Fleet 16B Finch MKII - Canadian Museum of Flight - Langley, BC
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T0SHEA
N 49° 05.954 W 122° 37.559
10U E 527302 N 5438554
This four-time-repaired then restored Finch still flies regularly at air shows and other special functions.
Waymark Code: WMGCWB
Location: British Columbia, Canada
Date Posted: 02/15/2013
Views: 3
Manufactured in 1940, this biplane is well travelled. It served the RCAF in Ontario and Quebec before being sold to a private individual who flew it in Mexico, New Mexico, then returned it to Canada.
The information page accompanying the airplane:
Serial 542, RCAF 4725, Manufactured 1940
One 125 hp. Kinner B-5 Five Cylinder Radial Air Cooled Engine.
Maximum Speed 113 mph.
Empty Weight 1,122 1b.
Loaded Weight 1,860 Ib
Span 28'0"
Length 21'8"
Height 7'9"
Wing Area 194 sq.ft.
CMF's Finch was used at No.9 EFTS, St. Catherines Ont. and No.11 EFTS, Cap de Madeleine, PQ., where it suffered damage in no less than 4 minor accidents.
After WWII G. Barry Jackson, who restored it and donated it to CMF in 1979, operated this aircraft in Mexico for years, then New Mexico, USA and finally re-imported it into Canada in 1976. The Finch flies regularly at various functions and air shows.
GENERAL INFORMATION. The Fleet I6B Finch II is a progressive development of the original Consolidated Fleet primary trainer, manufacture of which was commenced in Canada by Fleet Aircraft in 1930. A total of 431 Finch trainers were built for the RCAF between 1939 and 1941. Essentially similar to the Fleet 10, the Fleet 16 first entered RCAF service with tandem open cockpits, but the severity of the Canadian winter necessitated the introduction of a sliding canopy at an early stage in the trainer's service career. The Finch was a mainstay of the RCAF prior to and during the early part of WWII, flying at the Elementary Flying Training Schools in parallel with the better-known Tiger Moth. Both types were later replaced by the Fairchild Cornell.
Type of Aircraft: (make/model): Fleet 16B Finch MKII
Tail Number: (S/N): 542
Construction:: original aircraft
Location (park, airport, museum, etc.): Canadian Museum of Flight
inside / outside: inside
Access restrictions:
No touch
Other Information:: Not listed
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Visit Instructions:
Photo of aircraft (required - will be interesting to see if the aircraft is ever repainted or progress if being restored)
Photo of serial number (required unless there is not one or it is a replica)
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