Aviation in Thunder Bay
$24.00
Few cities can match Thunder Bay for down-to-earth, consistent contributions to Canada’s aviation heritage. Yet very little of that history is known. This book will change all that by showing how much we owe to the city’s aviation pioneers, pilots, mechanics, engineers, politicians, and businessmen who contributed so significantly to the development of aviation in Canada.
Description
Aviation in Thunder Bay by Jim Lyzun is a comprehensive and deeply researched chronicle of the rich aviation history of Northwestern Ontario, particularly the communities of Fort William and Port Arthur, now Thunder Bay. Drawing on more than thirty years of interviews, archival research, and local contributions, Lyzun documents the emergence of aviation at the Lakehead from its earliest days in 1910 through to the post-war era. The book brings to life the stories of flying clubs, pioneering bush pilots, wartime aircraft production, and the evolution of local airports, weaving them into a compelling narrative that highlights Thunder Bay’s outsized role in Canada’s aviation heritage. Notable personalities such as Elsie MacGill, the first female aeronautical engineer in Canada, and colourful figures like Al Cheesman add depth and humanity to the technological and institutional developments chronicled.
Published posthumously by the Thunder Bay Historical Museum Society, the book serves as both a tribute to Lyzun’s lifelong passion and a vital contribution to Canadian aviation history. It covers the influence of the Fort William Aero Club, the development of Bishopsfield and the municipal airport, the critical wartime production of Hurricanes and Helldivers at Can-Car, and the role of the British Commonwealth Air Training Plan. Lavishly illustrated with photographs from private and public collections, Aviation in Thunder Bay preserves voices, machines, and memories that might otherwise have been lost—making it an indispensable resource for historians, enthusiasts, and anyone interested in the intersections of local pride and global conflict.
By: Jim Lyzun
Throughout his life, Jim Lyzun has had a passion for airplanes. He worked as an aeronautical engineer for DeHaviland Aircraft in Toronto before becoming a teacher in Thunder Bay. Though aviation was only a hobby thereafter, Jim devoted years to researching and writing about Thunder Bay’s place in aviation history. He completed this manuscript in the late 1990s but died before it could be published. Updated and organized by Dr. David Kemp of Lakehead University, the book is now available for the first time.
- Pages: 88
- Publisher: The Thunder Bay Museum Historical Society (2006)
- Binding: Softcover
Additional information
| Weight | 0.290 kg |
|---|---|
| Dimensions | 21.59 × 27.94 × 0.635 cm |
