Aerial show a tribute to Vimy-era pilots
Iris Brown attended the Vimy Memorial unveiling in northern France in 1936.
Eighty-one years later she returned to see a team of Canadian pilots fly over the memorial in honour of the bloody battle’s 100th anniversary on April 9, 2017.
And Saturday, she was at the Canadian Historical Aircraft Association’s CH2A Hangar at the Windsor Airport to see two of the Vimy re-enactment pilots fly over the city she’s lived in all her life.
“My father was a veteran of the First World War, and Vimy was extremely important to him,” said Brown, 89.
“He served five years. Anyway, he took our family — my sister, my mother and myself — to Vimy in ’36.
“And it was sort of full circle to go back for the 100th anniversary.”
Her father, John Burns, was a stretcher-bearer in the First World War. He was discharged in May 1919. For Brown, military service is a family legacy. Her two youngest daughters are retired reservists.
She describes the Vimy Memorial as “stunning.”
It was erected in honour of those who fought and died in one of the First World War’s most famous battles, one that many Canadians believe was a defining moment for their nation.
“And it’s awe-inspiring,” Brown said.
“When you’re there and you look out — well, we saw farmers’ fields — thinking that the area was just a sea of mud.”
Brown has studied the Battle of Vimy Ridge extensively. She said good tactics and planning aided the Canadian contribution.
“Everybody should see Vimy — everybody. And know what our forebearers did for us. Because let’s face it, less than 25 years later, we were at war again. The same area.
“War is hell. I’m just glad that we had — and that we have — people who are willing to serve.”
For people living in Canada who couldn’t be in France for the April 9 re-enactment at Vimy Ridge, the cross-country Birth of a Nation tour is bringing it home.
The pilots who visited Windsor this weekend flew the same Nieuport 11s that buzzed over Vimy Ridge Memorial on the 100th anniversary ceremony.
Their single-seat fighter planes are replicas of French-designed aircraft used by Canadian pilots in the battle a century ago.
“It was amazing,” pilot Larry Ricker said of the April re-enactment honouring the soldiers who took part in the battle that left 3,600 Canadian soldiers dead and more than 7,000 wounded. “When you are in the presence of that memorial, it’s very emotional. It’s a very touching tribute to our Canadian men that gave so much.”
The Nieuport 11 aircraft have Volkswagen engines and weigh about 500 pounds each.
A Canadian Forces C-17 Globemaster transported the small planes to France: the Nieuports were turned sideways and had the rudders removed to fit inside the larger aircraft.
The Vimy Ridge: Birth of a Nation tour is about midway through its tour. After Windsor, the pilots’ next Canadian stop is Winnipeg.
“This has nothing to do with us,” Ricker said.
“This has everything to do with those 16-, 17-, 18-year-old boys that stepped up and put their hand up to go to war for our country. And, in many cases, gave the ultimate sacrifice.”
Around 100 people were in attendance at the CH2A Hangar to view a flyover.
John Robinson, president of the Canadian Historical Aircraft Association, said it was an “honour and a privilege to have them stop in Windsor, and come and tell the story about Vimy and the role that Canada played during World War One in France.”
The Birth of a Nation tour will continue across Western Canada before wrapping up in September.
A full schedule of tour dates and stops can be found on their website at vimyflight.ca.
Everybody should see Vimy — everybody. And know what our forebearers did for us.