Does Anyone Remember the Maple, Ontario Airport ?

[Crew]

It's wonderful to read this thread. I also flew out of Maple. Took my lessons there, went solo and worked part time on the desk. Ken Trone was the CFI that I remember. This was in the mid to late seventies. My favorite 152 at the time was CF-PKI. MY favorite instructor and friend was Rick Pilson. Going into Greenbank was always a hoot for me. Flew on my student permit as long as I could then finally did a pre Flight Test and did fine but lost my job before I could book the flight test and haven't flown in over 30 years. I have been looking into the Ultra Light equipment as of late in the hopes of getting back in the air.

[BeechjetYKZ]

The King City airport is now the head office for Beamish Construction. If you are ever driving on the 400, you'll see the familiar control-tower shaped building near King-Vaughan Road. From overhead you can see where the runway/ramp was. If you exit and go a little bit east of the 400 you can see the tower.

https://maps.google.ca/maps?q=Maple,+oN ... a&t=h&z=17

https://maps.google.ca/maps?q=Maple,+oN ... 1,,2,-1.48

[ruddersup?]

Met my wife to be there in 1964. Yup still married.
Trained under Jim Garbutt, Len Mctaggart, Vic Arthur. Priceless times

[EA757]

Vic Arthur was the CFI when I trained there.
I did my private flight test with him in 1970.
Great guy.

Ruddersup,
Did you belong to the 400 Flying Club?

[ruddersup?]

It wasn't a Club was it but rather a reason to not dringk alone. I do remember parties in the old farm house and in the late 60's spent much time at King City. A lot of the Maple gang moved up to King. I think the Club was formed after I moved to Barrie.

[Moose47]

G'day

Does anyone remember the purple and white Harvard that was based there in the 1970's?

Cheers...Chris

[ruddersup?]

That was my father-in-law's Harvard. We painted it robin's egg blue, yuk.

[Moose47]

G'day

The one I am talking about was a purple colour with white trim and a some checkering. It was always parked on the north end of the airfield.

Cheers...Chris

[EA757]

I recall one harvard that tied down at Maple,
but it sure wasn't purple and white...

[fleet16b]

That was my father-in-law's Harvard. We painted it robin's egg blue, yuk.

The Harvard was owned by my Dads buddy the late Stan Castle.
Stan flew CF-MTX for many years before selling it to the at that time fledgling Canadian Harvard Assoc.
I have picture of Stan and CF-MTX right here in my office . It was taken at Peterborough Ont in 1969 at the
1st Canadian Aerobatics Championship . He is holding two trophies , so must have won something
The Harvard was was bare aluninum at that point but yes became robins egg blue later and had
Woody the Wood Pecker nose art.

[Moose47]

G'day

Here's a short post-war history of the aircraft.

Cheers...Chris

Harold A. Engel, Waterloo, Ontario, 1965-1966. Registered as CF-MTX

Kenneth Gamble Limited, Hamilton, Ontario, 1968

Stanley Castle, Toronto, Ontario, 1968-1975

Robert A. Hewitt, Woodstock Ontario, December 1975-1992.

Norm Beckham, Bob Hewitt, Len Fallowfield & Canadian Harvard Aircraft Association, Woodstock, Ontario, 1978-1992

Jim Goff, Seminole Air Centre, Seminole, Oklahoma, April 1992-1997. Registered as N3191G

Canadian Harvard Aircraft Association, Tillsonburg, Ontario, 30 July 1997-2009

Registered as C-FMTX. Under restoration 2005-2009

[Craig Wilson]

Hi there,

Rick was my instructor as well back in 1980. He was a fantastic instructor! I remember Deiter Busch and Ken Trone. Ken checked my out on my flight test. I understand that Rick is now retired with Transport Canada. Like you, I stopped flying in 1981 but maintained my medical until 1993 and did some dual a few times. Recently I got back into flying and am currently flying out of Burlington Airpark. It's a really nice little airport with really good instructors. Reminds me of Maple. If you are in the area I can recommend it highly.

Good luck!

Craig

[airbusflyer]

Started my flying lessons there back in 1979. Great place to learn, especially as a 16 year old. Buttonville was too intimidating and more like a swanky golf and country club then a flying club...

Vaguely remember the annual banquets, and some of the great characters that instructed out of there.

Remember taking off in a fully laden C172 on a hot August day...learned about density altitude that day as I just cleared the strip mall to the east!
Remember being in ground school the morning the Toronto Airways Aztec crashed into Lake Simcoe killing all on board...we heard the news while in class. Shook us all up.

That was 40 years ago...oh how time flies!

A military career later, two airlines later (C3 and Big Red), I look back at my roots as a teenager learning to fly, and still living the dream. I wouldn't change a thing and thank Maple for the formative years that helped shape me to the aviator I am today.

I now fly recreationally out of Burlington (as a previous poster stated). He is right, somewhat similar feel to the Maple days...it just takes me over an hour to get there!

Would be great if we had a field like King or Maple given their proximity to Toronto...oh well, we had it good back then...who would have guessed all the fields would close?

It's sad to look back as aviation was just so much simpler back then. I feel for the kids starting out, my son included. I hope they will have as much "fun" as we had.

[PilotDAR]

One of my early projects was the repair and installation of a set of PK 3500 amphib floats on a friend's Cessna 185. Not long after, I had to fly one of his planes to Maple. He flew down in the 185 amphib to Maple to pick me up, with the promise that I could fly it back to Pottageville. This was my first amphib flying from left seat. Taxiing out in the confined area of the Maple ramp was intimidating, though the wings passed over everything, so it was not so bad. In due time, and after careful taxiing, I was on the takeoff fun. I climbed out, getting used to the large plane in my hands.

I was just out of the circuit, headed to Pottageville. I heard a shriek of pain from the owner, who was right seat, followed by yelling “get this thing back on the ground fast!”. I looked over, and to my great surprise, saw his bare legs (it was summer shorts season) covered with black engine oil. He was quickly wiping it away, as it was obviously very hot! It was only rolling his seat all the way back, that got him out of the still present stream spraying out from under the instrument panel.

I pulled the power back, which slowed the stream a bit, and rejoined the circuit. He could not get near the controls, so my first amphib landing was on my own, other than for some heated advice! I got down no problem, and taxied back in. The two or three quarts of oil in the cockpit, told me that there would be enough left in the engine to taxi in and park.

Examination showed that it was the failure of a very fragile solid aluminum oil pressure instrument line. The restricting orifice which should have been in that line, did not seem to be effective. It was a mess to clean up, and we had a new line made for us there, then off we went, still mopping up oil from the cabin floor.

Toronto Airways Aztec crashed into Lake Simcoe killing all on board

I was a grade 12 student at King City Secondary School when that happened. Though I did not connect it at the time, my physics teacher was gone for two weeks a while later. When he returned, he asked me to stay after class. I was wondering which student deficiency was about to be highlighted to me. Instead, he explained in confidence that he had been on the coroner's jury for that accident. He knew I was a pilot, and he had some questions about piloting - particularly low flying over a featureless surface.

[PlanePaully]

I don't really remember much about the airport, but my very first flight was in a 172 from the Maple airport. I was so young that I could not see over the panel! Our family friend Ron took my dad and me on a sightseeing tour over Niagara Falls. I had always been afraid of heights, but I loved that flight and felt no fear at all!

[Tom_Wells]

It's wonderful to read this thread. I also flew out of Maple. Took my lessons there, went solo and worked part time on the desk. Ken Trone was the CFI that I remember. This was in the mid to late seventies. My favorite 152 at the time was CF-PKI. MY favorite instructor and friend was Rick Pilson. Going into Greenbank was always a hoot for me. Flew on my student permit as long as I could then finally did a pre Flight Test and did fine but lost my job before I could book the flight test and haven't flown in over 30 years. I have been looking into the Ultra Light equipment as of late in the hopes of getting back in the air.

I flew with Rick Pilson back in 1983. He checked me out on several Maple based aircraft at the time. Attended ATC training with him (and Kelly Armstrong also from Maple Airport) back at the same time. Lost touch with him shortly after training at Toronto Center. Would love to re-connect with him or even Kelly! Anybody know where he might be?

[Canoehead]

Someone mentioned King City Airport... The buildings are all gone now. Beamish and the following company no longer seen anywhere.
Just empty land.

[Jack Stoddart]

I do remember Maple.. I worked at the King City Airport as a 13 year old, cutting grass and doing odd jobs for free rides in whoever had an empty seat
that was the word around the airport which worked out well.. In the springtime before there was a paved runway it was mud city and we used the runway at Maple for training aircraft, Im not sure what was the out come but we used the Island airport a couple years then King City got paved.
It would be nice to hear from anyone from that aera.. I have some pictures of club aircraft --- SSN -ULU-RGB-Home built - ZOT - Id like to find pictures of - UYU - RGE ( CRASHED ) - DND - These planes are part of my memories of King City .. and miss those days large ....... Jack