Snowbirds meet Hawk One

Hawk One, the Centennial Hornet, and the Snowbirds have been at CFB Comox this past week working up for the airshow season. (Photos courtesy of the Canadian Department of National Defence.)

Now that's what I'm talking about!



I'm still not sure if I like the Centennial Hornet paint scheme, but this is a nice photo.

Heather in a Harvard

Back at CHAA today, Heather got her first ride in a Harvard. She flew in the backseat of the #1 ship in a four ship formation. Greg Burnard was driving.

Boys, Load Up Those Fireflys

Here is a nice set of photos of Royal Canadian Navy Fairey Fireflys being readied for action. The first three are Firefly FR.1s and the last aircraft is a Firefly IV. (All photos courtesy of the Canada Department of National Defence/Library and Archives of Canada.)

Got Legal Questions? Just Walk Right on In!

One of the things that drives me crazy about a legal practice with individual clients is that a few clients, and more frustratingly many perspective clients, think they can just show up at the office and have their questions answered. They don't want to set an appointment because there is a fee, but apparently they think attorneys are sitting in the office twiddling their thumbs waiting for them to just show up. I always wonder if they do the same things to their dentists and doctors. Anyway, I got a huge laugh when I was driving through Windsor to the 401...the Walk-In Law Firm...


What is next...the drive-thru lawyer?

Make My Haze Blow Away

Probably should have put this up on an Easter Sunday, but a day late won't hurt anyone...

Time to Whine About Hockey

I know writing about hockey is about the most unpopular thing on my blog, but I just have to whine.

Saturday night was two major hockey events, the end of the NHL regular season for the Habs and the final for the college hockey "Frozen Four." Needless to say I was glued to the TV set and flipping channels.

Generally, I'm not going to watch the college hockey tournament, but this year was special. My Alma Mater, Miami of Ohio was gunning to win the first sports national title in the school's history. (And being Miami was founded in 1809, that is quite a drought.) Up 3 to 1 with under two minutes to go, Miami collapsed and lost to Boston University 4 to 3 in overtime. Ouch. What a soul crushing collapse. I thought they had it in the bag, I should have known better...

Speaking of collapses, the Montreal Canadians ended their regular season with a loss to the Pittsburgh Penguins. This is Montreal's 100th year anniversary, and they were expected to be one of the premiere teams in the league. However, it transpired that they just made the playoffs, finishing eighth place in the conference with a tie Thursday night against Boston. Making the playoffs with tie, how lame is that? The season was marred by inconsistent play, disappointing efforts by Price, Komisarek, and Hamrlik, poor coaching, Kovelev taking a break during the season, injuries, and even players with alleged ties to the mob. Ouch. Ouch. I have little hope that Montreal will be anything but cannon fodder for the Bruins in the first round of the playoffs, but there is always next year...and with the large number of free agents on the team, maybe next year's Habs will consistently play well.

A Short History of Canada's Air Force

One of the problems of being a Canadian Air Force fan living in the U.S. is that the vast majority of non-Canadians...and sometimes Canadians too...don't know much about the (R)CAF. April 1, was the 85th birthday of the (R)CAF and to honor that anniversary, and to educate members of the CAF, the Air Force published a short little book on the service's history called "On Windswept Heights: Historical Highlights of Canada's Air Force." You can download it by clicking here.

A Harvard Education

I was back in Tillsonburg this past weekend for the final edition of Harvard Ground School. A couple of the Harvards were doing pilot checkouts.

Harvard Mk. 4 CF-WLH about to depart on a flight.


North American built Harvard Mk. II C-FRWN RCAF # 3830 was also flying some ops.




Harvard Mk. 4 C-FRZW RCAF # 20422 was in the hangar for its annual.



Harvard Mk. II C-FMTX RCAF # 3191 is under restoration. It should be back flying in a couple of years.


CHAA is building a Harvard out of spare parts for static display. The rear fuselage is from Harvard Mk. II RCAF # 2885.