who flew. Our proper name was flight attendants. We were known as stewardesses, hostesses, stews. This includes male and females. Some called us sex symbols and mostly there was a rather swinging image in the public's mind. We were in Montreal one day, Vancouver the next day Rome or San Francisco or Mexico or Hong Kong all within a couple of days. We traveled far and traveled fast and then settle down quickly and smoothly as wife and mother and we became just like any other wife or mother on the block, except it has been discovered that they more often than not make the best wives. Plunge us into an emergency and we would handle it like a pro. Like evacuating 69 passengers quickly because of a bomb scare.
We were also sometimes called heroes. We have saved ill passengers lives with the right emergency treatment. We have dragged passengers to safety. Some died in the line of duty, these "sex symbols" these swinging stewardesses & sometimes we had to have nerves of steel. There may have been times when we dragged our feet going down the aisle to answer a call button or forgot to bring that second cup of coffee or a triple drink to an irate passenger. We took pride in our career, our job and we were dedicated to CP Air.
This is a tribute to the flight attendants, stewardess, the hostesses, call them what you will but they are the greatest.
Lou LeBlanc
|
|
Air Canada News
 On July 4th., Air Canada inaugurated the only direct weekly non-stop service between Montréal and Fort-De-France, Martinique. The only scheduled non-stop service between Montréal and Fort-de-France, Martinique. The weekly service will be initially offered on Saturdays during the summer between July 4, 2009 and August 29, 2009, and will recommence on a year-round basis on December 5, 2009 .using a 120-seat Airbus A319.
Pier C facility at Vancouver International Airport (YVR) is where all domestic Air Canada and Jazz flights will be consolidated.
|
|
Star Alliance news.
 Bare Essentials of Safety
This Air New Zealand photo below shows an airline staff member wearing body paint and participating in a pre-flight safety video. (Available on YouTube)
New Zealand's national airline has come up with the imaginative way of encouraging passengers to pay attention during the often ignored pre-flight safety video.
 Air New Zealand staff have "nothing to hide". Click on the image to see the safety video produced for their 737 service.
There is also a video showing the "behind the scenes" making of the video.
Visit: www.youtube.com/watch?v=GnhVcD74i14 for that video and see www.youtube.com/watch?v=YsLy9Y7KsVI for some "bloopers".
Current members of Star Alliance and aspiring member Continental Airlines pushed back strongly against the US Dept. of Justice's opposition to the extension of antitrust immunity to CO when it joins in October, arguing in a filing with the Dept. of Transportation that DOJ favors a "myopic policy" that would "abandon almost two decades of highly successful international aviation policy."
|
|
TCA/AC People Gallery
 Over the past months we have been publishing various photographs from earlier "Horizons", should any photos prompt a memory in seeing one of them, feel free to send us your comments and thoughts.
On January 11th 1964 Toronto's new international terminal became operational.
Here we have some photos from:
"Between Ourselves" issue dated February 1964.
AS CAPTAIN OF FLIGHT 871, the first flight into Toronto's International Airport on January 11th, Captain Pete Lennie receives congratulations and a silver stein from Toronto Operations Manager, Steve Himmelman.
 Other members of the crew on the first flight who also received silver stems from Himmelman were (from the left): First Officer, Captain Gord Morgan; Second Officer, Bob Gordon; Stewardess, Ruth Zurcher, Capt Pete Lennie, Stewardesses Lorraine Pepper, Mickey Larson; Purser, John Pasche; and unseen behind Himmelman, is Purser, Dave Thompson. The youngest girl passenger on Flight 871 was presented with a poodle.
 The last outgoing bag from the old terminal was picked up and put on the cart by Lead Station Attendant, Jack Hines, Also taking part in the lost operation were, from the left: Station Attendants, Tom Duncan, George Froud, Tom Show (behind Hines), and Bill Albers.
 THE CREW of the last flight out of the old terminal were (from the left): Stewardesses. Jacqueline Dubrowa and Sandra Solski; Purser, Norman Fredrice; First Officer, Captain Maurice Labine; Stewardess, Elfriede Lang; Second Officer, Bob Bocock; and Capt.Charles Skelding. Capt. Skelding's first flight was from Malton's original terminal in 1938.
 HAPPY EXPRESSIONS on the faces of the passenger agents were an indication that there was no reluctance to moving into the new terminal at Toronto International Airport Hosts, Dick Sellors (extreme left), Assistant District Commercial Manager, Elwood Patton (kneeling at the left) , Airport Passenger Office Manager and Eddie May (sitting, extreme . right), Regional Sales Manager, So. Ont., held a party for passenger agents as a gesture of thanks for excellent work under adverse conditions at the old terminal. (Unfortunately there are no other identities - Were you there? Where! - eds)
From "Between Ourselves" magazine issue dated April 1966.
 This photo appeared with the information "This photo turned up when we were cleaning out some old files recently. It was captionless so we have no idea who the handsome lads are" The article asked if any reader could identify the lads. In "Between Ourselves" issued May 1966 came this response -Photo Identified For those readers who are wondering who the unidentified employees were in the photograph which appeared in the April issue of "Between Ourselves", the mystery has been cleared up by Ralph Pilling, Mechanic, Instrument Shop, Dorva]. In a letter to the Editors, Ralph named the employees as follows: Back row, from the left: Howard Bennett Cam Frankard, Les Armstrong, Mickey Sutherland, Gordon Fanstone. Bill Cook, Fenton Malley and Walter Johnston. Front rowl, from the left: Henry Penston. Harry Pickering. Monty Banks. Ed Jeily, Roy Paulley, and W. Hegan. The photograph was taken at the Winnipeg Base in the early "Forties" and the aircraft in the background is a Lockheed Lodestar.
|
|
Alan's Space
 United Breaks Guitars
In the spring of 2008, Sons of Maxwell a band from Halifax, NS. were traveling to Nebraska for a one-week tour and the lead singer and songwriter, David Carroll noticed that his Taylor guitar was witnessed being thrown by United Airlines baggage handlers in Chicago. He discovered later that the $3500 guitar was severely damaged. They didn't deny the experience occurred but for nine months the various people he communicated with put the responsibility for dealing with the damage on everyone other than themselves and finally said they would do nothing to compensate him for the loss. So he promised the last person to finally say no to compensation (Ms. Irlweg) that he would write and produce three songs about my experience with United Airlines and make videos for each to be viewed online by anyone in the world. United: Song 1 is the first of those songs. United: Song 2 has been written and video production is underway. United Song 3 is coming, he promises.
Note: this has had so my hits on YouTube that the story has ended up on the news and resulted in the band not only being compensated by United but giving them more attention than they ever could imagine. The video has over 2.5 million views right now and it's a catchy song as well.
See story about "viral marketing" here. Play the video and hear the song below.
Click on image for video and song
|
|
Canadi>n/CPAir/PWA, Wardair, etc. Events & People
 Over the past months we have been publishing various photographs from earlier in-house magazines, should any photos prompt a memory in seeing one of them, feel free to send us your comments and thoughts.
We recently had a Stanley Cup final won by Pittsburg, but, according to the "INFO:CARGO" magazine issue Apr 15th 1991, Canadia>n shipped the Stanley Cup to various Canadian cities for the Hockey Hall of Fame. Calgary employees were, at that time, invited to have a look at the famous Cup!
 Left to right; Bruce Nelson, Pat Miechkota, Cathy Jordan, Cargo Agents, YYCFF; Randy Balde, Cargo Runner, Hudson General, YYC; Bill Neufeld, Cargo Agent, YYCFF; Ken Phillips, Lead Cargo Agent, YYCFF.
The STOC (Station Terminal Operations Control) at YYZ opened February 21st 1991
 Here we have this photo of the STOC at YYZ.
Perusing the "INFO:CARGO" magazine
After a decade of trying to land the lucrative contract with the major banks, Canadian Air Cargo managed to wrest the contract from Air Canada.
 From l to r: Bob Shaw, Gordon Brown and Doug McQuald
"Chicago is Bob's kind of town with or without an aircraft"
This was the headline to an article about the departure of CP729 each night for Toronto. No - not an aircraft, but a sleek 44 foot cruiser carrier which carries just one passenger and the rest is cargo - yes a semi trailer truck.
 Here we have Bob Sedlak, Manager, Cargo Sales & Service discussing problems with Anthony Williams, Operations Supvr, AirCargo Express.
Marvin Fiddler was appointed the new Manager of Sales & Service for Germany, Switzerland and Austria on April 1st.
 Here is a photo of a smiling Marvin.
Celebrating the transfer of Canadian Air Cargo's UK sales base to LHR Heathrow beginning in April.
 We have this photo of a happy group.
l to r: Mark Bright, Tim Hitchings, Paul Norris and Peter Comport.
|
|
This n That
Ryanair CEO Michael O'Leary found himself in the headlines again after telling Sky News "We might take out the last five or six rows" [of seats] and say to passengers, "Do you want to stand up"? If you do, you can travel for free. O'Leary said he has asked Boeing to look at converting or producing aircraft with "vertical seating" and asked, "Why is this any different to what happens on trains where you see thousands of people who cannot get a seat standing in the aisles?" A spokesperson confirmed to Agence France Presse that Ryanair and Boeing are in discussions "in relation to adapting the aircraft to allow people to travel in vertical seating". They "wouldn't be fully standing". They would have something like a stool to lean on or to sit on. The same spokesperson told the Daily Mail, "It's really early days but we're looking at a 20%-30% increase in passengers on commuter routes".
(From Phil Pawsey)
Allan Snowie who is a retired Air Canada pilot is currently making his way across Canada in a 7/8 scale Nieuport which was one of the most popular WW1 fighter aircraft. If you would like to know the whole story visit: www.404eaa.org/Cross%20Canada01.html
and read why and how he is doing it. It is an experience that many of us would truly like to have.
|
|
Jack Morath of LHR spotted this article in a local newspaper about the incident now known as "The Cabbage Patch" DOOMED TO CRASH. There would have been plenty of nervous chit-chat and a feeling of great unease among the passengers of Trans-Canada Air Lines flight 861 as the Douglas DC-8 trundled out for take off on the evening of November 6, 1963. As so often before, Heathrow was shrouded in fog, and even in the darkness, the restricted visibility and cloying conditions would have been all too apparent to those on board. Start-up had been delayed for half an hour as the crew waited for things to improve. The visibility was variable, with a breeze walling the fog around the airfield and at about 9.15pm a decision was taken to line-up at the end of 27 left. Take-off was abandoned after a few hundred yards as the weather closed in again, and the crew of the Montreal-bound plane decided to switch to 28 right, where the tower confirmed visibility was far better. But with the DC8 heading down the runway at more than 130 knots, the captain was uneasy with the response from the control column and aborted take off at a speed well over V 1.
 The jet, registration CF-TJM and only delivered a few months before, over-ran the end of the runway and, in a shower of sparks, ploughed into a cabbage field 800 yards further on, near the village of Longford. The impact ripped off the undercarriage and tore away the underside of the nose but, amazingly, there were no fatalities among the 90 occupants and seven crew. A cutting from the next day's Daily Mirror, kindly supplied by reader Bob Cooper, reads: "For several moments there was silence in the fog-shrouded field." The paper reported that fire broke out in one of the DC8's four engines. The passengers were evacuated by escape chutes and everyone was out within 90 seconds. Airport worker Tony Petts, 35, one of the first helpers to reach the site, told the Mirror: "It seemed quite fantastic". They were all standing, quite calm, at a safe distance from the wreck. "There were children crying and one woman who had been hurt was lying under some coats" otherwise you'd have thought they were waiting for a bus. Staines policeman John Tuck raced to the scene with a colleague and recalls being amazed that no one had been killed - and that there had not been an explosion.
"There was aviation fuel everywhere", said John, who is now retired, but still lives in the town. "The smell was overpowering and my boots were rotted away by the stuff". I had to get new ones. Sightseers came from miles around to see the plane and later, in a highly-tricky operation never before seen at the airport, the DC8, its livery covered over and all other airline markings painted out, was painstakingly lifted and slowly towed back to the maintenance area at Hatton Cross. Engineers spent months repairing the jet and did such a good job that it was later able to go back into service, but there was to be no happy ending. While on a training flight near Ottawa on May 19, 1967, the DC-8, by then in the colours of TCA's successor, Air Canada, suddenly rolled to the right and crashed on approach to the airport, killing the crew of three.
|
|
Terry's Trivia & Travel Tips
Terry's Trivia & Travel Tips
Graham Horne responds to our trivia question in NetLetter nr 1076.
Can't resist answering. Having been a CCCP (not Russian, Captains Coffee Cup Passer) for 20 years,
I noticed that co-pilots were not allowed to touch anything, so his left hand would never get used. Most Captains are right handed, useful for coffee acceptance when sitting on the left.
Left circuit is normal for flight training and pilots in command sit left and look left. Ships Captains berth left (port) side against wharves and pass other vessels port-to-port. All stems from mounting a horse on the near (left) side, giving clearance for one's sword. Submitted with all sincerity by a permanent second officer (FEO) ret.
Graham Horne
----------------------------------------------------------------
Terry's travel tips.
 Here is the next edited segment of the "Round the world" trip by Sheila Moscoe we started in NetLetter nr 1064
Hi everyone again!
Well, after we left Mumbai, we started to sail out through the Arabian Sea passing the south coast of India and Pakistan towards the Gulf of Oman and heading through the Strait of Hormuz into the Persian Gulf to the United Arab Emirates (UAE). However, as we were a far cry from Somalia, we did still have a briefing from our Captain (by the way, who could have been a comedian!) about pirates on the high seas. We were told what to do in case of an attack, but assured us that we weren't in any jeopardy. In a few days' time, we did have an escort ship on each side protecting us as we approached the Straight. It was rather eerie to see these long gray military types of boats along our side. Well, when it came time to pack we just couldn't believe how many clothes we had that were never worn - when we ever learn! Checking out was simple as all our charges were automatically posted on to our credit cards. In case you didn't know, cruise lines charge a per diem service charge in lieu of personal tipping. Ours was $10.50USD per day.
So, after joining the Royal Princess in Hong Kong on Day 59 and disembarking in Dubai on Day 81 of their 107 Day voyage, we said au revoir to everyone. And, until next time....Dubai, here we come! Love, SheilaGandhi Road in the stifling heat, looking for the Crawford Market. Well, we found it and couldn't believe our eyes. It was a closed market blocks long, with the most magnificent textiles and clothing that you could imagine. Another thing to note is that most merchants do not accept foreign currencies, so upon arrival it's best to buy some rupees and you hope you have enough! As this wasn't our first trip to Mumbai, we did notice that they had cleaned up the streets from rubbish and there were hardly any maimed or children panhandlers. And no, we didn't see anyone connected to "Slumdog Millionaire"! Next stop is Dubai....stay tuned..
Once again, I hope everyone is well,
Love, Sheila
|
|
Smilie
 Here is how the recession is being beaten -
In the month of August, on the shores of the Black Sea, it is raining, and the little town looks totally deserted. It's tough times, everybody is in debt, and everybody lives on credit.
Suddenly, a rich tourist comes to town. He enters the only hotel, lays a 100 Euro note on the reception counter, and goes to inspect the rooms upstairs in order to pick one. The hotel proprietor takes the 100 Euro note and runs to pay towards his debt to the butcher.
The butcher takes the 100 Euro note, and runs to partially pay his debt to the pig grower. The pig grower takes the 100 Euro note, and runs to pay off some of his debt to the supplier of his feed and fuel.
The supplier of feed and fuel takes the 100 Euro note and runs to pay his debt to the town's lady of the night who in these hard times, gave her "services" on credit. The lady runs to the hotel, and pays off her debt with the 100 Euro note to the hotel proprietor to pay for the rooms that she rented when she brought her clients there.
The hotel proprietor then lays the 100 Euro note back on the counter so that the rich tourist will not suspect anything.
At that moment, the rich tourist comes down after inspecting the rooms, and takes his 100 Euro note, saying that he did not like any of the rooms, and leaves town.
No one earned anything.
However, the whole town is now without debt, and looks to the future with a lot of optimism....
And that, ladies and gentlemen, is how the Canadian Government is doing business. |
|
The NetLetter is the longest running newsletter dedicated to Air Canada retirees (since 1995). We are always looking to add Air Canada, Canadi>n, CPAir, AirBC, etc. retirees to our list. Please feel free to forward this email using the links at the bottom of this issue. Those receiving this email (when forwarded) will then have the choice to subscribe to us through those links as well. If you have friends that may want to join us, please send them to our web site at www.thenetletter.org where they can sign up at the top of the page. .
DID YOU KNOW?
ARCHIVES for NetLetters.
NetLetters are located on the ACFamily Network in the forums.
Just go to: http://www.acfamily.net/forums
- Log in (if you aren't already)
- scroll down to News Services.
- Click on NetLetter
You will be able to find ALL NetLetters. There is also a search engine to help you.
For all new articles, submissions and or comments for "The Netletter" please send to: This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it. (Please add to your Address Books). This e-mail address has been set up so that all of us (Vesta, Terry, & Alan) will get an automatic copy and so we can keep up with the continuity of news for the NetLetter.
To make changes to your e-mail address or to unsubscribe, please see the links below for "Update Profile/Email address" and SafeUnsubscribe. This is now automated so that you can remove yourself from the list or change your email address (or name) without our assistance. We will still do this manually if you have any difficulties.
Many of our members are having difficulty finding these links. You will need to scroll to the bottom of the page, the link is similar to the following image. (The image below doesn't work but your links at the bottom will).
Enjoy!
Your NetLetter Team
(Vesta, Terry, Alan)
PS - Please don't forget that you can click on most of the "thumbnail" images for a larger version of the image.
|
We hope you enjoyed this issue. Please feel free to pass this on to another Air Canada retiree by using the "Forward Email" link below. There is an option for them to subscribe to "The NetLetter" as well from the forwarded email. See our web site at: www.thenetletter.org for more information.
Vesta Stevenson, Terry Baker and Alan Rust
The NetLetter Team |
|
|
|
|
Our Sponsors
ACFamily Network
Explore China Tours
|
|
Terry, Vesta and Alan at the Pionairs AGM, March 2007
|
|
NetLetter Archives
You can peruse back issues of the NetLetter by clicking on the image above |
NetLetter Donations
If you would like to donate (any amount) to help defray the costs of publishing The NetLetter, it would be greatly appreciated.
Note: We'd like to thank all of our loyal readers who have donated. For those members that were asking where to send a cheque (payable to ACFamily Network). You can send it to;
ACFamily Network
#800 - 15355 24th Ave
Suite 523
Surrey, BC V4A 2H9
Thanks in advance,
Vesta, Terry, Alan
Your NetLetter Team |
|
|
