Digital Collections

http://www.schoolnet.ca/collections/bush_flying

http://www.fepco.com/Bush_Flying.html

This is the first book published on the web. Chapters are written about techniques, the terrain, weather, the airplanes, equipment care and navigation tips. Note: Easy to read, lots of text, no graphics.

http://www.alaskaoutdoors.com/Ellison/

Although this site is aimed at tourists, there are great photos of bush planes along with Alaskan wildlife.

http://virtualnorth.com/horizons/friends.htm

A photo gallery of bush planes, stories on being a bush pilot and links to more information about bush flying make up this site.

1. To learn about the contribution of bush flying to Canada

1. Check out Web sites and write about the contribution of bush flying.
2. Read articles at http://www.fepco.com/aviation.
   articles.html and about the history of bush flying at http://www.aviation.nmstc.ca/educ/
   history/he4.htm
3. Perform "life of bush pilot" (skit) http://www.nmstc.ca/nam/educ/namedu
   /bushp.htm with personal additions made based on research.
4. Answer questions about bush flying (possible questions and answer provided).
5. Create an educational display on bush flying.
6. Revisit the original web of ideas and questions that the class created. Add new knowledge to the web in a different coloured pen. Cross off questions that have been answered and add any new questions to the list. Use these questions to guide student learning.

Bush Flying Questions

1. What are bush planes outfitted with and why? (floats, skis and wheels to help these planes land on different terrain)
2. What are the advantages of bush flying? (efficiency, redistribute wildlife, report flood conditions, patrol forestry and fire, mapping, surveying, commercial and military transportation, search for mines, distribute mail to remote areas)
3. What are some resources we get from the Canadian North? (timber, pulp, iron, nickel, gold)
4. What are floats? (Floats were sealed metal-based devices used to land on water. They had to be of standard, balanced weight and length according to the proportion of the aircraft. Floats were interchangeable with other landing gear like skis and wheels. These planes usually had a canoe and paddle tied down so that cargo and equipment could be brought to shore easily without getting wet.)
5. What are skis? (Skis were made of wood and had extra cables to ensure the front tips were pointing upward.)
6. What hazards does winter introduce to bush flying? (Winter flying introduced a new set of hazards because, at times, aircraft had to land in a combination of deep snow, slush and water. This meant hours of hard slugging, jacking up the aircraft and cutting logs in the bush then dragging them back to the machine and working them under the skis. Quite often, the plane would fall through the ice soaking and sometimes losing their cargo. Important personal items such as food were carefully packed and sealed for protection.)
7. Why were adaptations made for planes to fly in Canada and what were some of the adaptations made? Name the companies and the first plane that met the challenges of a Canadian climate. (Problems with this boat plane arose when water entered the rubber seals, which froze and cracked. The need for planes appropriate for the Canadian climate, sparked the company to expand into the construction and adaptation of planes for the Canadian government. Among the adapted planes were a series of monoplanes from Bristol, Lockheed, and Trans-Canada Airlines. The Huff-Deland was the first plane adapted to their needs which could be fitted interchangeably with wheels, skis, or floats.)
8. What role did the bush pilot play? (The bush pilot was merely the emissary of an aggressive and expanding society intent on developing northern resources. The pilots were a link between the urban society in the south and the traditional bands of Natives in the north.)
9. Would you want to be a bush pilot? Why or why not? (Answers vary.)
10. How did Natives help the bush pilots? (Northern Natives supplied the bush pilots with useful tools, equipment and warm clothing to help them survive in their land.)
11. Why is weight a worry for bush pilots?
12. Why were planes refined to carry heavier loads? (The development of special jobs for bush planes such as flying mining equipment, transporting passengers, mail, groceries and livestock, led to the refinement of design. Larger cargo capacity, effective navigation equipment, reliable and easily maintained engines, became the hallmarks of the successful modern bush plane.)
13. What was in a standard survival kit? Compare this list to what you would put in your own survival kit. Create your own survival kit. (Life preservers, a fish net, and an axe made up a standard survival kit.)
14. What are some of the challenges faced by people who restore bush planes? (When pieces of the plane could not be found or were damaged beyond repair, they had to be reconstructed from drawings and the memory of people who knew how the aircraft was built. Due to the age of the planes, parts could not be bought and replaced so they often had to be made by hand. This process was very time consuming because the tools to shape the replacement pieces also had to be made.)