Second World War history repeats itself this summer as the cadets of Penhold Air Cadet Summer Training Centre engage in a flying opportunity with the Vintage Wings of Canada.
From the 1,200 cadets reached at the centre, 50 were privileged with a flight on one of six historical aircrafts. Among the 50 selected was Cadet Bryan Erbach, 15, from Royal Canadian Air Cadets No. 43 Squadron of North Battleford.
Erbach flew in the Boeing Stearman, a beautifully restored aircraft that once served a crucial role in the British Commonwealth Air Training Plan. When asked about his experience, Erbach said, "Flying the Vintage Wings plane was one of the best experiences in my life so far. The plane responded to every movement and I got to experience what it was like to fly a plane and how it felt."
Vintage Wings is a public charitable organization that aims to commemorate the qualities of the young men and women who served Canada during the Second World War and the Cold War. Their virtues of community service, discipline and hard work are the same merits that Erbach has mirrored while completing the three-week Basic drill and ceremonial course at Penhold.
"It's the energy and enthusiasm towards an experience they've never done that always gets me," said Christie "Krusti" Whelan, Vintage Wings volunteer pilot. "I love watching cadets open up and I get excited with them. These youth in the cadets are so enthralled, so driven, and we just get to reinforce those values with this program."
While only a handful of cadets were able to fly, all cadets at PACSTC have been living the legacy of BCATP. Before the base became a cadet summer training centre, it used to serve as the Royal Canadian Air Force Number 36 Service Flying Training School, a school which within three years trained 1,555 pilots on twin engine Oxford aircraft.
