Mr. Speaker, I rise today to recognize the 100th anniversary of the first trans-Canada flight, a significant achievement by members of the Canadian Air Board, a department of the Dominion of Canada established in 1919 to oversee the development of aviation in Canada following the First World War.
On October 7, 1920, a seaplane departed Canadian Air Board Station Dartmouth, now the location of the Royal Canadian Air Force's 12 Wing Shearwater. The aircraft was bound for Vancouver, nearly 5,400 kilometres away, an incredible feat through the successful completion of the first trans-continental crossing of Canada by air.
The air board brought aviation to the attention of the Canadian public, so much so that former Governor General Vincent Massey said, “The aircraft came to Canada as a godsend...It probably has meant more to us than it has to any other country.”
This historic event brought two Canadian coasts together and deserves our recognition.