Any LaRonge Aviation crew out there from 1977-1988

[olorin]

It's where it all started.....how about you? Anyone out there from LaRonge Aviation Services circa. 1977 to 1988.
La Ronge, SK Lynn Lake,MB Yellowknife, NWT
A bunch of us did some amazing flying there back " in the day "..........

I started in Yellowknife, Spring of 1977....bare commercial,city kid....A Vertical ! Learning curve......still givin' her though!

[ex-NWT]

1984 and again 1985 I think. Long ago anyway.
SK and NWT

[dhc-8]

maintenance or flight crew... maintenance was very very top notch back then...

[robertsailor1]

Approx 1985 flying the Otter for C&M Airways out of La Loche..lots of trips into La Ronge.

[olorin]

Absolutely correct re maintenance...with engineers like Vic Cristobal,Blake McQueen,Wayne Catte,Ken Johnson....the list goes on and on.Back in those years, all a/c at all the bases basically flew sun-up to sun down.If you want to read an interesting poem re Aircraft mechanics, check out The Forgotten Man.

[dhc-8]

maint. chief back then was ray morin. he was top of the list as chief engineers...worked years in the arctic before heading to lras..

[ex-NWT]

flt crew-my first job )

[Rowdy]

My pops flew for C&M in the late 70's and my uncle for La ronge around the same time...

[duCapo]

I didn't work for LaRonge, but I was flying the otter in Lynn lake 76 to sept 78 for Parsons Airways Northern. Knew the guys next door at Eldon lake. They were sure busy times, year round, except for freezeup and breakup. Good thing TC didn't look at duty and flight hours then:-)

[xdriver]

I was with La Ronge Aviation in the mid 70's Yellowknife base. We had Twin Otter ZZM and Beaver GQD there. Vic Cristobal was the engineer that summer, Loretta Winslow was dispatcher. I have just retired as of July 01 after 42 years in this great buisness.

[olorin]

Hello xdriver....maybe we flew together. I started out as a swamper/copilot on ZZM in the spring of 77.As I recall, Brian Mercer was the base manager in yzf at the time and the dispatcher was Joannie.Engineers there at the time were Blake McQueen and Vic Cristobal.After freeze up myself and the other copilot ( B. Gordon )... went to La Ronge and worked in the hangar,until the Spring of 78 when we started on the C185.....mine was ...C-FWBS

Congratulations on a long career......

[robertsailor1]

Was trying to remember the crew in La Loche at C&M Airways when I flew there. I spent most of my time in the Otter CFLAP and the Beaver was next with a smaller amount in the Norseman. Marv Bather was running things for Johnny Midget. The only pilots I remember were Pat and Freddy (a gal) and Joe the wrench twister. There were 3 other pilots and all of them great folks but my memory is not doing well.

[Rowdy]

I hear fond stories all the time. Names like Paul beaulac, Kirk, dave Odynski etc..

[kilpicki]

Blake and Vic are both with AMS in Luanda for 8 or 10 yrs now. They do speak of their Yellowknife days fondly.

[BaronBob]

Flew out of LaRonge Av from 1978 to 1985 ...Cyril Williams was chief pilot, George Sewell was chief check pilot, Richard '64' Speed was dispatcher. It was a great time to be a bush pilot, the work was never ending and while on the Beaver one month had over 300 hours-which the MoT were not pleased about.

A lot of the crew I worked with have gone west into the sunset: Teddy fell out of a TO in the NWT, Marcel got a viral pneumonia and died in two days, and some of the old guys just got their living license canceled.

Every spring I get the itch to get back on floats, just for one more summer of contract flying with some rock doctors, but then reality intervenes.

Any young pilot should spend some time as a bush bunny flogging that Single Swine off a lake on a hot day, floats near to sinking and the trees getting bigger and bigger. Even though with the GPS and glass cockpits it is much safer, the real experiences you have will make you a better pilot and a better person.

[Liftdump]

Agreed Baronbob,Agreed

[EPR]

A lot of history/experience in this here feed! I would like to know more about Teddy's incident, as I was told about it, as a DHC6 Co-Joe, and also, does anyone here have that picture of some gorgeous looking blonde wearing daisy dukes and a cowboy hat on wading in the water with an Air LaRronge Twotter in the background?

[W5]

2ottergold1vt1.jpg (101.66 KiB) Viewed 2306 times

This one?

[EPR]

Yup, that's the one! Thanks!

[180guy]

Good memories … I got my start at La Ronge Aviation in 1975 and recognize a lot of the names mentioned. Ray Sinnote was another character. George Sewell is still around La Ronge, as is Twin Otter VOG and Beaver IFJ

[cncpc]

Anybody work with Ian Ross?

[cykj]

My favourite George Sewell line, usually after some form of damage or minor catastrophe: "You got to learn not to do that".

We had a Transport mandated holiday once due to some alleged fuel miscalculations. There was a huge party the night before and the most junior guy had to go and sleep in the office the next day to answer the phone if it rang.

Good times. Except for the part about having about 10 days off in a 10 month period.

[Av8trn]

I worked for LRAS from 74-86. YYL and YZF mainly. Many long days and lots of hours. Just saw poor MAS had a bad accident. Lots of hours in her. Sad.

[Spandau]

YZF in 88 and LaRonge in ‘89. Good times!!

[The Hammer]

YZF in 88 and LaRonge in ‘89. Good times!!

Bad luck for Pat Sr on the timing with the closing of YZF and then diamonds found the next summer.

GS "At least pretend you know what you are doing" during a training flight. Needless to say, I didn't get cut loose on the "buck'85" that day.