2012 marks the 40th Anniversary of the Canadian Warplane Heritage Museum and to mark this occasion, on WIX, we will be doing regular posts of the entire history of aircraft, people and events. We are also hoping you will add your own photos and memories and help to fill in some of the missing or forgotten history. We are going to start right at the beginning.
Back in the early seventies, Dennis Bradley and Alan Ness, both experienced private pilots, considered jointly owning and flying a high performance aircraft like a Spitfire. They followed up a lead for one in Australia but the aircraft turned out to be a Fairey Firefly, an aircraft neither of them really knew anything about. Dennis attended the 1971 EAA Airshow in Oshkosh to learn more about this type of aircraft. It was there that Bill Ross (then a Spitfire owner) informed Dennis that there was already a Firefly in North America based at Wadley, Georgia. The Firefly was owned by Jack Sliker who had intended to turn it into a transcontinental racer by locking the folding wings and converting them into a wet configuration for greater range. However, lack of interest in that type of racing did not allow him to proceed.
Dennis and Alan contacted Sliker about buying the Firefly. The two of them also approached John Weir and Peter Matthews to join them as partners in the venture. Dennis and Alan then flew to Georgia along with their mechanic, Ed Bell. They found the Firefly sitting forlornly in a corn field. However, they determined it to be restorable and purchased it for $10,000. Several weeks later, George Roberts, a friend of Sliker, fired up the Griffon engine and headed towards Toronto in the Firefly. He got as far as Fredericksburg, Virginia, where a hydraulic failure forced him to land with the tailwheel retracted. George decided that Fredericksburg was as far as he wanted to go.
On October 3, 1971, Dennis and Alan rented a Twin Commanche from Carl Millard and flew to Virginia with one of Millardair's pilots, U.J. Vijneux. They were met there by Jack Sliker who flew up in his Cessna 310. The Firefly was rendered ferryable and Sliker headed north in it, being followed in formation with Dennis and Alan in the 310 and Vijneux in the Twin Commanche. The Firefly was equipped with only the barest of instruments and didn't have a compass or radio. When the formation ran into poor weather and became separated near the north shore of Lake Ontario, things became a little tense. Dennis and Alan landed at Toronto Island Airport for customs only to discover the Firefly had just arrived ahead of them without the luxury of being able to communicate with the tower.
Having cleared customs at Toronto Island Airport, all three aircraft prepared to take off to Toronto International Airport where the restoration was to take place. The Coffman starter on the Griffon engine promptly became unserviceable but they managed to get it running using ropes, tires and a truck borrowed from the airport manager. With remarkable consistency, the Firefly once again became separated from the group and patient controllers at Toronto Centre provided the Twin Commanche and 310 with radar vectors to the Nordo aircraft which by this time was flying in the Toronto International Control Zone. They eventually formed up and were cleared to land. At least one frustrated airline pilot who was forced to hold his take off throughout the affair was heard to comment "We'll accept our clearance anytime the airshow is finished."
The Firefly was based at the Skyport hangar and restoration work commenced almost immediately. The four partners spent a great deal of their time working on the aircraft along with Ed Bell. Dennis and Alan averaged at least two nights a week plus Saturday and Sunday throughout most of that winter. Finally, on June 4, 1972 the Fairey Firefly was test flown at Toronto International by Ormond Haydon-Baillie, a Canadian Forces pilot who had recently restored a Hawker Sea Fury.
On June 5, 1972 Ormond Haydon-Baillie ferried Firefly CF-BDH from Toronto International Airport to Buttonville Airport where a fresh Royal Canadian Navy paint job was applied at Deryck Hickox's Aircraft Finishing. The paint specifications, plans and colour chips were provided by aviation historian John Griffon.
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I for one hope to be invited back to fly in it again in 2012.
