Golden Hawks

Golden Hawks
Country:	Canada
Currently used aircraft type:	North American F-86 Saber
Sponsor:	Royal Canadian Air Force
Base airfield:	Canadian Forces Base Trenton
Founding:	1959
Colours:	gold, red, white

The Golden Hawks (English: the Golden Falcons) were an aerobatic team of the Royal Canadian Air Force (RCAF), which was founded in 1959.

history

The reason for the establishment of the aerobatic team was the 35th anniversary of the RCAF and the "golden 50th anniversary" of Canadian aviation. First, a team with six North American F-86 Saber aircraft called the Golden Hawks was set up. The group led by Squadron Leader Fern Villeneuve originally consisted of eight pilots and was supposed to exist for one year. However, the popularity gained in the 1959 tournament season ensured that the Golden Hawks were restored for 1960 under the command of Wing Commander Jack Allan. Furthermore, the leadership was taken over by S / L Villeneuve, while the pilots consisted of Flight Lieutenant James McCombe, Flight Lieutenant Edward Rozdeba, Flight Lieutenant Jeb Kerr, Flight Lieutenant Ralph Annis, Flight Lieutenant Sam Eisler, F / A Jim Holt and F / A William (Bill) Stewart.

In 1961, Flight Lieutenant McCombe became the team leader. The reason was Villeneuve's withdrawal due to a marriage. However, this and F / A Price's exit were planned from the outset: According to the rules of the Golden Hawks, unmarried men were allowed to have a maximum of three, married men a maximum of two years membership. Two deaths changed the composition of the team: F / A John T. Price joined the Hawks after F / A Eisler passed away in 1959 and took on the role of second soloist. After Flight Lieutenant Kerr was killed in an accident in Calgary, F / A John T. Price took over his solo position. F / A Stewart was remembered for his role as lead solo and low-level aerobatics. The Golden Hawks continued their performances for three more seasons until they were finally disbanded on February 7, 1964 for financial reasons. Their record totaled 317 shows across North America.

The Golden Hawks legacy lives on with the Canadian Forces Snowbirds and the Hawk Solo Demonstration Team. The latter was founded as Vintage Wings of Canada in 2009 on the occasion of the 100th anniversary of powered flight in Canada.

Incidents

Hawk One at the Portage-la-Prairie airshow, 2009

• March 12, 1959: A Golden Hawks Saber crashed while practicing in a wooded area near the RCAF base Chatham, and Flight Lieutenant Sam Eisler died.
• August 10, 1959: A Golden Hawks Saber approaching Calgary International Airport collided with a Piper Pacer about two miles west of the airport. The Saber pilot Flight Lieutenant Jeb Kerr and the two occupants of the Pacer were killed. The Pacer had entered the control zone without authorization.
• June 21, 1959: A Solo Golden Hawk Saber, flown by Flight Lieutenant JT Price, was hit by a bird over Bedford Basin, Halifax, Nova Scotia, shattering the windshield and canopy. Although the pilot's helmet visor was torn off and his vision was temporarily impaired, Flight Lieutenant Price was able to land safely with the help of Flight Lieutenant RH Annis, the other solo pilot.
• February 22, 1961: Golden Hawks Saber pilot F / A Jim McCann was killed during training after the right wing of his aircraft was badly damaged in a collision with another Saber.
• April 1961: Golden Hawks pilot F / A Bill Stewart was forced to perform a low-altitude ejection seat exit due to an engine malfunction during a training session near Chatham.

Received aircraft

Golden Hawk Saber displayed at the Canadian Warplane Heritage Museum, Hamilton, Ontario

Original Golden Hawks aircraft are on display in several locations including the Canadair Saber 6 number 23651 at the Canadian Warplane Heritage Museum in Mount Hope, Ontario . The Golden Hawks Saber 6 is on loan from the Canada Aviation and Space Museum and is modified with Plexiglas panels on the port side. Saber 6 number 23651 was built in 1956, flew overseas with NATO and in Canada with the Golden Hawks. It was given to the Canada Aviation and Space Museum in 1964. The National Air Force Museum of Canada has a Golden Hawks Canadair Saber 6 (number 23641) that was previously mounted on a mast on CFB Mountain and is now on display in CFB Trenton, Ontario. Canadian Saber 5 number 23355, flown by the Golden Hawks, is on display at the Atlantic Canada Aviation Museum in Halifax , Nova Scotia , having originally been on display as a gate guardr at the former CFB Chatham in 1986. James McCombe, former leader of the Golden Hawks, was a volunteer at the museum helping with the aircraft restoration. A Canadair Saber 5 (number 23042) that flew with the Golden Hawks is on display at the Technikmuseum Speyer ( Rhineland-Palatinate ), Germany . In 2009, the Canadair T-33 “133,500” Golden Hawks support aircraft was acquired by the Jet Aircraft Museum. The Golden Hawks aircraft, serial number 23053, is on display at Zwick's Park in Belleville, Ontario.

honors and awards

In Oakville (Ontario) , 540 Golden Hawks Royal Canadian Air Cadet Squadron is named after the aerobatic team. Founded in 1951, the squadron decided to petition the Canadian federal government in 1964 to adopt the Golden Hawks' name and identity as proper names. The Department of National Defense granted permission in 1968, and since that time the 540 RCAC Squadron has been "proud to be officially named Golden Hawks." At the former home base of the Golden Hawks, the Junior A hockey team in Trenton, Ontario takes its name from the Golden Hawks. The team symbol is a gold Saber Jet outline. Likewise, the Chatham-Kent Secondary School sports teams, the first seat of the aerobatic team, are all named Golden Hawks. In 2009, the Hawk One , a completely refurbished Canadair Saber 5 (number 23314) in Golden Hawk colors, owned by the Vintage Wings of Canada, helped celebrate the Centennial of Flight in Canada. Hawk One continues to perform air shows and flypasts across Canada.

literature

• Dempsey, Daniel V. A Tradition of Excellence: Canada's Airshow Team Heritage . Victoria, British Columbia: High Flight Enterprises, Second edition 2007, First edition 2002. ISBN 978-0-9687817-1-5 .
• Fast, Beverley G. Snowbirds: Flying High, Canada's Snowbirds Celebrate 25 Years . Saskatoon, Saskatchewan: Lapel Marketing & Associates Inc., 1995. ISBN 0-9699327-0-7 .
• Mummery, Robert. Snowbirds: Canada's Ambassadors of the Sky . Edmonton, Alberta, Canada: Reidmore Books, 1984. ISBN 0-919091-37-7 .

Individual evidence

1. ↑ Mummery 1984, p. 8.
2. ↑ Dempsey 2002, p. 157
3. ↑ Dempsey 2002, p. 154.
4. ↑ Dempsey 2002, pp. 160-162.
5. ↑ Dempsey 2002 p. 160.
6. ^ “Casualty Compendium Part Seventy Seven.” Air-Britain Archive , 2000, Issue 2, p. 66. ISSN  0262-4923 .
7. ↑ ^{a b} "Canadair Saber 6 (Golden Hawk)." Canada Aviation and Space Museum. Retrieved November 24, 2012.
8. ↑ "Canadair Saber, CL-13 / F-86, Mark V." National Air Force Museum of Canada . Retrieved November 24, 2012.
9. ^ "F-86 Saber / CL-13 Saber Mk. V." Atlantic Canada Aviation Museum. Retrieved November 24, 2012.
10. ↑ "North American F-86 Saber." ( Memento of the original from August 14, 2012 in the Internet Archive ) Info: The archive link was automatically inserted and not yet checked. Please check the original and archive link according to the instructions and then remove this notice. Technology Museum Speyer. Retrieved November 24, 2012.  
11. ↑ "Our History." ( Memento of the original from December 18, 2012 in the Internet Archive ) Info: The archive link has been inserted automatically and has not yet been checked. Please check the original and archive link according to the instructions and then remove this notice. Jet Aircraft Museum, 2011. Retrieved November 24, 2012.  
12. ↑ http://www.intelligencer.ca/2014/08/13/official-ceremony-to-mark-the-return-of-the-golden-hawk-at-zwicks
13. ↑ 540 "Golden Hawks Royal Canadian Air Cadet Squadron." 540goldenhawks.ca. Retrieved November 24, 2012.
14. ↑ "History." 540goldenhawks.ca. Retrieved November 24, 2012.
15. ^ "Official Home Page of the Golden Hawks." Trenton Golden Hawks. Retrieved November 24, 2012.
16. ↑ "The Chatham-Kent Secondary School Sports teams." Chatham-Kent Sports Network. Retrieved November 24, 2012.
17. ↑ "Hawk One." ( Memento of the original from February 23, 2009 in the Internet Archive ) Info: The archive link was inserted automatically and has not yet been checked. Please check the original and archive link according to the instructions and then remove this notice. Vintage Wings of Canada . Retrieved November 24, 2012.