Highlights after fifty years of flying

Cat Driver · Post by **Cat Driver** » Tue Mar 02, 2004 1:28 pm

We called it the flying .... because it takes its load up the rear end.

bandaid · Post by **bandaid** » Tue Mar 02, 2004 1:44 pm

I heard many nicknames for the Husky. The fact that their were only ever 12 built and of those the only one flying was in Prince Ruperts, the others had either crashed or were in museums, lead to many nick names. I'm not sure if that company still exist in Prince Rupert so I won't tell you the nick name we had for the company as a whole. Suffice to say, we never used it much.

oldtimer · Post by **oldtimer** » Tue Mar 02, 2004 9:20 pm

Great picture of an old Husky. That was serial # 3 I think. I flew serial 8 The original Husky was indeed designed to compete with the Beaver. The original had a 450 HP P & W R985, which meant it was drastically undepowered. Would barely pull a sick whore off a pee pot but flew real well once airborne. Later, some were modified with an English Alvis Leonides engine of around 600 HP which helped immensly. And yes, traditionally, English engines rotate backwards. Look at the RR Dart. Bloody 'ell. Had the same style landing gear as an Otter. Had the same door style as an Otter, one removeable section to which a swinging door was attached, but on both sides of the fuselage. Had a removeable canvass rear bulkhead but behind the bulkhead was a door, like a Herc, only smaller. could carry canoes internally. Largest number of canoes carried. 23. (Small fiberglass shells that fit one insde the other, thwarts and seats alongside, about 900 lbs.). That one was owned by Parsons Airways Northern Ltd. Flin Flon but was bought new by the Saskatchewan government. (CF-SAQ Sick and Questionable) Don't remember what happened to it. Anybody know any more about the old airplane, PM me. Love to chew the fat. Don't have 50 years of flying, only 45 years
Cheers

bandaid · Post by **bandaid** » Tue Mar 02, 2004 11:20 pm

I often tell the story about having had a flight or two in the Husky. I'm sure if I knew then what I know now about that bird I wouldn't have boarded it. I do consider it a priviledge to have flown in a piece of Canadian History though.

Leaky Float · Post by **Leaky Float** » Wed Mar 03, 2004 6:26 am

NDB-I want to apologize. I went through the thread again and after further analysis, Cat's reply sometime after my "story"was good morning moron. I thought that he was refering to me and my supposed situation, which admitedly is an accurate usage of the word moron. My intention was not to imply that you fit the mold as I.
Be well, do good work, and keep the dirty side down.

Leak

oldtimer · Post by **oldtimer** » Thu Mar 04, 2004 4:30 pm

Hey Griffon, where did you get the picture of the Husky. I think that may have been the prototype. CF-EIM. Notice the -X in the registration, when the airplane was in the test flight regime. That airplane has what I believe to be the Alvis Leonides engine in it. It has a totaly different cowling from the Pand W powered airplane. I read somewhere that the cabin volume and cabin length was the same as a DHC - 3 Stoneboat. Most big engine airplanes were on the west coast. That airplane may be in the musuem in Winnipeg. Cat Driver may have run across one when he was with Austin. There was one up in their area years ago.

Mitch Cronin · Post by **Mitch Cronin** » Thu Mar 04, 2004 6:15 pm

I found it on Google Oldtimer... There's a bunch of photos available I think...

N2 · Post by N2 » Thu Mar 04, 2004 6:42 pm

The highlight of my career in flying after 50 years will be finding a dollar still left in my wallet!

Driving Rain · Post by **Driving Rain** » Thu Mar 04, 2004 10:25 pm

I hear ya NZ, llike many in this industry I started out with nothing and after 35 years I still got most of it.
Cheers Pete

ahramin · Post by **ahramin** » Thu Mar 04, 2004 10:28 pm

I take it you are not a turbine man driving rain?

Driving Rain · Post by **Driving Rain** » Thu Mar 04, 2004 10:38 pm

I've been sitting behind a pair of P&W 123AF's for the last 5 years. Before that I rode herd on a pair of P&W R2800 CA3's for 9 years and before that I gained some expertice at wrangling P&W PT6's in twotters and mark 3 beavers.
I think the point is if you are on a salary in this country no matter what your occupation , by the time the tax man is done with you we all live pay check to pay check.
Cheers Pete

ahramin · Post by **ahramin** » Thu Mar 04, 2004 10:50 pm

Was not talking about salary, was talking about his name: N2, not NZ.

Thought maybe you just did not get it but i guess it must be an age thing. Having any trouble flying with those bifocals?

Mitch Cronin · Post by **Mitch Cronin** » Thu Mar 04, 2004 10:50 pm

Message deleted due to redundancy.... (Now lookin' at FAQ's for "How to delete")

Driving Rain · Post by **Driving Rain** » Thu Mar 04, 2004 10:58 pm

My medical is coming on Monday next and I hope he checks my vision.
I really thought it was NZ like the short form for the Netherlands. or New Zealand. shit where are my glasses

ahramin · Post by **ahramin** » Thu Mar 04, 2004 11:11 pm

Just remember:

E
F P
T O Z
F Z B D E
O F L C T G
A P E O R F D Z
N P R T V Z B D F H K O

I had a very british doc who would make me read "The streets of london are better lit and better paved than ..."

The second time i closed my eyes and recited it to him. The third time he did not check my eyes.

Driving Rain · Post by **Driving Rain** » Thu Mar 04, 2004 11:40 pm

I spent last year off cataracts in both eyes. Hell I was legally blind in my right eye and didn't know it. I was waiting in the car for the wife while she browsed a shoe sale and something was in my left eye. I closed it with my index finger and gez I couldn't read the dashboard instruments with the right eye. I found out later that it's quite common for people not to realize the extent of their vision loss.
I went to my Transport Doctor first chance I got and found out the bad news.
The good news is my left eye is staying steady at 20/25 and after a lens implant my right eye is now 20/15 again. They give you all sorts of drops for the eyes after you get the operation, only trouble was the drops (steriods) they gave me resulted in an alergic reaction that gave me sever glaucoma. I had the kind that takes your vision in hours. Once the blood is interupted to the optic nerve for just 1 second you are blind for ever. The scary thing is you don't even realize the trouble your in. Just by luck I had planned a visit with my optometrist before I was off to my annual ground school for 1 week of training. They rushed me to Winnipeg and was taken off the drops and after 5 months I returned to work. With most pilots the return can be as fast as 2 weeks later but that's if there are no complications. Transport requires a complete field vision test which I passed cold with no study

Cheers Pete

bigsky · Post by **bigsky** » Fri Mar 05, 2004 9:05 am

I think Air North in YXY had a Husky for a short period of time.
I think it crashed north of Mayo, with nothing other than hurt pride.
I believe the pilot was Ed Philips.

N2 · Post by N2 » Sat Mar 06, 2004 12:18 pm

Like the Monty Python song says "ya started out with nothing and your going back to nothing, so what have you lost?.....Nothing!"

CLguy · Post by **CLguy** » Sat Mar 06, 2004 6:20 pm

Rainy Lake Airways in Fort Frances, Ontario operated a Husky powered by the P&W 985 back in the sixties or seventies. They sold it to an operator in BC who apparently wrote it off. I remember some of the old guys who flew it used to talk about flying it and how under powered it was. The one thing they liked was the big doors for loading it.

Driving Rain, are you sure that operation really helped. I have witnessed you bumping into a few walls and doors since then, especially late at night, please explain!!!

Driving Rain · Post by **Driving Rain** » Sun Mar 07, 2004 12:04 am

That's another condition entirely CL Guy. I really wish you'd keep that quiet Transport doesn't need to know about that. Besides when I ran into that house with my truck t was deemed to be mechanical failure.

Highlights after fifty years of flying

fifty years of flying

fifty years of flying.