Aviation

First World War

Aviation

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Transcript

Newspaper clipping of The Montreal Daily Mail, motion of soldiers moving around

Silhouette of a man moving across the screen to the right three times and silhouette of an airplane

When war broke out in 1914, Canada had an Aviation Corps of three men and one plane.

Airplane moving towards takeoff with people walking around on the grassy terrain

By the end of that same year, this first attempt at a

AIrplane taking off!

national air force had… well… plummeted.

AIrplane in sky giving off black smoke as it descends toward the ground circling many times

Airmen working with plane parts in factory

We tried again in 1916, but in 1918,

Two women and men working with airplanes

Women working together on the airplane drawing white pieces of cloth over the wings

when the war ended, we still had no air force.

A officer in uniform sits beside a dog, petting the dog

Faces of airmen in front of the plane's propeller

So how did we end up with so many pilots and flying aces?

Airmen standing together smiling and having a chat

Well, many Canadians served with the

A huge line of military personnel walking in formation with guns slung across their shoulders, young children and men standing with their backs to photo watching the crowd, wooden buildings in teh background

British Royal Flying Corps,

An instructor gives insturction to five airmen who are sitting facing the front of the classroom with white charts of paper in front of them; logo on front board keeps changing

the Royal Naval Air Service and the RAF -

Distant view of soldiers standing on hills looking over the trees and landscape of military personnel different types of formation spelling out the design of RAF

Flags flying and airplane soaring past

the Royal Air Force.

Parade of airmen follow in formation inside a recruitment building

But in the beginning, they only recruited men

Spinning graphic of a photo of three airmen standing in front of an airplane

with a valid pilot’s license and aviators

Men in normal attire exercising and lifting their legs in a marching formation, aviation recruitment training

had to pay for their own training.

Airmen running in sacks as part of excercise, recruitment training with stone buildings in the background

That didn’t fly long. Soon, more pilots were

Group of airmen bent over in a circle formation running for exercise

Parade of airmen clothed in heavy jackets and proper attire marching towards a stone 3-storey building

needed than British and Canadian civilian

Symbols circle the screen, airplanes fly by in the sky

training schools could supply.

A group of airmen stand at attention and being their march

So in 1917 the Royal Flying Corps opened

Huge wooden airplane with a great many airmen working on top and on ground using tarps on the side of the airplane

Airmen working at the propeller of the airplane

three training stations in Canada:

Airmen look on taking notes as one instructor works on the propeller of the airplane

Instructor providing training to the airmen

Aerial view of Canadian base setup with canopy tents of equipment and airplanes

Borden, Deseronto and North Toronto.

Map drawing of Camp Borden and map directions of Ottawa and Toronto

Aerial view of army trucks with military personnel travelling down the paved road, many onlookers as personnel pass by, people going off in every direction

In no time at all,

Airmen spins the propeller of the airplane to get it started

Canada became one of the world’s

Airplane taking off

leading training facilities for pilots.

Airplane in air

Aerial view of airplane passing over the highways and open green landscape

Back view of pilot sitting in flight in his cockpit

Five airplanes fly in formation

Muddy terrain within the training camp, buildings in the distance

Plane flying over the buildings within the training compound

Airmen cheering and waving their caps, flag flying

When the United-States joined the war,

Military personnel walking around training base with canopy tents and aircraft equipment all around them

Canada lost two of these facilities to

Airmen standing alongside the train track, train can by seen on track

Fort Worth, Texas,

Airmen in uniform standing in front of train and on its' rooftop

Train travelling on the mountainous countryside with airmen laying on the roof as trains goes by

but in early 1918, the Royal Air Force

Air crew transporting an airplane onto the back of transport truck

Transport truck leaving with airplane on back while air crew stand by

returned to Canada and invested

Military personnel fires off rounds of ammunition standing in front of a wooden fence; snow on the ground

in even more advanced training units.

Front and back part of the airplanes

Metal constructed equipment firing artillery from the moutainside, blasts of smoke in the distance

Tow airmen firing ammunition under canopy with sandbags behind them

At the end of the war,

Air crew pushing airplane

after only twenty-one months in Canada,

Air crew watch as airplane takes off

the RAF had recruited over 16,000 personnel,

Two airplanes circling on ground before takeoff

Split screen of lady on right tele-typing and gentleman on left with radio communication equipment

Women assisting with plane maintenance

Air Force pilots marching in formation

and trained more than 3,000 pilots.

Air Force personnel clothed in winter wear walk through snow in front of a building

Even though the life expectancy of

Airplane flying in sky

a wartime pilot was about three weeks,

Airplane explosion on ground with clouds of black smoke coming from teh burned wreckage

these Canadians served with skill and gut.

Airplanes doing maneuvers in the sky

Four Air Force crew pose in front of camp

Of the 27 allied pilots with more than 30 combat victories,

Graphic photo spins around showing an officer having conversation with pilot while sitting in airplane

Graphic photo of Albert Desbrisay Carter appears on screen - 28 victories

10 were Canadians, and 3 won the

Graphic photo of Frank Granger Quigley appears on screen - 33 victories

Commonwealth’s highest award of valour,

Graphic photos appear on screen sliding left to right - WIlliam Barker, William Bishop and Alan MacLeod

the Victoria Cross.

Graphic photo of Victoria Cross

Description

Narration on archival images that evoke the upheavals that marked the recruitment and training of Canadian airmen during the First World War and the importance of Canadians in the success of the Royal Air Force (RAF).

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