Glidepath Issue# 95 Fall 2007 Tel: 604.532.0035 Fax:604.532.0056 museum@direct.ca Langley, BC V2Y 2N3 Hangar #3 5333-216th st www.canadian flight.org The quarterly newsletter of The Canadian Museum of Flight Page One
A Tale of Two Canucks
Canada’s (Fort Erie) Fleet Aircraft Limited is best known for its WW2 Finch trainer. Its 1940’s era model 80 Canuck is not well known even at home. Now our museum has two emerging from oblivion to provide, we hope, one flying example.
Fleet started 1929. Its 1930’s Kinner engined Finch biplane elementary trainer played an important role with the similar but much more abundant DHC Tiger Moth in the WW2 Commonwealth Air Training Plan. Fleet’s final contribution to the war was manufacture of Fairchild’s Cornell as a Tiger/Finch replacement.
In 1940 Ottawa Flying Club engineer, Bob Neury, designed and built an aircraft much like a Taylorcraft. In 1945 he sold the design to Fleet which marketed a revised version as the Fleet 80 Canuck.
The Canuck is a high wing, side-by-side monoplane with an 85 HP Continental engine. Unlike Fleet’s earlier wooden products it is all metal with fabric covering, brakes and a castoring tailwheel. A list price of $3,869.25 seemed reasonable but it had to compete with numerous war-surplus Tigers, Finchs, Cornells on offer at a few hundred dollars. In the end greater financial backing and design advantages of Cessnas, Pipers et al. meant that only 210 Canucks were built.
CF-EAQ at its resting site prior to recovery by CMF volunteers (Photo: Ron Tucker)
By 2002 only 77 were still in existence in Canada, many of them grounded. The then Museum Manager felt a Canuck should be added to the collection. In that year, CF-HOU, built in 1955, was trucked back in pieces from Pincher Creek, Alberta by a museum team to start rebuild to flying standard.
Its condition was so bad that it is said we’paid too much. Since a total rebuild in 1981 there had presumably been inadequate maintenance and another complete rebuild was needed.
For some items the necessary approval from Transport Canada would have been impossible to get without complete replacements. In particular major splicing or a complete replacement of the main spar was needed. After all those years replacement parts were not available. Add these problems to the usual scarcity of museum volunteer time, and despite great financial support of $20,000 from Hank Koehler, by 2005 work ground to a halt.
Then in April 2007 Darryl Nixon, a timber-scaler working though dense forest on a steep mountain slope near Stave Lake, north of Mission, stumbled upon the remains of an aeroplane. It was identified as Canuck CF-EAQ which, piloted by Roy Brett, aged 72, had on November 14 1970 disappeared somewhere between Powell River on the coast and Chilliwack, sixty miles inland up the Fraser Valley from Vancouver.
After Great War army service Roy Brett joined his father on the Chilliwack farm. Always interested in aviation and fascinated by the exploits of such men as Ginger Coote, in the 1930’s he learnt to fly on an uncle’s Gipsy Moth. Then causing consider able short term domestic disharmony – in the mid 1930’s he forged his wife’s name on an insurance policy to raise money to buy Alexandra Eaglerock biplane (Wright J5 engine) CF-ACR. He built a hangar on the farm and other enthusiasts joined him. The aviation bug spread to his three daughters who he taught to fly – and do aerobatics. In three days of the disastrous 1936 floods he spent 12 hours airborne dropping sacks to men sandbagging the dykes.
Early in WW2, too old for active service, he gave unofficial flying lessons to a number of young lads to speed their entry into the RCAF as aircrew. Then his flying was severely limited by gas and other restrictions.
In front of CF-EAQ, just part of the team that helped recovered her. (Photo: Ron Tucker)
Having moved from farming to logging, one hot humid May day in the 1940’s he flew two brothers (the Eaglerock front seat was designed for two – at a pinch) to inspect timber in the mountains above Hope. Flying too low up a valley he hit a downdraught and crashed into the trees, finishing tail down 20′ above ground. With only minor injuries they all walked down the mountain and after three hours emerged at Hope. The Eaglerock had a final spell of fame when the wreck was ‘found’ in 1962 and hailed as a great mystery until Roy set the record right.
Around the end of the war the family moved to Powell River. In May 1946 Roy went East to Fort Erie to buy a brand new Fleet 80 Canuck, CF-DPG, at a special price of $3,185.00.(the $700.00 discount shows how Fleet were striving to compete against those cheap war surplus aircraft). Half way back, cruising at a speed of under 100 mph., a violent prairie storm forced a successful emergency landing. However when trying to secure his new baby a gust tipped it onto the nose, bending the propeller. After a frustrating week a new prop arrived from Fleet and was fitted and the rest of the journey to a tiny landing strip at Lang Bay, outside Powell River, was uneventful despite the considerable problems of flying a light aircraft through the mountains. Soon he went back to Fort Erie for another Canuck, CF-EAQ, and flew it out (again through storms). With them he formed Powell River Airways and a flying school.
In 1956 the Bretts moved down to Sechelt and he cleared an 800′ airstrip alongside the water. One day EAQ’s engine iced up and Roy managed a landing on a narrow gravel road beside an astonished café proprietor. Soon afterwards he sold the company which eventually developed into Air West. In 1961, after building the new Sechelt Airport, he moved back to Chilliwack in retirement. Despite age and illness he still flew occasionally until both Canuck’s were sold. Then the new owner of EAQ, still at Chilliwack, asked Roy to sell it for him. With no success, on November 15 1970 he flew it back to its owner at Powell River but was persuaded to take it back to Chilliwack to continue to try to sell it there. He left at 2 pm in poor weather but never arrived. An increasingly distressed wife and daughter and other family waited for news. At next first light a major air search started – without any real idea where to look along the hundred mile route. In the heavy rain and high wind he could easily anywhere have strayed off course. Only one person, a friend at Sechelt, reported seeing him early in the trip, battling though the elements. No sign of him was ever found.
37 years later we can surmise that in driving rain and poor visibility, with clouds low on the mountains, he had drifted left of planned track towards high ground which, by the time he saw it, if he ever did, was too close to clear. He hit the tops of dense 100′ trees themselves only about 200′ from the top of the mountain. The port wing was torn off and the aircraft swung through 180° with lift from the starboard wing pulling that up so that EAQ then slid down between the trees to hit the ground sideways. The altimeter stills reads 1600′ ASL, the height at which he hit. Chilliwack, his destination is only 35′ ASL.
The seat belt was undone and half a skull was found fifty yards away. He had been able to get out and move away to avoid possible fire but was presumably too injured to do more. If he survived he would have known the chances of being found were almost nil. Identified only by various personal possessions, after 37 years no post-mortem could tell any more.
Roy’s family offered the wreck age of EAQ to the Museum which was delighted to accept it. Then came the problem of rescuing it from its overgrown mountain resting place.
More of the recovery team showing the steep incline of the crash site (Photo: Ron Tucker)
On June 5th a party of Museum staff, including a granddaughter of EAQ’s last owner, set out with the big flat bed trailer. Far West Helicopters had offered to lift out the wreckage and Mission Search and Rescue, under member Roy Hafely was there to help. After leaving the truck as standard. near as it could get, came a stiff walk and hard half hour climb up a 70° slope to the crash site. First 12 large trees had to be removed – prior permission had been obtained. The wreckage was lashed up ready for the lift. Then the rain started and the wind had risen. The helicopter, having made the easy mistake of looking up the wrong (of many) forested inlets, was late and short of fuel. The operation had to be postponed. Next week the helicopter successfully made the lift out of the dense forest and deposited the remains of EAQ on the waiting trailer for transport the 30 miles to the Museum.
A number of Roy’s family met museum personnel for a cheerful celebration of the Canuck’s deliverance. Despite 37 years of weathering it was a relief that the starboard main spar is in good condition. The engine appears in rough condition, fuselage and empennage nearly intact although badly distorted. After Roy had sold EAQ its original smart blue and silver colour scheme had been replaced with a vivid purple. During 37 years much of the fabric had inevitably rotted or been torn away but that vivid tailplane fabric, with Canada’s red maple leaf on it, survived.
From our two Canucks we are still short of a serviceable port wing main spar but it is hoped we have enough to be able to complete one Canuck to flying
By Jack Meadows
Contents
- PAGE 1, 3-4: A Tale of Two Canucks
- PAGE 2: CMF Directors & Staff / Museum Message
- PAGE 5-6: Fleet Finch Flys Again
- PAGE 6-8: Mystery Mitchell/Choo Choo’s Contest
- PAGE 9: Mystery Plane
- PAGE 10: Upcoming Events and News at the CMF
Board of Directors and Staff
- Gord Wintrup President
- George Miller Vice President
- Rich Ulvild Treasurer
- Matt Offer Secretary
- Capt. Bill Thompson Lifetime Director
- Terry Brunner General Manager
- Rob Currington Volunteer Coordinator
- Carol Bellavance Director
- Brian Lott Director
- Ralph Peake Director
THE CANADIAN MUSEUM OF FLIGHT
From the Museum
C-GBJS “Bob, just tighten that screw and we’re done!” (photo: CMF)
The past couple of months we have been fairly active. We have alarmed both buildings. The Fleet Canuck is well underway with the wings being built by Jack Lingham and staff. The Vampire restoration is just about complete thanks to Don and helpers. The CF 100 is nearing completion with Ralph and company. None of this would be possible were it not for the dedication and hard work of the volunteers, such as Doug and Bob, who are at the Museum 24/7.
In the last couple of weeks we have signed an agreement with the University College of the Fraser Valley, Structures Department, to restore Lockheed Lodestar CF-TCY. The move from Delta Heritage Airpark to Abbotsford will be filmed and shown on the Discovery Channel. There engine display. will also be an article in the Province in the coming weeks.
Lodestar CF-TCY at Delta Heritage Air Park (Photo: Ruud Leeuw)
We are also in the process of acquiring a large radial engine collection which will be put into an
We are now also a distributor for Shell oil products. Why? The main reason is that the Museum has to be self funding and this brings in much needed extra income.
Thank you to all the volunteers who make the museum a great place to work.
-The Museum
The Vampire’s new and improved Flintstones Landing gear. (photo: CMF)
The Fleet Finch Flies Again
This headline will be good news indeed for the many friends of the Canadian Museum of Flight’s flying aircraft. As you may recall, the Finch was involved in a ground incident in August of 2005 and has been undergoing a rebuild during the last two years. This grounding time for the Finch was longer than the Museum had anticipated but she is now fit as a fiddle and ready to entertain her many fans once again.
The Finch repairs involved wing spars, fabric, engine and propeller, the brake system, the fuel tank, tail empennage and tail wheel, as well as a number of other items that were noted during the course of the overhaul. It is safe to say that the Finch is now a better aircraft than it was during the last few years leading up to its grounding in 2005.
A huge debt of gratitude is owed to the many Museum volunteers and local business entrepreneurs involved with the reconstruction. These people have spent many hundreds of hours in this labour of love. To start mentioning names would mean that I would only forget some, so I won’t. Suffice to say that it took hours and hours to properly complete the various tasks that lead to get ting this wonderful flying artifact back in the air.
I had the pleasure of being the test pilot during its flight test. On July 24th, she was ready for the taxi test. It didn’t take too many pulls on the prop blade to start things happening and how nice it was to once again hear that big five cylinder Kinner radial burst into life. There’s nothing quite like the sight and sound of a radial engine firing up whether it be a Finch, a Harvard or the big eighteen cylinder 3350s that used to propel my Argus torpedo bomber through the skies back in the RCAF days — however, I digress.
I spent the next twenty-five minutes taxiing about the airport to be sure that the new brakes were all that we were hoping for — they were! The next big test was to take her out onto the runway for some high speed taxi tests. She worked very well and certainly convinced me that the next step was to go flying.
Two days later, on July 26th, under clear blue skies and with winds down the runway, I sat in the Finch at the end of Langley’s runway 19 and started to add power for this first flight in two years. To say that I was not apprehensive would be to not tell the truth. There were a number of “what ifs” running through my head as the Finch slowly accelerated along the asphalt.
Of course, in no time at all, she was airborne and flying beautifully! What a joy to once again feel, hear and smell this great aircraft as it continued to climb to 1500 feet. I spent the next half an hour overhead Langley airport completing various power changes and flight manoeuvres to ensure that it was performing up to standards. With the airborne exercises complete, it was now time to see what the aircraft handling was going to be like back on terra firma.
My preferred method for landing the Finch involves so-called “wheel landings” when using the asphalt runways and “three- point landings” on the grass. I completed several uneventful touch and goes. Next up was the challenge of the full stop landing to see how the brakes would react during the landing rollout.
The transition from having ones feet on the rudders and then raising ones heels, rotating inwards and placing them onto the brake pedals during landing can be very challenging indeed. Landing variables, such as crosswinds and runway conditions, add to this Finch braking challenge.
On this day, the aircraft performed well up to standards and it was so rewarding to be a part of this success. It is with great pleasure that I announce that “the Fleet Finch flies again” and is available to once more grace the local skies and to provide her many fans with the sights and sounds of “living aviation – CMF style”.
Bill Findlay, Coordinator, Aircraft Operations CMF
Choo Choo’s Contest
A new addition to the Glidepath Newsletter is a random draw for one CMF member and a guest to have a free lunch at Choo Choo’s Restaurant in downtown Langley. This issue’s winner is: Member #3271 Mr. Ryan Cameron. Congratulations and enjoy your meal! Please call in advance to claim your prize. ■
Special Thanks
The Canadian Museum of Flight would like to thank Miracle Printing Ltd. in Downtown Langley for printing the Glidepath Newsletter.
Mystery Mitchell
Mitchell HD314, coded “K”, departed from Abbotsford on 14 Jul 44, on what was supposed to be a routine day cross-country navigation and bombing exercise. When it did not return, an extensive air search of the briefed flight track turned up no trace. The aircraft was discovered in 1960, lying in a thick forest near Johnson Lagoon on Brooks Peninsula, right on the expected flight path. No trace of the missing crew was ever found, nor was there a satisfactory explanation for the crash.
An example of the B-25 Mitchell (Photo: airforce.forces.gc.ca)
During the Second World War, No. 5 Operational Training Unit was set up to train Liberator crews for operations in the Far East. The OTU operated out of Boundary Bay and Abbotsford, using a mix of B-25 Mitchells and B-24 Liberators. The basic crews trained on the twin- engined Mitchells, and then moved onto the four-engined Liberators, where they were joined by additional crew members, including a Flight Engineer and a full complement of Air Gunners.
The Mitchell phase of the OTU course involved only a Pilot, Navigator, Air Bomber and Wireless Air Gunner, who would learn the basic crew skills on the Mitchell, that did not need to involve the Air Gunners. One of the exercises consisted of flying from Boundary Bay or Abbotsford out to a map point in the Pacific Ocean, then turning back towards Vancouver Island, flying over the Port Hardy Airport, down to a bombing range in the Gulf Islands, dropping practice bombs onto a target, then returning to their home base.
The crew for this exercise consisted of Flying Officer Lionel Richard Hannah(Pilot), Pilot Officer John William Christopher Reeve(Navigator), Pilot Officer Douglas Johnson(Air Bomber) and Sergeant Edward George Waters(Wireless Air Gunner). All of this crew were Royal Air Force members, with next-of-kin in the UK. For this trip, the Bomb Aimer would sit in the Co-pilot’s seat of the B-25, except when he was doing his bombing run on the target.
The aircraft departed Abbotsford at 1046 hrs local time, on what should have been a 5-hour exercise. The crew reported in periodically and the last report was at 1312 hrs, with an estimated ETA overhead Port Hardy at 1335. Their last position report was at 1158 hrs, at a position about 75 miles West of Cape Flattery Neah Bay).
Crash site of B-25 Mitchell HD314 (Photo: CMF Archives Circa 1980’s)
When the aircraft did not return to base, a search was ordered. An extensive search was carried out for 10 days, involving nearly 450 flying hours and including night searches to look for flares, signal fires, etc. No trace was found of the aircraft, although there were the usual false leads, several of which were followed up by RCAF and Provincial Police, as well as RCAF and RCN vessels. A searching Ventura spotted what looked like a pair of dinghy floats out in the Pacific. There were several reports of low-flying aircraft, in the vicinity of Bull Harbour, Alert Bay/Nimpkish River and Port McNeil. There were reports of smoke and shots fired from the vicinity of Port McNeil and smoke signals seen in Quatsino Sound.
A spotting of something unusual on Brooks Peninsula was followed up by an aerial search by an RCAF Norseman, but nothing was found. The search was scaled back on 18 Jul 44 and discontinued on 25 Jul 44. Four months later, two pieces of a Mitchell nosewheel door and part of a Mitchell aileron washed up on a beach near the Quilayute Naval Air Station on the Olympic Peninsula, identified by the distinctive paint colour as being from an RCAF aircraft, but could not be linked to the missing aircraft.
However, no other RCAF Mitchell was missing the area at that time. Did these parts wash down from the crash site and drift 200 miles South?
What was the object spotted on Brooks Peninsula a few days after the aircraft was lost? Was it wreckage, a parachute hung up in the trees or perhaps even a signal from a survivor?? Whatever it was, it could not be relocated. The investigation concluded that the aircraft may have flown into mountains West of Port Hardy or missed the turn at Port Hardy and flown into mountains on the Mainland.
Nothing more was seen of the aircraft until 20 Sep 60, when a prospector stumbled across wreckage in dense rainforest on a mountainside on Brooks Peninsula, one mile West of the North end of Johnson Lagoon.
He reported that the letters “HD” were visible on the wreckage. An aerial search was carried out on 27 Sep 60, but nothing could be seen from the air, and a ground search was requested. However, no action was taken on the ground search until a follow-up reminder was sent on 12 Apr 61. A ground search party was flown in by Canso on 25 Apr 61 and spent several days locating and investigating the crash site. A more extensive search was carried out in September, to attempt to locate more of the wreckage and any human remains. A ground party went in by Otter, as well as an H-21 helicopter, flown by the late Flight Lieutenant Ted Harris, who was a Canadian Museum of Flight Director and aircraft restorer for many years. This party included Department of Transport accident investigators Leland and McCubbin.
What they found was puzzling. The wreckage was broken into several major pieces….the nose and cockpit, centre section, rear fuselage, outer wing panels and engines were spread out along the line of flight in the thick bush, with visibility of only 10-15 feet. The wreckage was spread for about 3/4 mile along the valley of a small creek, at about the 800 foot level, among. surrounding peaks up to 3000 feet. The unusual thing was that there were no broken trees, and the wreckage appeared to have simply dropped vertically from the sky! There was no sign of a fire. The wing spars were broken and the DoT accident investigators felt this had happened prior to ground impact at the crash site.
Of course, no human remains were found. The 3 seat belts in the nose section were found in the unbuckled position, indicating to the investigators that the crew may have bailed out. One stowed parachute and two mae west lifejackets were found in the wreckage. I spoke with a friend who trained at 5 OTU and he told me that the crews did not normally wear their parachutes or mae wests in flight, although they were encouraged to do so to simulate operational conditions. They wore parachute harnesses and used clip-on parachutes that would have been stowed in a rack near their seats.
The wreckage was left on site, where it remains to this day, and was visited several times in the mid- to late-1980s by Museum member Mike Scott, who lived at nearby Port Alice. Mike and his friends spent several days at the crash site on 3 or 4 trips, looking for more aircraft remains, photographing and salvaging some items.
Another alternative theory to a bailout is that the aircraft was flying too low, clipped a peak or tall tree, broke up and catapulted to its final resting place. Whatever the circumstances, they will remain a mystery forever.
The site is very close to where a CF-18 crashed in 1988, while on a search for a suspected drug- running vessel. The CF-18 crash was attributed to faulty navigational equipment, which indicated to the pilot that he was several miles out to sea, when he was actually flying in cloud over the mountainous terrain of Brooks Peninsula.
By Jerry Vernon
The Glidepath Newsletter is published quarterly by the Canadian Museum of Flight. Contributions in the form of articles, news items, letters and photos are always welcome, as are comments and constructive criticism. No payment can be made for any manuscripts that are submitted for publication in the Glidepath Newsletter. The Editor reserves the right to make changes in the manuscript without altering the meaning in any way. If you have any questions or comments, please feel free to contact Terry Brunner at the Museum by calling 604-532-0035. The Museum is open daily from 10:00am to 4:00pm.
The Canadian Museum of Flight is always looking for new volunteers. No experience necessary as all positions have training available. We invite everyone, from young students to retirees to join the team. We are always in need of gift shop volunteers, aircraft restorers, carpenters, facility maintenance helpers, history and aviation enthusiasts. If interested in volunteering, please contact the museum Volunteer Coordinator, Rob Currington at 604-532-0035
Mystery Airplane
Last issue’s winner is: John Ried
Last Issue’s mystery plane was the Curtis HS-2L Flying Boat or H-boat as they were commonly known. The HS2-L was designed as a United States Navy patrol airplane and its first flight was made in 1917.
The United States Navy operated several HS-2L’s on anti-submarine patrols out of bases in Nova Scotia and at the end of World War One, The United States government donated twelve HS-2L’s to the Canadian government. These airplanes including other HS-2L’s imported into Canada soon became the backbone of the new bush- flying industry. They were the predominant bush plane in Canada up until the mid-to-late 1920’s.
In Canada, HS-2L aircraft were first used for aerial timber surveying and in 1924 an HS-2L was used to establish the first scheduled air service and the first regular air mail service in Canada.
HS-2L G-CYAH with crew (Photo: civilization.ca)
Several HS-2L’s were operated locally out of Jericho Beach in Vancouver. The HS-2L’s were flown by RCAF pilots, but performed non-military operations. They too took part in forestry flights, forest fire observation, as well as re-supply trips along the BC coast. Most significantly, the use of the H-Boats helped prove the usefulness of airplanes in an era when airplanes were still being viewed negatively by the public as nothing more than a tool of war and that airplanes had no practical benefit to the civilian world. An example of this very rare airplane can be viewed at the Canada Aviation Museum in Ottawa, Ontario.
Curtis HS-2L G-CAAC at Canada Aviation Museum, Ottawa. (Photo:exn.ca)
This issue’s mystery plane:
This issue’s mystery plane was built under contract in Canada, but with several distinguishing modifications from the original. These birds lived on the sea for much of their lives, but today find a new home on solid ground. Many survivors are owned and operated locally in the Fraser Valley. During the summer months they are a common sight all over British Columbia.
(Photo by Ruud Leeuw
The “Mystery Airplane” contest is part of the new Glidepath newsletter format. Each issue will have a picture of an airplane and a brief description. It is your job to use your detective skills and correctly identify the airplane. The first correct respondent will receive a small gift from the CMF. Guesses are limited to one per person and they can be communicated to the CMF by fax, e-mail, or conventional mail.
Page Ten Halloween Dance Saturday, October 27th UPCOMING EVENTS Doors and Bar Open: 7:30pm Dance Begins at 8:00pm-12:00 MIDNIGHT Includes mystery entree at 11:00pm!!! Live Music by: The Delta Concert Band Event price: $20.00 To reserve tickets please contact the museum at 604-532-0035 or e-mail at museum@direct.ca RSVP by 4:00pm Wednesday, October 24th We require 48 hrs notice for cancellations or you will be charged full price for the dinner Don’t miss out on this fun evening!! September 29th: Gogi’s Memorial Service 2:00pm at CMF Hangar October 12-13: World of Wheels Car Show Tradex (Abbotsford) Volunteer Shifts Available October 27th: Halloween Dinner/Dance (Langley) 7:30pm-book tickets early!!! For more information contact the CMF office at 604-532-0035 Future Events
Sad News
It is our deepest regret to inform the museum membership of the passing of Gogi Goguillot on July 9th 2007.
Gogi was deeply involved with local grass-roots aviation and served on the board of directors of the CMF as well as serving as the CMF general Manager.
There will be a memorial service held in the CMF hangar September 29th at 2:00pm. This event is open to anyone who knew Gogi or who simply knew of him.
We at the CMF are working on trying to organize aviation related tours around the Fraser Valley, Vancouver Island, and possibly even Washinton State. We have a few ideas that are currently being worked on and will be announcing in the near future.
JOIN NOW… Gera SKYWAYS WEST JET Official Airline of CAPA If anyone has any suggestions for destinations of aviation related tours in and around the Greater Vancouver Area, or simply for more information please contact the tours organizer, David McIntosh at 604- 495-1882. RECEIVE A FREE ISSUE WITH YOUR NEW MEMBERSHIP (PLEASE MENTION THIS AD) SAMPLE ISSUE $4 PLUS $3 POSTAGE WORLD WAR 1 Geroplanes INC. 15 CRESCENT ROAD POUGHKEEPSI NY 12601 1845) 473-3679 www.ww1aero.org www.skywaysjournal.org CAPAS ASSOCIATION CANADIENNE DE CONACCA CONSERVATION ALMONAUTIQUE. CANADIAN AERONAUTICAL PRESERVATION ASSOCIATION The Museum welcomes donations of used AVIATION BOOKS for the Library and to sell in the Gift Shop HELP SUPPORT THE MUSEUM & receive a tax deductible receipt for yourself!