Warbird Information Exchange

Efforts to recover a floatplane that sank in Azure Lake last summer have led to the discovery of another plane that sank in the lake, this one in 1947.

“We got the tip from Kelly and Ellen Ferguson,” said Gary McAninch of GP Recover Services. “They said there was another plane that went down by Indian Point near the Clearwater River end of the lake.”

Deteriorating weather meant Gary and his wife, Penny McAninch, pulled their camp and barge out of Azure Lake early last fall and returned to their home near 70 Mile House. They had located the homebuilt Private Explorer floatplane that had sunk in the lake last summer in 500 feet of water with one of their remote operating vehicles but had been unable to raise it.

Intrigued by the reports of a second plane in the lake from the Fergusons, who are both longtime Upper Clearwater residents, Gary returned in October to do a quick search.

The plane in question had landed in winter to pick up an ill trapper, John Hogue. They had tried to take off but the ice was too thin and it damaged the floats as they broke through. They tried to keep it afloat by tying small logs to the plane but their efforts proved inadequate and the plane sank.

As they flew in last October, Gary McAninch asked his floatplane pilot where he would land if he were going to pick someone up at Indian Point.

The pilot pointed out a probable location and, when they returned to search it with sonar, they found what appeared to be the echo of a sunken plane in about 200 feet of water on the first pass.

The salvagers then sent down a remote operating vehicle to take a look at what they had found.

They were extremely excited when the plane’s wing first loomed into view, he said.

Small logs still tied to the plane indicated it was the one they were looking for. A close up of the engine identified it as a Tiger Moth, a biplane that was used as a trainer in World War II (Gary knew it because he had built a model of one when a youngster).

Careful work with the ROV revealed the airplane’s call sign along the side of the fuselage.

Having the call sign allowed them to later trace the aircraft’s history. It was built by De Havilland Canada in 1942 and sent to the U.S. to be used as a trainer. It then went to the RAF, although they are not sure if it was sent to Great Britain or remained in Canada.

After the war it was sold to Kamloops Flying Club. War surplus Tiger Moths could be bought at that time for about $500, they said.

Its pilot when it went down was Harry Bray, who went on to become one of the first pilots with Canadian Pacific Airways.

Most Tiger Moths had an open cockpit, with the pilot sitting in the rear seat. The one in Azure Lake, however, was fitted with a canopy for colder weather. The canopy is still closed on the bottom of the lake, meaning maps and other personal items could still be preserved from 62 years ago. Gary said he looks forward to recovering whatever’s left and, if possible, returning the items to the pilot’s family.

The couple plans to return to Azure Lake next year to salvage the plane that sank last summer plus the one that went down in 1947. At present they are putting together the necessary permits and paperwork from B.C. Parks and other agencies.

A friend has expressed interest in filming a documentary of their efforts plus at least one museum would like to add the Tiger Moth to its airplane collection.

I thought wrecks in Canada are not allowed to be recovered?

It depends on the province/territory, and the federal government regulations. You can always apply to recover an aircraft though. Sometimes you get permission, and sometimes you don't.

Cheers,
Richard

Hi Tim

Does not matter if civil or military.

Process works something like this (by memory excuse if I make an error)

1) First you must apply to the Province (like a State) involved, each has slightly different regs.
Some, such as the Yukon are very tough, others not bad.
2) You must apply to Heritage Canada for permission
3) If it is going to leave Canada it can get more challenging if it is a type that is considered historically important and can be blocked from leaving the country by Heritage Canada and Canada customs.

All that said generally as long as you do your homework and follow the laws it is not that difficult. The ones that typically get into trouble are the ones that jump in without checking into things and then get a mess.

My 2 bits

Oh yes...all Canadian Tiger Moths had Canopies as well as some other differences from the British version, the old its the same but not quite.

Tom

One more step, all underwater wrecks in Canada must be salvaged through the Receiver of Wrecks (Coast Guard) - not complex, just really a formality that establishes ownership before, during and after recovery.

D

The Receiver of Wrecks is no longer the Canadian Coast Guard, it's now under Transport Canada, Navigable Waters Protection Program.

Also in some cases aircraft wrecks are on native owned land and you will have to deal with them to remove anything from their property.

According to the Government website:

"Who is the Receiver of wrecks? The Receiver of Wreck is an officer of the Canadian Coast Guard appointed by Order-in-Council under Part 7 - Canada Shipping Act, 2001, to act as a custodian of "wreck" in the absence of the rightful owner."

I have done several underwater recoveries, always working with a Coast Guard Officer. However, Transport is the governing body and Coast Guard is under Fisheries and Oceans so there is some crossover between Ministries.

The website address:

http://www.tc.gc.ca/eng/quebec/nwp-receiver-1467.htm