News
Canadian Warplane Heritage Museum adds new piece
May 22, 2014, Hamilton, Ont. - The latest acquisition by the Canadian Warplane Heritage Museum flies into Hamilton later today. The Douglas Dakota, a World War II transport, is a very significant addition to the collection as this particular aircraft actually flew in D-Day with the Royal Air Force and soon after served with the Royal Canadian Air Force.
May 22, 2014 By Carey Fredericks
Douglas Dakota FZ692 'Kwicherbichen' participated in D-Day with the Royal Air Force and in September of 1944, it joined the No. 437 Squadron Royal Canadian Air Force. After World War II, it continued service with the Royal Canadian Air Force until the early seventies and eventually ended up at Environment Canada. When the Dakota was declared surplus from the Government of Canada (Environment Canada) and because of the historical significance of this particular Dakota, with the support of Stephen Quick (Canada Aviation and Space Museum in Ottawa), it was felt that the Dakota should go to a home that would honour its historical significance as well as keeping it flying.
The aircraft has been very well maintained over the years and comes with several spares. Although the aircraft has not flown since 2010, museum staff and volunteers have spent several days in Ottawa preparing the Dakota for its ferry flight to Hamilton. The rest of 2014 will be spent going through the aircraft thoroughly and eventually it will be repainted back to its original World War II paint scheme.
Canadian Warplane Heritage Museum President & CEO, David G. Rohrer, is thrilled with this latest addition. “While we have many historical aircraft in our collection, many did not see service in World War II as they were built late in the war, but that is why they survived and are in our Museum today. We are honoured to have this D-Day veteran aircraft join our collection where we will continue to fly it for many years to come.”
The Canadian Warplane Heritage Museum is a major tourist attraction open year round that is located at the Hamilton International Airport in Hamilton, Ontario, Canada. The collection of over 46 vintage aircraft is housed in a 108,000 square foot state of the art facility. Many of the aircraft are flown regularly and include such types as a Westland Lysander, Fairey Firefly, B-25 Mitchell, PBY Canso and Avro Lancaster. The new Dakota will be on display to the public immediately.
