Vancouver to Ottawa in 17 Hours!

When Air Canada first took flight in 1937, only the sky was the limit for Canada’s new national airline. Originally named Trans-Canada Airlines, the company enjoyed a virtual monopoly in the skies those days.

On March 23, 1939, a Lockheed 10 Electra of Trans-Canada Airlines took off from Vancouver. The airline had invited politicians, businessmen, and military brass, to join a goodwill flight to Ottawa.

After several stopovers, and 17 hours of total flight time, the Lockheed arrived in Ottawa.

After landing, T.S. Dixon, Vancouver Board of Trade member, and Colonel Letzen, a senior militia commander in Vancouver, are full of praise about the flight and "the most marvelous set of stewardesses", in this historic CBC radio interview:

Aircraft:

Jump into any aircraft you like. The only requirement: it must have been flying before 1942. Remember, that planes were not pressurized at this time, so do not exceed 10,000ft MSL, to keep passengers and crew from suffering from hypoxia. Max. speed is 180 KIAS, no war birds, that is. The Lockheed L-10 is available as freeware, too.

Navigation:

As the Pilot in Command, only you are fully responsible for the safety of your flight. If you consider the weather fair enough for a VFR-flight: go for it. In case, you choose to go instrumental: there were no airways, let alone GPS-intersections, back then. You will have to look out for VORs and NDBs, and navigate accordingly. You may also consider going on a composite (Y/Z) flight plan.

Blow the dust off your old flying machines, and have fun!

The legs