Ernest Charles Hoy and His 1919 Flight

On 7 August 1919 -- 100 Years Ago today -- Captain E.C. Hoy made the first ever flight over the Canadian Rockies. A monument in Galt Gardens commemorates the event, a national historic event.

In the 3 June 1939 Lethbridge Herald, a newspaper special to celebrate the opening of the new Lethbridge Airport, Captain Hoy wrote his own story about what happened in 1919:

“The newspapers gave us great support, and the general interest in flying reached a high point. At the time too, the Late John Nelson, who was editor of the Vancouver World, in co-operation with Mr. Buchanan of the Lethbridge Herald and Mr. Woods of the Calgary Herald, was striving towards inauguration of an air mail service across Canada. As a preliminary, a demonstration flight across the most difficult part of the territory – the Rocky Mountains – was considered highly desirable. The plan at that time was to raise funds to purchase a large Vickers machine, but such a machine would have to be shipped from England and funds were not available for the purpose.

In the summer of 1919 it was decided to attempt the flight with one of the machines we had on hand – a Curtiss JN4 with a 90 h.p. motor. George Dixon and I had made a number of preliminary flights over the coast range and, as I had lived in the interior of British Columbia and was somewhat familiar with the contour of the country, we mapped out the various landing spots and wired ahead to the mayors of the towns concerns, advising them of our intention, suggesting that they select and suitably mark out a landing field in their respective areas.

Airport Trouble

Perhaps you do not think that the organization of a flight such as this entailed very much work or diplomacy. Let me tell you that both were needed in large quantities. At the beginning, when the plans were extremely nebulous, it was difficult to secure the co-operation we desired. Had it not been for the whole-hearted and unsparing support of Mr. Nelson, and of the executives of the Lethbridge and Calgary newspapers, it is very doubtful whether the flight would have been achieved. When preliminary notice of the flight was made, large numbers of ex-war pilots wrote to Mr. Nelson from all parts of the Dominion expressing their desire to participate in the projected flight, and the general chaos was intensified by the inability of the mayors and municipal councils, who were anxious to co-operate with us, to visualize what constituted a suitable landing field. However, we went ahead from day to day, planning as best we could in spite of a myriad of difficulties.

Then came the great question as to who would make the flight. A number of members of the League were keen for the favor and so the decision was determined by lot. The lucky draw was mine. The next problem was that of arranging for extra gasoline supply in the plane, as the old training machine we had was no designed to make the distance of 200 miles between Vancouver and Vernon, which was the first intended stop. The difficulty was overcome by removing a tank from the wreckage of one of the crashed machines and placing it in the front seat compartment, with hose connections to the other tank. This primitive arrangement ensured a double supply of gas. The plane used had a maximum air speed of just 90 miles an hour and the only instrument that worked with any degree of accuracy with an air speed indicator; another instrument was an altimeter which indicated the approximate height above sea level at which you were flying. The compass did not work, and the map used was a Canadian Pacific contour map supplied in large quantities to tourists. My first attempt was not successful, as I found after starting that there was some water in the carburetor and, as I started out in the dark, it was necessary to keep the machine in the air until daylight, when I landed. The next attempt was made on August 7th, and worked out very well.

I believe the records will indicate that I started about 4:30 in the morning and landed in Vernon on time. I then flew across to Grand Forks, where I had to select a larger field than the one they had picked out for me. While at Grand Forks, a young man, Hall by name, who was at that time flying in the interior of British Columbia, decided to race me across the Rockies. For that reason, instead of following the railroad from Grand Forks I decided to go over the Crawford Pass. This was a slight departure from the plan. My machine had a ceiling of only something like 7,000 feet and in some parts of the Rockies where the air was rare, the ceiling was less than this. However, I did struggle high enough to clear the Crawford Pass by something like 150 to 200 feet, and landed in Cranbrook, at which point I took off for Lethbridge and followed the railroad through the Crow’s Nest Pass.

At Lethbridge I was greeted by Mr. Buchanan and a large number of enthusiastic citizens, and form there they sped me on my way to Calgary where I landed just as it became dark – 9 o’clock at night, by the aid of flares placed out in the airport in such a way as to show me the direction of the wind and the clear spot to land. Something like 5,000 people waited to greet me at Calgary. In recalling the whole flight now, it seems to me that a lot of good breaks were necessary with that particular machine to make the flight, successful because it was necessary to use the mountain passes as sufficient heights could not be gained to surmount the peaks. I repeat what I said at the beginning; any pilot at the time could have made the flight provided he had the breaks that I had. Life is just like that. Some people get the breaks and the others do not. The whole experience was a grant one for me, but the finest part of it all was the many evidences of kindness displayed by so many people in the enthusiastic receptions I received in the five different towns in which I landed on the way to Calgary, and at Golden and Vancouver upon my return.”