Veteran WWII Pilot Receives Special Dedication

A young Archie Pennie next to a Stearman trainer aircraft for the BCATP

GATINEAU, QC. –  Media are invited to a special dedication of a British Commonwealth Air Training Plan (BCATP) aircraft to Archie Pennie, a veteran pilot of the Second World War, on Thursday, 2 June here at Vintage Wings of Canada at 7:30 p.m.

Archie Pennie, 95, came to Canada in 1942 to learn to fly as a pilot during the Second World War, and later served as an instructor here with the BCATP.  Archie would fly in several of the yellow trainers in Canada; the Boeing Stearman PT-17, de Havilland DH.82C Tiger Moth, and Fairchild Cornell. 

Archie Pennie is also an accomplished writer, who has authored three aviation memoires and is a regular contributor to ‘the Observair,’ the newsletter of the Ottawa Chapter of the Canadian Aviation Historical Society (www.cahs.ca).

“A dedication to Archie of a Vintage Wings’ yellow trainer is a very fitting part of our special commemoration to the BCATP this year,” said Rob Fleck, President of Vintage Wings. “It is our mission to inspire and educate Canadians about the historical significance of our aviation heritage. Veterans like Archie enrich our lives with tales of one of this nation’s most significant eras in history.”

In 2011, Vintage Wings is commemorating the BCATP at various locations across Canada by showcasing its five aircraft trainers used during the years 1940 to 1945 – the North American Harvard, de Havilland Tiger Moth, Fleet Finch, the Boeing Stearman, and Fairchild Cornell. These five aircraft, all owned and operated by Vintage Wings, were some of the flying trainers used to instruct new pilots or pilot instructors at BCATP stations across Canada.

Date: 2 June 2011

Time: 7:30 p.m.

Place: Vintage Wings of Canada, 1699 Arthur Fecteau St., Gatineau, QC.

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Note to Editors: Media are asked to contact Mary Lee, Public Affairs at (819) 669-9603 Ext. 245 or by email at mlee@vintagewings.ca to confirm attendance.

For general information about Vintage Wings of Canada visit www.vintagewings.ca

For more information about he Yellow Wings Tour, a tribute to the BCATP, visit http://www.yellowwings.ca