Before Telus, Before iPhone, there were pigeon "phones"

 "......In an era without airports........." and only this morning the Vancouver Sun has a way back then thingy on YVR "new" airport.... hard copy only, it seems.

For those of Vancouver who only see Jericho Beach ...... as a beach, for iPhones, there was an earlier history whereby it was a beach that was ideal for float planes use, militarily speaking.......

Earl MacLeod: It was something new; that's what made us so interested in what we were doing.  They weren't paying us very much, but we did it because of out interest.

Five of the HS21's acquired a short time earlier from the U.S. Navy were assigned to Jericho and went into service quickly.  In an era without airports,the ability to operate off water was vital. Coastal waters and lakes large enough to accommodate a flying boat with a landing speed of about 50 miles per hour could be used as a base.  It was necessary, however, to haul the boat-hulled aircraft ashore periodically to ensure that the wooden hulls didn't become waterlogged.  Performance could be drastically reduced if this were allowed to happen.

Harold Davenport: The operative aircraft at the base were Curtiss H2S21. flying boats that had been designed and built starting in 1916.  The whole boat would be built [assembled] at the base.  The hull was wood and the wings were substantially wood, the struts were wood, the spars were wood, the ribs wer wood, the hull was covered in wood. In other words the aircraft itself was built out of wood, out of fabric and out of steel - 800 pounds of round, high-tensile steel flying wires.!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Don McLaren: They were made of mahogany ..... mahogany planking on wood.  We called them flying cigars.

Gordon Ballentine: I had my first airplane ride at Jericho Beach in an HS21..  Do you know what that is?  That's a flying forest!

-------- The Curtis HS21. single engined flying boat was, from 1919 until 1929, the workhorse of Canadian Government. Air Force and commercial air services.  Most aircraft of this type serving in British Columbia were former United States Navy machines that had either been turned over to the Canadian Government following World War I, or had been purchased by commercial concerns from the USN surplus.  Based on the 1916 HSI, the HS21, was equipped with the 400-hp Liberty engine and had a wingspan of 74 feet.

Sometimes we come across images that are absolutely astounding!

If you're looking for more information, ask your local Public Librarian. 84 pages.....

 

Updated Link: 2022-07-27  2024-10-27

Jericho Beach Air Station

 

Hmmmm,....

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 The Jericho Beach Flying Boat Station 1920-1947.

Four separate veterans' organizations, 801 (Vancouver) Wing, Air Force Association of Canada; Air Crew Association (Vancouver Branch); Air Force Officers Association and the British Columbia Veterans Commemorative Association, have a formed an informal to erect an educational monument to record the little known story of the Jericho Beach Flying Boat Station, constructed in 1920 through the auspices of the Federal Air Board of the day. Jericho Beach was the first Canadian Air Force and, in 1924, the first Royal Canadian Air Force station in British Columbia, marking an important milestone in Air Force history. The station also has a rich history in pioneering aviation and in the development of British Columbia's remote coastal communities via the civil flight services provided to various Federal and Provincial government ministries. These services include patrolling, mapping, inspection and transportation, encompassing all areas of British Columbia's rugged coastal waterways during the 1920's and early 1930's. In the years leading up to the Second World War the station played a vital role in expanding British Columbia's coastal air defences and, with the establishment of Western Air Command, was responsible for all Royal Canadian Air Force activities in Western Canada. With the replacement of flying boats by long-range land-based aircraft at the end of the war and Jericho Beach Air Station closed in March 1947, the base was taken over by the Army as a military centre. In 1969 the military vacated the former Jericho Air base property when it was transferred to the City of Vancouver. In the ensuing years the property was developed as a park under the jurisdiction of the Vancouver Parks Board and the hangars, personnel quarters and most of the other facilities were removed and the station's role in history disappeared along with its structures. Another interesting element of the Jericho Beach story involves third-generation major British Columbia ship-builder, Clarence Wallace, builder of the Second World War "Victory" ships, who later became Lieutenant Governor of British Columbia (1950 - 1955), had four sons in the Royal Canadian Air Force. In 1944 he presented the station with a sports field in the name of his four sons, all serving in the Royal Canadian Air Force during the Second World War. His oldest son was a Hurricane pilot in the Battle of Britain and was lost in action over Europe a year later. Two sons were Spitfire pilots and both were shot down in 1944, one over Albania, the other over France just after D-Day, surviving the war as Prisoners of War. The presentation was marked by the dedication of a cairn and plaque, the event widely reported by the media. In the years following the transfer of the property the Wallace Field was incorporated into the extended sports field area and, sometime around 1980, the cairn was demolished and the plaque disappeared, another piece of history was erased. In the late 1990's and early 2000's, interest in the missing plaque was revived and through efforts of 801 Wing the plaque was unexpectedly discovered (2000), after narrowly escaping disposal as unwanted metal trash. It was turned over to 801 Wing after consultation with David Wallace, the last surviving son, subsequently leading to the current effort in conjunction with Second World War veterans to restore the Wallace Monument and plaque, also include plaques recognizing the historical importance of the Jericho Beach Seaplane station and the contribution of all military personnel who served there. This has now been achieved. This memorial was dedicated on Sunday, 19 October 2008.