In Memory of Tusker
305
Greetings all.
My
latest is Ch-113 Labrador #305. This bird had a tragic ending to its long career
with the Canadian Forces, one muddied by political fumbling and lack of concern
for the people who risk their lives "That others may live", as the
motto of our SAR squadrons adhere to.
Click on
images below to see larger images
Starting with the infamous
Hobby-CRAP kit, I was disgusted to find the majority of parts warped, and
the cockpit roof missing from one side half- great job on quality control.
I managed to straighten and replace as necessary. Details such as engine
intakes and radar were scratchbuilt and then resin-cast so I have
duplicates for my Fujimi kit- wish I could get more of that one! The aft
rotor mast was replaced with a resin unit from somewhere- they were in a
box of yardsale finds.
In the 80's CH-113
Labradors and CH-124 Seakings were identified as being in desperate need
of replacement. The Conservative gov't of the day selected EH-101 Merlins
for all, by the Canadian public railed against the price. With the next
election the Liberals promised to scrap the deal. They also promised to
cut a very unpopular services tax. Guess which promise the jerks actually
kept. Funny thing, cancellation penalties were as much as it would have
cost to keep the deal! It took until 1999 before we saw the first new Sar
choppers, and still don't have Sea King replacements!
Lab 305 was returning from a
medevac mission in northern Quebec on 2 Oct 1998 with a relief crew, when an
in-flight fire occurred in the engine compartment. As the crew descended to land
in a field in high winds an explosion at 1500 ft altitude broke the helicopter
apart and killed the crew. The original crew, now almost home on a C-130
Hercules, turned around and parachuted in extremely high winds to reach the
site, but there was nothing that could be done. I dedicate this to Sgt Jean Roy
and the rest of the crew of Tusker 305.
Harv
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