A HURRICANE TO REMEMBER
This military history buff tells of the restoration of a classic World War II fighter aircraft.
ACanadian-built Hawker Hurricane fighter aircraft, a famous type of warbird that fought valiantly in the Battle of Britain during the Second World War, has been restored to like-new condition for the Hangar Flight Museum in Calgary. The aircraft was rescued and restored through the efforts of the Calgary Mosquito Society under the leadership of president Richard de Boer. Hurricane 5389 flew during the war, but fortunately never had to face combat as all its service was in Canada on maritime patrol.
With fundraising by the Mosquito Society and financial support from the city of Calgary, both the Hurricane and a de Havilland Mosquito fighter-bomber have been assured of a solid future. The Mosquito is now under restoration by volunteers of the Mosquito Society at the Bomber Command Museum of Canada in Nanton, Alta.
The Hurricane is fitted with a famed Rolls-royce Merlin V-12 engine that powered tens of thousands of aircraft during the war, from single-engine fighters to four-engine bombers. After raising funds needed, “We contracted restoration of the
Hurricane to Historic Aviation Services in Wetaskiwin, Alta., but were responsible to the city of Calgary for the project. We had to find vendors for the propeller, instruments, radiator and we overhauled the engine ourselves at the museum in Nanton,” says Richard de Boer.
On October 19, 2019, the aircraft was rolled out of the shop, marking completion of its restoration, a $700,000 project, with the Mosquito Society and the city each paying half. The occasion was seven years to the day from when the Society acquired the aircraft. Ten days later, the Hurricane was transported 250 kilometres south to Calgary on a flatbed truck. The move started during the noon hour, accompanied by three pilot vehicles. The convoy was required to pull off Highway 2 at Airdrie, just north of Calgary, from 4:30 p.m. until 11 p.m., to allow regular traffic to proceed unimpeded to Calgary. Finally, the Hurricane was offloaded and placed in the museum by 2 a.m.
“We are thrilled with the arrival of Calgary’s Hawker Hurricane 5389 to the Hangar Flight Museum,” says Brian Desjardins, the museum’s executive director. “The city of Calgary and the Calgary Mosquito Society should be commended for making the restoration of this rare aircraft a reality and dream come true. We look forward to protecting and preserving this majestic aircraft for all to see.”
Hurricane 5389 now stands proudly in its new home. Signage accompanying the aircraft pays tribute to Canadian Elsie Macgill (1905-1980). She was the first Canadian
woman to receive an electrical engineering degree, and was the first female aircraft designer. In 1939, at the plant of Canadian Car and Foundry at Fort William (now Thunder Bay), she was put in charge of engineering the production of the British-designed Hawker Hurricane. She saw 1,450 Hurricanes produced in two years, including Hurricane 5389. The recipient of many awards, including installation to the Order of Canada, Elsie was inducted as a member of Canada’s Aviation Hall of Fame posthumously in 1983.
At the public debut of the aircraft in ceremonies held at the museum on November 6, 2019, Richard de Boer stated in his remarks that, “As much as the airplane is owned by the city and hence the citizens of Calgary, in an important way it does not belong to us. We are but temporary custodians of the Hurricane and the most recent links in a chain that stretches back 80 years and more to when the first Canadian-built Hurricanes rolled off the assembly line. This airplane belongs as much and perhaps even more to those unmet and those not yet born. Although it is a war machine, I hope that one of the messages it carries into the future is the fervent hope of soldiers around the world and back through time: ‘Never again.’ ”
Like men and women who have served Canadian armed forces, this splendid aircraft itself is a veteran, a reminder of Canada’s contribution to the war effort, especially at a time of Remembrance when all who served are honoured. n