August 2026
Updated: 4 days ago
August came and went in a rush. It ended up being a very busy month.
After months of trying, sending in hundreds of resumes, Christine received two job offers within days of each other. One initially appeared to be her dream, managing construction in health care, but turned out to be a three year contract rather than permanent employment. The other offer turned into her dream job, with Chandos Construction, based out of Kelowna. She will be doing project construction management, starting with the construction of a new fire station in Penticton, starting September 8. She had really wanted to get into construction or project management so is very excited by the opportunity.
Marie and I were off on a Scandinavian cruise August 11 - 26. Our last 2 trips had been on smaller ships of 350 people or less. This trip was with Celebrity, on one of their smaller ships, but it was still 3000 people. We were nervous about the number of people but it worked out well, we met some great people, and had a great time. Ports of Call included in Oslo, Aarhus, Stockholm, Tallin, Helsinki and Copenhagen. We took full advantage of the ship docking near the oldest parts of each city, doing a ship sponsored tour and then touring on our own. Cruising never gives enough time to really export a city but we maximized our time and saw some amazing things. We would happily go back to any of the cities if the opportunity presents itself.
Once back in Calgary, it was time to unpack, do laundry, and get ready to drive a fully loaded Suburban to Kelowna to move Christine. Lack of sleep from all the travel meant both Marie and I caught colds coming home from Europe. Other than me being sick, Christine’s move went really well, and everything was in her new apartment and set up within a couple days. Her new place is small but bright and clean, in a brand new building, looking out over the lake, and is in a trendy neighborhood. We will really miss having her around but are so happy for her as she sets out on the next stage of her life.
The Models
With the P-40 Kittyhawk models wrapping up, it's time to pick the next builds. This build(s) needs to help resolve a bit of a crisis, as I have run out of storage space to store unbuilt kits, while almost having run out of shelf space for the completed models. Ideally, I need big boxes that build into small airplanes. The number of possibilities were narrowed down after the purchase of a book while in Nanton, at the Bomber Command Museum, entitled "The British Commonwealth Air Training Plan (BCATP) in Calgary." I have delved into this theme previously, with the construction of a 1/48 Airfix Anson. The BCATP typically used Canadian built aircraft, which were used across Canada, but facilities were typically concentrated across the Prairies and Ontario. The book has a wealth of information and some great photos, so the choice was made to pick a number of appropriate 1/72 kits and get started.
A number of appropriate kits were already nn my shelves. After some thought, the following six kits were selected:
Special Hobby North American Harvard Mk.II
Airfix Anson Mk.I
Special Hobby Fairchild Cornell
Pavla Airspeed Oxford
KP Cessna Crane
Northrop Nomad.
With the exception of the Nomad, all the aircraft were extensively used at BCATP facilities in the Calgary area.
For no particular reason, construction will start with the Cornell and the Oxford. All the kits are relatively simple, with relatively few parts. They are also either very old, or "short run" kits, meaning questionable fit. Experience says there will be lots of test fitting and even more filler. Construction may prove to be much slower than expected.
Here's a quick run down of the selected aircraft and their marking schemes.
North American Harvard II
From "The BCTAP in Calgary", by Dave Birrell
During the war, and for some years afterward, the distinctive snarl of the Harvard was a familiar sound in Canadian skies. The Harvard was chosen as the advanced, single-engine trainer for the BCATP SFTS's. As such, it serviced the as the transitional aircraft upon which pilots were prepared to fly fighters such as the legendary Hurricane and Spitfire.
The Harvard was an American design. A total of 3350 were produced in Canada, more than any other type.
Well suited to the training role, the Harvard was a high performance aircraft which had enough bad habits to teach inexperienced pilots to respect the even more powerful fighters they would soon be flying. Strong, but unforgiving, it required a delicate touch to maintin the proper altitude upon take off and landing.
The Harvard's special sound is produced by its six hundred horsepower, nine cylinder radial engine together with its nine foot propellor which, when in fine pitch at high rpm, approached supersonic speeds.
This build will be done using the 1/72 Special Hobby boxing, which was purchased a number of years ago, mainly because it included RCAF markings. Regardless of the markings in the box, the plane to be modelled was picked several years ago, after stumbling across a painting of a Harvard, titled "Position Confirmed" by Ardell Bourgeios, flying over a small prairie town.
"Position Confirmed" by Ardell Bourgeios
A Harvard Mk.II flying from the BCATP base at Penhold, Alberta passes over Barrhead (Northwest of Edmonton) while on a training flight. The iconic grain elevators that dotted the landscape were useful navigation tools as they were proudly emblazoned with the town name. While a student could come to find they were not where they wanted to be, they at least knew where they were.
At first glance, the town looked somehow familiar. Zooming into the name on the grain elevator explained why. It was Barrhead, the town where my maternal grandparents lived, and where I had may enjoyable visits.
The plane’s serial number appears to be 278X. Zooming in suggests the fourth digit is a 6 rather than an 8. Searching the CASPIR database for serial 2786 produced the following:
Category C damage on 10 January 1941 while with No. 32 Service Flying Training School at Moose Jaw, Saskatchewan. Used by No. 163 Squadron detachment at Wainwright, Alberta for Army training, 1943/44. Coded "R". Also with No. 34 SFTS at Medicine Hat, Alberta, dates unknown. Used by No. 135 (F) Squadron at RCAF Station Patricia Bay, BC as squadron hack, with locally applied camouflage. Became Instructional Airframe A 544 on 22 November 1946, and later 544B. Used post war by No. 442 Squadron at Vancouver, BC.
Nothing from the CASPIR description is a definitive match to the painting, but the plane did serve in Alberta at Medicine Hat. It is possible it was on a cross country navigation training flight. Further review of the CASPIR database, for 278X serials, showed that 2789 was the only other plane to serve in Alberta, at Penhold. Since the last number in the painting is clearly not a 9, the build will move forward on the assumption of 2876, in standard trainer yellow. The painting doesn't show under the wings but it will be assumed that the plane carried the standard large black registration number marking under each wing.
Avro Anson
From "The BCTAP in Calgary", by Dave Birrell
The Anson serviced in a wide variety or roles, even flying operationally during the early years of the war as a light bomber and coastal patrol aircraft. However, the Anson was severely limited in range and bomb load and was soon removed from operational squadrons.
The Anson Mk.I was to be the standard twin engine trainer for the BCATP and the British began shipping the aircraft to Canada for use at SFTS's. However by May 1940, British production could not keep up with the demand and Federal Aircraft Limited began production of a Canadian-built version, the Anson Mk.II. Later a Mk.V version was built. A total of 2470 Ansons were built in Canada and it was the most common BCATP twin engine trainer.
All Ansons were powered by seven cylinder radial engines. Both the Mk.II and Mk.V featured hydraulic landing gear retraction rather than the manual systems used on the Anson Ml.I. The Canadian built Ansons featured the considerable use of plywood to save stocks of steel and aluminum for other purposes.
The Anson is docile, forgiving and easy to fly.
This build will use the the 1/72 Airfix kit, which is literally as old as I am. I can recall playing with a version built by my Dad when I was a pre teen (sorry Dad). The kit is of a standard Anson Mk.I with a dorsal turret. My collection has two of the Airfix kits, with one from one of the early 1960’s batches, while the selected kit was produced in the early 1970's.
It proved impossible to find an Anson Mk.I, as represented in the Airfix kit, painted in the desired overall BCATP yellow trainer scheme. All the pictures found were either the later Mk.II version in overall yellow, or the Mk.I in the earlier camouflaged dark green/dark earth over yellow. Feeling lazy, I didn't want to go to the effort of trying to convert the fuselage and engine cowlings to a Mk.II. It was finally decided to model Anson 6104, in the earlier brown/green over yellow training scheme. This aircraft was involved in a collision with Anson 6173, a surprisingly common occurrence, but was repaired and returned to service as a Mk.II.
From CASPIR
Ex RAF R9934. To Ottawa Car & Aircraft for overhaul, 12 to 16 October 1940. To No. 4 Training Command when completed. Used by No. 3 Service Flying Training School at Calgary, Alberta. Category B damage at Calgary at 11:30 on 23 February 1941. Category C damage at Calgary at 08:00 on 14 April 1941, when this aircraft taxiied into rear of Anson 6326. To No. 2 Training Command on 24 January 1942. To MacDonald Brothers Aircraft in Winnipeg, 22 June to 25 July 1942. To No. 3 Training Command when completed. To Canada Car & Foundry in Quebec, 26 August 1942. to Canada Car & Foundry at Amherst, NS from 6 January to 27 May 1943, for conversion to Mk. IV. To No. 1 Training Command when completed. To No. 3 Training Command, for use by Test & Development Establishment at RCAF Station Rockcliffe, Ontario from 26 July 1943, for trials with variable pitch propellers. Pending disposal from 27 December 1944. To No. 1 Air Command on 15 January 1945, still pending disposal. Stored by No. 9 Repair Depot at St. Jean, Quebec, where it was noted with 708:15 total time, 274:15 since overhaul.
It is interesting to note that the book photo shows 6104 collided with 6173, but the CASPIR database indicated that 6104 collided with 6326. The CASPIR database entry for 6173 indicates that it also served with 3 SFTS, and was damaged in a crash on February 23 1941. Marching dates, it appears that 6104 was involved in a ground collision with 6173 on February 23 1941, was repaired, and then involved in a second ground collision, with 6326 in April 1941. The process was obviously hard on aircraft.
Fairchild Cornell
From "The BCTAP in Calgary", by Dave Birrell
During the spring of 1941, the Cornell was selected to replace the aging de Havilland Tiger Moths and Fleet Finches and became the primary RCAF trainer used under the BCATP. A total of 1642 were constructed in Canada by Fleet Aircraft of Fort Erie, Ontario. The prototype Fleet build Cornell flew in July 1942.
The Cornell's fuselage consists of a fabric covered steel tube framework. Wings were manufactured in three sections with a wooden spruce spar and rib structure. The ribs were of the Warren truss type with spruce cap strips and bracing. They were covered with mahogany plywood, as were the horizontal and vertical stabilizers. All the control surfaces were fabric covered over a metal structure. The undercarriage was non-retractable. A six cylinder, in-line engine powered the Cornell.
On warm days at some high-elevation training schools, such as High River, the Cornell's performance was less than adequate with long takeoff runs being required. However, the aircraft was generally well liked and remained in service with the RCAF until replaced by the de Havilland Chipmunk.
This build will use the 1/72 Special Hobby kit of the Cornell, which comes with US markings. Aftermarket decals were previously purchased for 2 Cornells, based at DeWinton, just south of Calgary. It will be done in the standard overall trainer yellow scheme.
There isn't much to the build. One sprue of parts, two vac form canopies, a resin part for the rear instrument panel, a small fret of photoetch hiding under the decals, and decals for a USAAF plane. Some parts are crisply moulded, with very fine panel lines and rivet details. Other parts, especially the landing gear and the seats, are rather crude with a lot of flash.
Construction starts with the cockpit. With few parts, it is finished quickly. Most of the required effort was cleaning flash from the parts. The cockpit was painted RAF interior green and then given a dark wash to highlight the sidewall framing and add some dirt. The kit’s PE seat belts were painted khaki, installed and given a dark colour wash. The PE fret alow includes some additional details, including rudder pedals, a throttle housing, and what is probably a trim tab. These were painted black and glued to the appropriate sidewall locations. (Photo 3 below) I tried to install the really, really, really tiny PE throttle levers, but three of the four levers pinged out of the tweezers before they could be installed. Being so tiny, there was no point looking for them. Random instrument decals were added to the instrument panels, and the dial faces given a coat of gloss to represent glass (Photo 2 below).
There were no locating tabs or supports for the cockpit floor, so it was a best guess as to where it fit. Poster white tack was used to hold the parts in place while the cockpit floor was test fit to the fuselage (Photo 1 below). The vacuum form canopy was cut free and roughly positioned to try and ensure the seats were in the right position. This resulted in the adjustment of both seats slightly forwards to ensure the seats were located under the appropriate sliding canopy sections. The finished cockpit was then CA’d into position.
The fuselage halves needed a good sanding to clean up the mating surfaces. Fit was surprisingly good, but a lot of clamps were still needed to get a good joint (Photo 3 below)
Much of the real plane’s fuselage is fabric or plywood covered. Only the engine compartment and the upper cockpit area are metal covered. The kit shows these with fine engraved panel lines and nice rivet detail. It was decided to deepen the panel lines by rescribing as it was feared much of the detail would be lost when sanding the fuselage seams.
The wings are butt joints, something I have only seen in vacuum form kits. Brass pins were inserted into holes drilled into the wings and fuselage to provide alignment and help strengthen the joint (Photo 6). Wing to fuselage fit was actually pretty good but still needed filler to close gaps (Photos 7&8). It was necessary to rescribe all the panel lines after sanding the added filler.
The horizontal stabilizers slot into openings in the fuselage. The fit was very tight so the stabilizers needed to be sanded down until they fit snuggly. (Photo 9)
Photo 1 - Working out positions of the cockpit component
Photo 2 - Cobbled together some fictitious instrument dials
Photo 3 - Cockpit installed
Photo 4 - Clamps were needed to close the fuselage
Photo 5 - The cowling needed filler to close some minor gaps.
Photo 6 - Pins were added to strengthen the wing to fuselage joint.
Photos 7&8 - Filler was needed on both of the top and bottom wing to fuselage joints
Photo 9 - The horizontal stabilizers slot into holes in the fuselage
The last thing to do before primer was to fit the canopy. A recently learned trick was to fill the vacuum form canopy with silly putty, to give it enough rigidity, to resist cutting from the backing sheet and sanding to final shape. Test fitting to the fuselage found that fetting the canopy to fit along the front edge, the cockpit sills and the rear fuselage was a 2 out of 3 thing. It didn't seem possible to get all three to fit at the same time. Plastic strip was added at the front of the cockpit, shifting the canopy back. More strip was added to raise the sills. Finally, it was necessary to shave a little plastic from each side of the rear fuselage to allow the canopy to smoothly transition into the rear fuselage. The canopy now fits but will need four hands to hold everythiing in place when it is time to glue it down.
My ability to rescribe panel lines is a work in progress. The results were still disappointing after three attempts, so the lines were filled in, sanded smooth, and painted over.
The landing gear was at best a representation of the real thing, and needed a lot of sanding and filing to get something less bulky. The legs didn’t take well to all the handling, and both suffered failures that had to be reglued back together. The end result looks much better but it’s a good thing the model is so light.
Airspeed Oxford
From "The BCTAP in Calgary", by Dave Birrell
A British designed and built twin-engine monoplane, the Airspeed Oxford was used for training pilots as well as navigators, wireless operators, air gunners, and bomb aimers throughout the war. First flown during June 1937, it was rapidly put into production for the Royal Air Force.
A total of 8751 Oxfords were built of which 1555 were transported in crates by ship across the Atlantic for service with the BCATP. Many of them continued west through the Great Lakes, arriving in what was now Thunder Bay, where the components were removed from the crates and the aircraft were assembled.
Largely made of wood, the Oxford's fuselage uses an arrangement of spruce longerons and stiffeners underneath a plywood exterior. Both the elevator and rudder of the tail unit used a wooden spare and rib structure covered by fabric. The wind is made from a stressed-skin plywood covered structure. The Oxford is powered by tow, seven cylinder radial engines.
This build will use the 1/72 Pavla kit, which includes markings for RAF and RAAF planes. The Oxford was used extensively in Calgary, with a surviving example in Nanton. The BCATP book includes a painting of Oxford AR844, aircraft 24, that will be used as the basis for markings.
From CASPIR for Oxford AR244:
Taken on strength at No. 1 Wireless School at St. Hubert, Quebec. To No. 4 Training Command on 21 July 1941, for use by No. 34 Service Flying Training School at Medicine Hat, Alberta. To Aircraft Repair for overhaul, 10 October 1942 to 22 January 1943. To storage with No. 4 Training Command when completed, issued from storage on 25 March 1943. Pending disposal from 15 August 1944. To No. 2 Air Command on 1 December 1944, still pending disposal. Stored at Swift Current, Saskatchewan, where it was noted with 2728:55 total time, 1443:40 since overhaul.
Interestingly, I couldn't find a single reference build, in a magazine or online, of the Pavla kit. That doesn't inspire confidence.
This is my first Pavla kit. First impressions were good. Parts are crisply moulded with minimal flash - at least for the one sprue. It is another short run kit, with no locating pins or alignment tabs. Two sprue of parts, two vac form canopies and turrets, a bag resin parts, and decals for four planes. This shouldn't take long.
Construction started with the cockpit.
Not sure why the two spruces are moulded in different coloured plastic. What's apparent after examination is that the light grey sprue, which contains the wings, is much better moulded. The bluish sprue, which contains the fuselage and most of the cockpit parts, is much rougher with a lot of flash and seam lines.
Test fit of the fuselage halves was promising, but the vertical stabilizer tip and trailing edge was much too thick. A lot of material was removed to get something closer to scale. A first for me but it was necessary to "hollow out" the inner surfaces of the tail in order to get the edges to touch. They must have been proud of the outer edges, perhaps because of the thinning, preventing the tail edges from touching.
Test fit of the wing pieces found that the wing tips and trailing edges were also far too thick. Like the tail, it became necessary to hollow out the inner areas in order to get the edges to touch (Photo 4).
The initial test fit of the fuselage to wings was a failure, with a massive gap at the front of the wing. Closer examination found I had mistakenly assumed a large piece of flash to be part of the fuselage. Trimming the flash resulted in a decent fit along the front of the wing, but a large gap still remained at the rear. (Photo 3).
The kit includes a separate door, and requires the needed window opening to be cut out. Not sure why the door is provided as a separate part, as there is very little cabin detail to see through an open door. Closing the door needed a lot of sanding, test fits and eventually filler to close the gaps. The window opening was created by chain drilling a series of holes, carefully cutting out between the holes, and then carefully filling the opening to the final dimensions. The kit doesn't include any clear inserts for the side windows, so these had to be cut out of clear styrene and sanded to fit. Annoyingly, the windows on the port side fogged from the CA, and there is little that can be done to restore them.
The kit interior is very basic. A nicely detailed instrument panel has to be painted as no instrument decal is included. Rudder pedals and control columns needed a lot of clean up, as did the three seats. PE seat belts from the spares box were added. Not sure how much will be visible once everything is closed up so no other detail was added. (Photo 6).
The kit includes a hole for a dorsal turret. The plane being modelled didn’t have a turret, so the included blanking plate was used to close the hole. The plate didn’t fit well, and tended to fall into the opening, so strip styrene was added to give it something to sit against. The plate needed a lot of sanding and filler to get a good finish.
Photo 1 - The fuselage was on the blue sprue. Note the prominent seam on the nose and flash in the window openings.
Photo 2 - Test fit of the fuselage to wings showed upper side was okay
Photo 3 - But the bottom side is going to need some work.
Photo 4 - A lot of material needed to be removed to thin the wing tips and trailing edges
Photo 5 - That was hard. Separate door installed and window opening cut out.
Photo 6 - Completed interior
Photo 7 - Windows installed and polished
Photo 8 - With no mounting points, much trial, error and trimming was needed to fit the cockpit
Photo 9 - Turret blanking plate wasn’t a great fit but it gives a starting point.
With the fuselage halves joined, it was time to tackle the wing. Fitting the wing to the fuselage found that the rear wing fillet, moulded into the fuselage halves, was much thicker than the corresponding wing. (Photo 1 below) A slow speed grinder was used to reshape the wing fillets to better match the wing profile.
Work switched over to the engine nacelles, as it would be easier to fit and sand these before the wing was glued to the fuselage. Test fit of the engine nacelles found more poor fit. Thick CA was used to seal gaps between the nacelles and the wing’s engine fairing. Mr Surface was then used to seal gaps between the nacelles and the wing leading edges. More Surface was used to seal gaps along the underside. (Photos 2&3 below)
With the engine nacelles sorted out, the wings could be attached to the fuselage. The rear wing to fuselage joint needed considerable clamping to hold things together while the glue set. Filler was then needed along all the joints. A combination of Surfacer and Dissolving Putty was used, as both can be shaped with a Q-Tip dipped in Mr Lacquer Thinner.
The engine cowlings are two pieces, split vertically. The pieces could best be described as “mostly circular” after being glued together. Dowels wrapped in sandpaper were used to shape the engine opening, and to open up the cowling rear. Further plastic needed to be removed to allow the cast resin engines to fit inside the cowling. Eventually, the cowlings could be fit to the nacelles (Photo 6)
The BCATP Oxfords had prominent intakes along the bottom of the engine cowlings. The kit provides very nice resin intakes that need to be matched to poorly shaped plastic mounts. Yet more Surfacer and sanding is needed to blend the parts in (Photo 7)
Photo 1 - The wing root fit is poor
Photos 2&3 - The engine nacelles needed a lot of work
Photo 4 - Wing roots needed a lot of filler
Photo 5 - And more filler on the underside where the wings joined the fuselage
Photo 6 - So much filler and sanding, but its starting to look like an Oxford.
Photo 7 - Starting intake assemblies
Cessna Crane
From "The BCTAP in Calgary", by Dave Birrell
The British built Oxford and Anson Mk.I were the only twin engine trainers available for service with the BCATP at the beginning of the war. Manufacturing demands in the UK during early 1940 severely curtailed this source of supply. Plans were in place to produce the Anson Mk.II in Canada, but it would be many months before these factories came on line. Therefore, the RCAF turned to the US to acquire aircraft to meet their immediate needs.
The Cessna Crane was developed as a five-seat, light transport civilian aircraft. Eventually, more than 5400 Cranes were produced, of which 826 saw service with the RCAF.
Powered by a seven-cylinder, radial engines, Cessna Cranes featured wooden wings and tail married to a fuselage constructed of welded steel tubing. Most of the aircraft was fabric covered.
It was cheap, reliable and relatively easy to fly, with a top speed of 195 miles per hour. The Crane provided twin engine complexity with economy of operation and went on to become one of the most important aircraft operated by the BCATP.
This build will be done using the 1/72 KP kit. Compared to the others in this build, it is relatively new, and includes decals for several Canadian planes. The Crane was used extensively in the Calgary area, with surviving examples in Nanton and Westaskwin, and an airframe in pieces in Calgary. Nanton's plane is Serial 8177 and was based at No.3 Flight Training School in Calgary. The kit decals include markings for 7942, stationed in Yorkton. A review of the CASPIR database found that 7941 was based at No.3 FTS in Calgary for it's entire service career, and would be easy to build using a conversion of the kit decals.
From CASPIR for 7941:
Fuselage only transferred to Prairie Airways on 7 August 1942, probably for repairs. Back to No. 2 Training Command on 28 October 1942. To Prairie Airways for overhaul, 3 December 1943 to 21 January 1944. to storage with No. 4 Training Command when completed. Issued from storage on 10 February 1944, for use by No. 3 Service Flying Training School at Calgary, Alberta. To No. 2 Air Command on 1 December 1944. Pending disposal from 6 August 1945. Stored by No. 10 Repair Depot, where it was noted with 3479:15 total time, 1347:40 since overhaul. Sold to A.J. Leeward of Montreal. To US civil register as N69538.
Northrop Nomad
The Special Hobby kit includes markings for a Canadian plane in the yellow and black stripes of a BCTAP gunnery trainer. The Nomad had very limited use, and typically wasn't seen as far west as Calgary, so the kit decals will be used. A bit of an oddball, the kit was included in the build because it is a relatively small plane in surprisingly large box.
From the CASPIR database
The Northrop A-17, a development of the Northrop Gamma 2F model, was a two-seat, single-engine, monoplane, attack bomber built in 1935 by the Northrop Corporation for the U.S. Army Air Corps. When in British Commonwealth service during World War II, the A-17 was called Nomad.
The Royal Canadian Air Force received 32 Nomads that had been part of a French order of 93 aircraft. When France fell in 1940, this order was taken over by Great Britain who transferred 32 of the aircraft to Canada where they were used as advanced trainers and target tugs as part of the British Commonwealth Air Training Plan. All were assigned to No. 3 Training Command RCAF.
Nomads were never used operationally overseas. Initially, the aircraft were used at Camp Borden to check out qualified civilian pilots who were offering their services to the air force. In 1941, the aircraft were modified to a target-towing configuration to allow for air-to-air gunnery training at various schools in Quebec and Ontario. In addition to being used by the RCAF in Canada, the Royal Norwegian Air Force trained some aircrew in exile on the A-17A at airports in Toronto and Muskoka. The RCAF Nomads were retired with the cessation of hostilities. The Nomads were not particularly outstanding aircraft, but they did provide reliable training service logging an average of approximately 3,000 flying hours each in their four and a half years of service
And that’s it for another month. September looks to be quieter so I am hoping that there will be some quality modelling time. Take care and stay safe.
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