ONE THRILL UNSCHEDULED Breaking Sound Barrier Highlight of RCAF Show
Item
Title
ONE THRILL UNSCHEDULED
Breaking Sound Barrier Highlight of RCAF Show
Breaking Sound Barrier Highlight of RCAF Show
Description
ONE THRILL UNSCHEDULED
Breaking Sound Barrier Highlight of RCAF Show
The unscheduled appearance of four screaming CF-100 all-weather fighters from Canada’s air defence base at North Bay and three F-86 Sabre jets from the huge training base at Chatham, N.B., made Saturday’s air show at Mount Hope the best yet, and gave the two thousand spectators there “sometime to write home about.”
Highlight of the exciting, fast-moving program, sponsored by the RCAF on the occasion of its tenth annual Air Force Day, was the breaking of the sound barrier by a Sabre jet, first time this feat has ever been performed in the Hamilton area.
A loud report like the blast of a gun stunned the crowd while the Sabre, invisible in the hazy, warm sky, flashed ear-wards from a height of 50,000 feet at a speed in excess of 750 miles an hour.
The repeated dives of the big CF-100 twin-jet fighters across the airfield, at little more than house-top level, left the spectators gasping and hanging on to their hats. The big interceptors, like the Sabres, made all their passes across the field at speeds close to that of sound.
Unscheduled Hair-raiser
One event, completely unscheduled, was hair-raising even for the hardened jet-age officers who were controlling traffic from the control tower.
Four Mustang fighters, piston-engine World War II machines on the strength of Hamilton’s 424 Squadron, were making a formation pass at the control tower at low level when the three Sabre jets, hurtling in from Chatham, New Brunswick, at a speed of about 600 miles an hour, swept across the tarmac at the same level as the Mustangs and barely a few hundred yards in front.
It was a breath-taking spectacle for the spectators, but it was a few more grey hairs and a few years chopped from the lives of the men in the control tower.
Aerobatics Delight
The crowd was treated to thrilling displays of aerobatics by RCAF pilots of 424 Squadron performing in T-33 jet trainers, in Mustangs and in Harvards. Two Air Force officers were at the controls of the Hamilton Flying Club’s two Chipmunk trainers in a skillful exhibition of formation flying and low-level flying.
Pilots of the T-33 jets were Flight Lieutenant Tim Morton, Flying Officer R. W. Kiser, Flight Lieutenant R. C. Small, and Flight Lieutenant C. H. Forsyth.
Mustangs were piloted by Squadron Leader Roy Jones, Flight Lieutenant J. S. MacDonald, and Flying Officers M. K. Hostein, C. F. Howard, Dan Seagrove, Ron Kennedy, Lloyd Williamson, Pay Lloyd, and E. L. Rogers.
The Harvards were piloted by Flight Lieutenant George Johnson, Flight Lieutenant Roy Newcombe, and Flying Officer John Gregory.
The two Chipmunks of the Hamilton Flying Club were piloted by Squadron Leader Johnny West, who is in charge of training on these aircraft at the club, and Flying Officer Scotty MacDougall.
Glenn White, manager of Peninsula Airways of Hamilton, gave an impressive demonstration in the new twin-engine, five-place executive style Apache aircraft, which he flew at both minimum and maximum speeds across the airport.
Jim Scott, always a favourite attraction at such shows, was on hand to thrill the crowd with his 150th parachute jump. From a height of about 1,500 feet Jim jumped with his red-and-orange ‘chute and in a near windless air made a soft landing in the middle of the field.
Flying Officer A. T. Schmiel, of 424 Squadron, handled the public address system, and with him in the control tower were Flying Officer Ray Hamlin, LAC Bill Hislop and LAC Ted Reid, handling traffic.
Group Captain David Goldberg, commanding officer of 16 Wing, RCAF Auxiliary, and Squadron Leader C. A. Bayley, officer commanding RCAF Station Mount Hope, were in charge of the over-all program. The band of 424 Fighter Squadron performed at the start of the show.
PILOT RECEIVES OVATION - Breaking the sound barrier for the first time in the Hamilton area, Flying Officer V. E. Cottrell, of the Overseas Ferry Pool at Montreal, received a great ovation from the crowd at the tenth annual Air Force Day show at RCAF Station Mount Hope on Saturday. A Sharp report accompanied the Sabre’s passing the speed of sound. Cottrell also thrilled the spectators with a dazzling exhibition of high-speed aerobatics in the Sabre.
Breaking Sound Barrier Highlight of RCAF Show
The unscheduled appearance of four screaming CF-100 all-weather fighters from Canada’s air defence base at North Bay and three F-86 Sabre jets from the huge training base at Chatham, N.B., made Saturday’s air show at Mount Hope the best yet, and gave the two thousand spectators there “sometime to write home about.”
Highlight of the exciting, fast-moving program, sponsored by the RCAF on the occasion of its tenth annual Air Force Day, was the breaking of the sound barrier by a Sabre jet, first time this feat has ever been performed in the Hamilton area.
A loud report like the blast of a gun stunned the crowd while the Sabre, invisible in the hazy, warm sky, flashed ear-wards from a height of 50,000 feet at a speed in excess of 750 miles an hour.
The repeated dives of the big CF-100 twin-jet fighters across the airfield, at little more than house-top level, left the spectators gasping and hanging on to their hats. The big interceptors, like the Sabres, made all their passes across the field at speeds close to that of sound.
Unscheduled Hair-raiser
One event, completely unscheduled, was hair-raising even for the hardened jet-age officers who were controlling traffic from the control tower.
Four Mustang fighters, piston-engine World War II machines on the strength of Hamilton’s 424 Squadron, were making a formation pass at the control tower at low level when the three Sabre jets, hurtling in from Chatham, New Brunswick, at a speed of about 600 miles an hour, swept across the tarmac at the same level as the Mustangs and barely a few hundred yards in front.
It was a breath-taking spectacle for the spectators, but it was a few more grey hairs and a few years chopped from the lives of the men in the control tower.
Aerobatics Delight
The crowd was treated to thrilling displays of aerobatics by RCAF pilots of 424 Squadron performing in T-33 jet trainers, in Mustangs and in Harvards. Two Air Force officers were at the controls of the Hamilton Flying Club’s two Chipmunk trainers in a skillful exhibition of formation flying and low-level flying.
Pilots of the T-33 jets were Flight Lieutenant Tim Morton, Flying Officer R. W. Kiser, Flight Lieutenant R. C. Small, and Flight Lieutenant C. H. Forsyth.
Mustangs were piloted by Squadron Leader Roy Jones, Flight Lieutenant J. S. MacDonald, and Flying Officers M. K. Hostein, C. F. Howard, Dan Seagrove, Ron Kennedy, Lloyd Williamson, Pay Lloyd, and E. L. Rogers.
The Harvards were piloted by Flight Lieutenant George Johnson, Flight Lieutenant Roy Newcombe, and Flying Officer John Gregory.
The two Chipmunks of the Hamilton Flying Club were piloted by Squadron Leader Johnny West, who is in charge of training on these aircraft at the club, and Flying Officer Scotty MacDougall.
Glenn White, manager of Peninsula Airways of Hamilton, gave an impressive demonstration in the new twin-engine, five-place executive style Apache aircraft, which he flew at both minimum and maximum speeds across the airport.
Jim Scott, always a favourite attraction at such shows, was on hand to thrill the crowd with his 150th parachute jump. From a height of about 1,500 feet Jim jumped with his red-and-orange ‘chute and in a near windless air made a soft landing in the middle of the field.
Flying Officer A. T. Schmiel, of 424 Squadron, handled the public address system, and with him in the control tower were Flying Officer Ray Hamlin, LAC Bill Hislop and LAC Ted Reid, handling traffic.
Group Captain David Goldberg, commanding officer of 16 Wing, RCAF Auxiliary, and Squadron Leader C. A. Bayley, officer commanding RCAF Station Mount Hope, were in charge of the over-all program. The band of 424 Fighter Squadron performed at the start of the show.
PILOT RECEIVES OVATION - Breaking the sound barrier for the first time in the Hamilton area, Flying Officer V. E. Cottrell, of the Overseas Ferry Pool at Montreal, received a great ovation from the crowd at the tenth annual Air Force Day show at RCAF Station Mount Hope on Saturday. A Sharp report accompanied the Sabre’s passing the speed of sound. Cottrell also thrilled the spectators with a dazzling exhibition of high-speed aerobatics in the Sabre.
Date
Identifier
008.016.001