tour-blog

New Activities for 2011!!

Wed, 02 Feb 2011 01:14:43 +0100

Yes the Manitoba Aviation Tour was a 2010 activity! But it has inspired follow on activities that will be happening in 2011, so keep coming to this site! Here are a few things that are either happening for sure or are in the planning stages:

a province-wide effort to develop a plan for funding for small, rural southern Manitoba airports
more COPA for Kids Flights in Neepawa, possibly also involving kids from Carberry
COPA for Kids Flights in Dauphin
another North Tour for those wanting to return as well as those going for the first time!

4 Visits to Flin Flon, 7 Visits to Churchill

Thu, 22 Jul 2010 03:38:24 +0100

The Pas, Flin Flon, Thompson, Gillam and Churchill - several visits were made in the North Tourism Region by a total of 8 pilots and 18 people! The trip was great as many of us expanded our planning and flying skills and we learned many new things about the North. Time spent with the Ice Pilots in Thompson, landing at The Pas with 7 water bombers on the tarmac, and fueling out of a drum in Churchill were some flying highlights. Churchill was the highlight as far as tourism was concerned - the Lazy Bear Lodge was great (but so was the Bakers Narrows Lodge). If you weren't able to go in early July there's plenty of time yet, get another pilot or a group of pilots and go! Those who've already travelled there will gladly share their experience with you! Watch for a full story of the trip!

Manitoba Day Celebrations in Neepawa.

Thu, 06 May 2010 04:15:43 +0100

We are happy to have teamed up with Neepawa to be part of Manitoba Day Celebrations in that community. Four consecutive days of activities are planned from Manitoba Day on May 12 to Saturday, May 15. Saturday is our big day. A partnership with Hazel M. Kellington School will allow us to provide a hands-on activity for the Flight Unit in the Grade 6 Science curriculum - COPA for Kids Flights. There are 62 of them and we expect most of them to show up on Saturday. Any COPA member who is current and has passenger seat insurance is welcome to provide rides. Pilot registration is at 9:00, the Kids parents are feeding us at 12:30 and the Snowbirds fly their only Manitoba airshow of 2010 at 3:00. Join us for a great day!

Pierce's Complete Tour!

Thu, 06 May 2010 03:48:43 +0100

A great trip to Lac du Bonnet on April 18 completed the minimum Tour completion requirements for Ken and Colette Pierce and they shared the trip with Julia, Ken's Mom, and the unofficial holder of the Manitoba record for belonging to the most Flying Clubs, Bruce McEwing. Two other aircraft joined them for the flight, read all about it in the June issue of COPA Flight. Here's their Tour flight tally to date:
Western Region - 5
Parkland Region - 3
Winnipeg Region - 2
Central Plains Region - 1
Eastern Region - 1
Interlake Region - 1
Pembina Valley Region - 1
North Region - 1
Congratulations to the Pierce's!

Some Tourers nearing completion!

Sat, 10 Apr 2010 04:00:17 +0100

Many of us have hardly started the 2010 flying season and others have almost completed the minimum Tour requirements! Ken and Colette Pierce are in the later category. They are avid flyers having participated in the Cross Canada Flight last year, joining the Flight in Calgary and completing it in North Sydney, Nova Scotia. They've joined the Century Flight Club and will be joining the Flight to Yukon in July, they are interested in the Tour Flight to the North, and they are farmers who have to get their haying done so that helps explain their early start on the Tour! In any case here's their list of visits so far:
Parkland - 2
Western - 3
Pembina Valley - 1
Winnipeg - 1
Central Plains - 1
Interlake - 1
North -1

So how are they doing? Here's the ciriteria for completion:
1. Visit the sites of all 5 COPA Flights - they just have Lac du Bonnet left,
2. Visit all 8 Manitoba Tourism regions - they just have the Eastern Region left, and
3. Visit a minimum of 14 airports, one for each of Manitoba's 14 decades - they have 10 visits to date.

A planned visit to Lac du Bonnet on April 18 will complete the first and second criteria and leave them with only 3 more visits to complete the Tour. There's nothing stopping them from continuing all summer, there will be a prize for the most visits at the Final Celebration in Brandon on October 16 & 17. On the other hand, participation at whatever level participants can muster is the most important thing!

Here's a picture of Ken in the Miss The Pas restaurant in, where else, The Pas recently. To me this signifies what the Tour is all about - not just flying to The Pas but also learning about The Pas and what it has to offer. Let Ken and Colette be an inspiration to all of us - get out there and Tour!

Tour is now Interprovincial!

Sat, 10 Apr 2010 01:58:07 +0100

We have registrations from our two western neighbours - Saskatchewan and Alberta! Many of the flying ccommunities in Western Manitoba have connections to flying communities to the west, lets all encourage them to join the Tour. Communities in North Western Ontario are also potential Tour participants - Kenora, Fort Frances, Nestor Falls, Dryden, Red Lake, ... they're closer to Manitoba than any other province; get the word out to them too!

Manitoba Aviation Tour is on!

Sun, 31 Jan 2010 18:09:14 +0100

On Thursday, January 28 150 registration packages were assembled at the CASARA building at St. Andrews Airport after a nice lunch at the restaurant at Harv's Air. By the end of the Rust Remover session at the ANAVET Hall on Portage Avenue in the evening we had 37 registration packages in pilots' hands! Our original goal was for 100 participants; we decided to print 150 passports, decals, and name tags since the cost of an extra 50 wasn't that much greater than the cost of 100. In Jerry Roehr's View From Manitoba column in the February 2010 issue of COPA Flight he states that there are 1300 COPA members in Manitoba and Nunavut. If even 1 in 10 COPA members register for the Tour we'll sell all 150 registration packages; that's now our goal! Register, encourage your flying friends to register, don't delay!

Here's one of the airplanes you'll see on the Tour, a 1981 Cessna 172P, registration C-FMHE owned and piloted by Bill and Monique Hilash. Both are very involved in aviation, Bill is Chief Navigator for CASARA Winnipeg zone and Monique works for Transport Canada in the General Aviation section. The painting was done from a photo of FMHE, it will be carrying Manitoba Aviation Tour decal #035. A Norseman, Cessnas, Cubs, a Pietenpol (who could that be?), RV's, at least one Cavalier, ... it'll be quite an eclectic group of aircraft touring Manitoba. Maybe there'll be a prize for the first ultralight, the first jet, the first powered parachute, ...!

1940 Norseman CF-LZO Joins Tour

Tue, 19 Jan 2010 17:08:01 +0100

We're thrilled to have LZO joining the Aviation Tour. Owner Dennis Mockford purchased LZO in 2008 having first seen a Norseman in Selkirk in 1964 when he was training as an RCAF Navigator in Winnipeg. Starting from Red Lake Ontario, LZO participated in the Cross Canada Flight last year and ended up flying from coast to coast in 100.5 hours at 100 mph before returning to Red Lake for the Norseman Festival. LZO will be on wheels again this year during a busy summer of attending events from Montreal to Oshkosh to Abbotsford including celebrating the 75th Anniversary of the Norseman in Red Lake. Among other Tour visits LZO will be in Neepawa for the Manitoba Day Celebrations and the official Tour 'Take Off'. While there Dennis will be joining other COPA members in providing COPA for Kids Flights. Flying 6 kids and a supervisor per flight this will be a great help and will provide those kids with an incredible opportunity - their first flight in a beautiful, historic aircraft! Dennis plans to have LZO back on floats in 2011 to tour fishing camps throughout northern Manitoba and Northwestern Ontario. Welcome to the Tour Dennis!

Manitoba Aviation Tour #001

Tue, 19 Jan 2010 13:40:18 +0100

Watch for a Cessna 172 carrying Tour Decal #001 on its tail during the Tour. The pilot is Judy Saxby, a long time pilot and aviation promoter. Judy has been active in the aviation community for over 35 years, serving as President of the Manitoba Aviation Council for 8 years, President of NATA for 2 years, a member of the NAV CANADA Advisory Committee for 11 years and currently serving as a Director of Southport Aerospace Centre. She received the Award of Excellence in Transportation in 1999. Judy grew up in central Alberta and graduated from the University of Alberta with a Bachelor of Education, completed her commercial pilots license in 1977, and received a Certificate in Management from the University of Manitoba in 1984. In 1974 she joined Keewatin Air Limited, eventually becoming a full partner where she held a variety of positions including HR Manager, Operations Manager and Executive Vice President. Judy's initial phone inquiry about the Tour was full of enthusiasm and excitement; she and her passengers will have a great time!

Tour Registration Started

Tue, 12 Jan 2010 16:46:19 +0100

The first registrations are now coming in! You can download the registration form here, complete it (its simple) and mail it with a cheque payable to Manitoba Aviation Tour for $25 to:
Manitoba Aviation Tour
1-915 McLeod Avenue
Winnipeg, MB
R2G 0Y4
Your registration package will be mailed after January 28.

The simplest way to register is to attend the Rust Remover Session on January 28 at the ANAVET Hall on Portage Avenue in Winnipeg. Registration forms will be available, pay the registration fee and go home with your registration package!

Do it now!