Forty-seven young people had the thrill of a lifetime recently when they became Junior Aviators for a day.

The Calgary Recreational and Ultralight Flying Club, aka COPA Flight 114, held its first COPA For Kids Day on October 10th. Originally planned for October 3rd, it was moved at the last minute due to a bad weather forecast for that day. October 10th turned out to be cold (5 °C) but good flying weather. Although snow showers threatened all day, they didn’t materialize until well after the event was completed.

Seven aircraft flew 47 Junior Aviators doing five flights each from 8:30 to noon. The event was well planned and executed due to the diligence of committee chair Carl Forman and his 16 volunteers. Chestermere-Kirkby Field (CFX8) hosted the event. The main hangar (where the heat was) served for registration, ground school, and socializing while Junior Aviators awaited their turn to fly.

Our wonderful volunteers were:

Pilots doing the flying – Troy Branch (RV10), Ken Beanlands (Christavia), Mike Sweere (C-170), Jim Corner (Kitfox), Pat Cunningham (C-140), Brian Vasseur (CH250), Bob Kirkby (PA28-235).

Registration and Administration – Barb Roberts, Kay Clarke, Ida Kespe.

Ground School Instructor – Ed D’Antoni.

Official Photographer – Renee Beanlands.

Load Marshallers – Glen Clarke, Dave Kirkeby, Garret Komm.

Aircraft marshaller – Andy Gustafson.

Committee Chair and refreshment provider – Carl Forman.

The grins and appreciation from the kids are really heartwarming to hear, but most impressive were the many comments from the parents about what great community spirit this shows and how professional and well-run the event was.

It’s really hard to say who had more fun; the kids, the pilots, the ground crew, or the parents. Everyone had a wonderful time. What a great way to spend a Saturday. We can’t wait ’til next year.