GREETINGS FROM COPA FLIGHT #68

Thanksgiving Greetings from ...
COPA Flight #68
Wiarton/Keppel Airport CYVV
Wiarton Keppel Airport Newsletter
Publication #103

CO-CAPTAIN's MESSAGE:

When one goes flying around Owen Sound, you can't help but hear all of the flight students taking their training from Owen Sound Flight Services, located at Billy Bishop Regional Airport. I wanted to know more about all this activity, so I contacted Airport Manager and one of the owners of OSFS, Dan Vachon for an interview.

The Owen Sound Airport was opened in 1991 with Ron Fenton as Manager. The same year, the Billy Bishop Flying Club was formed, and an aircraft purchased by the members. Dan was instructing at Kitchener Airport at this time, but later in 1991 came to Owen Sound, started Vachon Aviation, and leased the 172 Cessna from the Club. In 1992 Vachon Aviation obtained its operating certificate and purchased the Cessna from the flying club.

Four years later, Dan sold the business and the aircraft back to the flying club. 1998 found him as a member of Bearskin Air as a pilot, first in the right seat, then in the left. Two years later he moved from Bearskin Air to Air Ontario, flying Dash 8's from the right seat. Dan obtained a leave of absence from Air Ontario in 2003 and returned to Owen Sound. The next year, he created Owen Sound Flight Services, concentrating on flight training and charter work.

Dan's nephew, David Kalistchuk, a former flight student and now licensed pilot and instructor met a young man from India who was enrolled in Georgian College in a non-aviation course, and after much conversation discovered that there was an opportunity for Owen Sound Flight Services to train Indian students for their commercial pilots license here in Canada. David prepared a presentation and off to India he went, where he gave five seminars spelling out the benefits of coming to Canada for their pilots license. 15 applications were received, as as you might say, the rest is history! Over the next 6 years, India will require between 2500 and 4000 pilots to fill their cockpits. The population of India is over 1 billion people, and only have 20 flying schools which produce 200 pilots a year. By comparison, Ontario (population of 10 million) has over 60 flying schools!

Before the first students arrived, OSFS purchased a house in Owen Sound where they can live for the time they are here. The students are picked up every morning and transported to the airport where they are trained, either in ground school, simulator or flying. Currently the school owns 3 172 Cessnas, with another Cessna and a Seneca Twin Piper for multi-engine training in the works. The first 4 students, working 8-10 hours a day, 7 days a week were able to receive their private pilots' license plus Commercial and multi IFR in only 4 months!

In July of 2006 Dan took over the managerial duties of the Owen Sound Billy Bishop Regional Airport. This, along with the Flight School, Dan and his two business partners, David Kaslistchuk and Christina deBoer are very busy people!

This year, OSFS have purchased another home in Owen Sound, where another 5 students will live. For now, they will only train a total of 10 students at a time, but they foresee a total of 30 students in the next year.

One of the side benefits of this success story is the fuel sales that are generated by this flight school -- in 2006, the Owen Sound airport sold $123,000 in aviation fuel, this year they will sell $181,000 of fuel (that's a 48% increase!), and they predict $420,000 in sales for 2008 (taking a 20% profit margin, the airport is looking at about $84,000 from fuel sales alone!).

I had the opportunity to speak with two of the current OSFS students, Manugolu Venkat and Ramkumar Nagaragan, both dedicated, hard-working men who have been here for three months, and are one month away from returning home to their families.

Manugolu is from Bangalore (located in Southern India, population of over 5 million). He is married and until came to Canada, worked for Jet Airways. He had to resign his position with them in order to come here to obtain his training and licenses.

Ramkumar is an AME, currently on a four-month leave of absence from Jet Airways in Chennai (a city of close to 6 million people, located in South India on the East Coast of the Indian Ocean). He has a 4-year-old and a two-month-old at home waiting anxiously for their daddy to return (with his aviation licenses in hand!).

This truly is a local success story and Dan, along with Christina, David and their flight instructors are to be congratulated and we wish them all the best in the future!

Wishing everyone a safe and Happy Thanksgiving
Harold Fry
co-Captain
COPA Flight #68
CYVV

UPCOMING EVENTS:

It's never to early to send us your 2008 events!
Send JENN or HAROLD the stats and we will post it here and on our website - free of charge!
PS: Harold visits numerous aviation events with his camera....
tell us about your event and a story about it may be featured in our newsletters' co-Captain's Message!

*NEW* November 10, 2007 - 15th ANNUAL DINNER, DANCE & AUCTION
Location: St. Thomas Hall, 715 Centre Road, Waterdown
Join Burlington Airport as they celebrate 26 years of COPA Flight #28. Reception, 6:00pm; Dinner, 7:00pm; Dancing, 8:30pm-1:00am. Great buffet dinner, live & silent auctions, cash bar, door prizes! Music by the Centre Road Band. Tickets $60 per person .. contact Jan Slavik, 416-707-7831.
click here for full details

August 2, 2008 - EILEEN VOLLICK CEREMONY
Host: Wiarton (CYVV)
Join us at CYVV as we celebrate the 100th Anniversary of the Birth of Wiarton native Eileen Vollick ... the first licensed Canadian woman pilot. A full day's worth of activities are planned to celebrate Eileen's trailblazing determination for woman pilots in Canada, including the official renaming of our terminal building, displays of vintage memorabilia, entertainment, a gourmet lunch, and more! Stay tuned for more details.

Visit www.copa70.com/FutureEvents.html to check out all of the Oshawa Flight activities.

Full event details as they are passed along to us are listed on our website; click here to view our events page.
All events listed according to most recent.

ROOFTOP CAFÉ:

Our Rooftop Café always has coffee and snacks available!

-- 2007/2008 accommodation sponsors --

AVIATION SCHOLARSHIP:

This year, we are pleased to announce that Cecily Keeshig of Cape Croker is the recipient of the FOTA/COPA Flight #68 Peter Bulmer Memorial Aviation Scholarship award. This year's review board of Joan Bulmer, Harold Fry, Hank Nuis & John Totton met with the applicants throughout July, and considered Cecily to be the most deserving candidate for the award. Cecily had her first taste of aviation at a Young Eagles Day at CYVV, and has since than worked hard to achieve her acceptance at Confederation College Thunder Bay, where she will be in training for a commercial pilot's license. Congratulations Cecily, and good luck with your studies!!

-- 2007/2008 sponsor --

SERVICES ADVERTISING:

If you or your company offers an aviation-related service, simply send Jenn or Harold the details and we will gladly add the information to our publications (12 months on flywiarton website & newsletter), for a small donation!

-- 2007/2008 sponsor --

EVENT ADVERTISING:

Our newsletter reaches over 1000 flight enthusiasts in Ontario, and we are constantly expanding our mailing list. If your Airport is hosting an event, and you would like us to advertise it in our newsletter and on our website's 'Events' page, simply send Jenn or Harold the details and we will gladly add the information to our publications, free of charge!

LINK EXCHANGE:

While browsing through our website, you may have noticed a page titled Ontario Airports. We initiated this page in 2003 to share information from 'neighbouring' Ontario Airports with our website visitors.

In 2004 we started a "Link Exchange". If you would like your airport included in this space (web address, description, call number, special features, contact information, etc.) simply send Jenn an email with the details. In return, all we are asking for is a link to our website (www.flywiarton.com) on yours!

-- 2007/2008 sponsors --

Wiarton/Keppel Airport - the only Airport around that offers a discount on fuel purchases!!

When you buy 100 low-lead fuel at the Wiarton Airport and pay with cash*, you get a discount of 5¢ per litre! (for example, on 80 litres, you save $4.00!)

Not only do you have the opportunity to save money with your gas purchases at the Wiarton Airport, you meet fantastic people and even can opt to take a tour of the beautiful Bruce Peninsula! What more could you ask for!?!

(*The term "cash" refers to cash or cheque*)
debit card purchases are not eligible for gas discount as of September 17, 2004

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Don't be shy - To find out more about what the Wiarton/Keppel Airport has to offer, visit our user-friendly Website at www.flywiarton.com. You'll be glad you did!

Also, our website offers accommodation information and restaurant locations. If you are planning on visiting us and would like information on places to stay or eat, check it out! Also, check out our links for area information and things to see and do!

We LOVE hearing from you! Send your comments, questions or suggestions to:

Harold E. Fry (hfry@bmts.com)
co-Captain, COPA Chapter #68
Wiarton/Keppel Airport - CYVV
or
Jenn MacLeod (aubyn@bmts.com)
Publications Designer, COPA Chapter #68
Wiarton/Keppel Airport - CYVV

~ Watch for our next Newsletter: November 5, 2007 ~
If you know anyone who might be interested in receiving this newsletter, please forward it on.

-- 2007/2008 service sponsors --

-- 2007/2008 service sponsors --

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