Aviation and Heritage Roundup April 2026
Provided by Paul Squires, CAPA-ACCA Contact, Wetaskiwin, Alberta
New Books
Direct links to new books from Aerodynamic Media, LLC:
Complete Guide to the Bristol Beaufighter: A Fully Upgraded and Expanded Edition
The Real Story of the Iconic Harrier and the Man Who Made It
Air Battles Over the Baltic 1941: Second in Four Volume Series Coming Soon
The Compelling Story of the SPAD Cannon Aircraft of WW1
USN, USMC Aircraft History (1911–1919) Told With Photos, Drawings, Color Profiles
Early British and French aircraft in First World War
The Avro Vulcan again seems to be the Flavour of the Month
Avro Vulcan AEO Sets Out to Answer Common Cold War Question in New Book
and
Shaping the Avro Vulcan: A Full History of its Development and Engineering
and
Vulcan to Spitfire and Back: Flying in an RAF Squadron During the Cold War
Polish Military Aircraft and Pilots 1918-1939 Detailed in New Illustrated History
New Illustrated History Focuses on the Folland Gnat, Red Arrow and Cold War
Fighter
New Model Kit News
Eduard Announces Limited Edition Spitfire Mk. I Kit With 11 Liveries, Book
Arma Hobby to Release Completely New Tool F4F-3 Wildcat
MDesign Releases High Quality, Resin Model Kit of LFG Roland D.II
ICM Announces Development of New Tool Lockheed Hudson Kit Finally!
First Look: DBMK’s Supermarine Seafire F/FR Mk 47 Renders
ICM Releases New Late-Production HP.52 Hampden “Churchill’s Flying Suitcase” Kit
Markings for a 420 Sqn. and 408 Sqn. aircraft
Special Hobby Releases Images Detailing Progress on “Family” of Hawker Tempest Kits
Arma Hobby Releases New Curtiss P-36C With 3D Printed Parts, Masks, 3 Liveries
Italeri Releases CANT Z.1007 Alcione Kit With Six New Liveries
Italeri Releases FW 190 A-7/A8 Focused on Luftwaffe Aces Seems to a few very FW-190
month.
MiniArt Releases New FW 190D-9 (Mimetall) Advanced Model Kit
MiniArt Releases New Tool FW 190D-9 (Mimetall) Basic Model Kit
Arma Releases New Tool Me 262 A-1a Based on “Highly Accurate” 3D Model
First Look: Airscale’s 1/32 Dornier Do 17 Renderings, Test Prints Scale 1/32!
Eduard Releases New “Weekend Edition” P-40N Model Kit
MikroMir Releases New Junkers Ju-388 L-1 Model Kit
LukGraph Developing “Truly Special” 1/32 Ansaldo SVA-5 Model Kit
MiniArt to Release Junkers F13 Mid-Production Model Kit
News
April 30 – Fort Worth Museum hit hard by hailstorm
Fort Worth Aviation Museum Assessing Major Hail Damage
Fort Worth Aviation Museum asking for donations for hail damage repairs
April 30 – Unexploded bomb found in Plymouth, England. Incident is ongoing and it looks like May Day will be a ‘blast.’
Bomb disposal team works on 250kg WW2 device in Plymouth with thousands of people evacuated – BBC News
April 30 – Challenger to replace Sentry AWACS
NATO Selects Saab and Bombardier to Replace Aging E-3A Sentry Fleet with GlobalEye
Platform – Aviation News
April 30 – Remembering Bessie Coleman
The legacy of Bessie Coleman’s courage, 100 years on | World Air Sports
Federation
April 30 – Bucking the trend, restoring a Stearman as a crop duster
From Downwind Dreams to Duster Tribute: Mike Hoffrage’s Stearman Story – Vintage Aviation News
April 30 – World’s Oldest Boeing, specifically built to fly mail to Canada and back
Adam’s Profile Reports: Boeing B-1 Flying Boat, The Oldest Existing Airplane Built by The Boeing Company – Vintage Aviation News
April 30 – Oldest still operating airports in Canada
The 5 Oldest Airports In Canada Still Operating In 2026
April 30 – Beijing to ban sale of drones as a security precaution.
China to ban drone sales in Beijing citing security concerns
April 30 – Anyone involved it systems procurement will understand this problem
America’s Air Traffic Control Still Uses Floppy Disks: Here’s The $12.5 Billion Fix
April 29 – WACO aircraft is gone.
WACO Aircraft Shuts Down Operations
April 29 – Man arrested for using laser on SAR aircraft in Comx
B.C. man arrested after laser strike on military rescue plane
April 29 – An indepth look at RCAF Kittyhawk #1034
Randy’s Warbird Profiles: Curtiss P-40E Warhawk (Kittyhawk Mk. IA) #1034 – Vintage Aviation News
April 29 – Harbour Air being sued for collision with fishing boat (and, yes, that is not a Beaver in the article)
California tourist sues for injuries after float plane, boat collided | Vancouver Sun
April 29 – SE.5 Replica project for sale
Full-Scale SE.5a Project For Sale: “No Expense Spared, Includes Engine”
April 28 – Restoring the last Canadair Sabre (Warning: Ads on site)
Restoring the last F-86 Sabre fighter jet – BIC News
April 28 – Another Air Canada route cancelled, to Algeria
Air Canada Unexpectedly Cancels All Flights On Its Longest Nonstop Route To Africa
April 28 – Japan tests robots for baggage handling.
Japan Airlines trials humanoid robots as ground handlers
April 28 – No injuries, but Yuck!
American Airlines Jet Evacuated After Toilet Overflow Floods Cabin – Aviation A2Z
April 27 – Helicopter SAR in Greenland
Air Greenland: The edge of everything – Vertical Mag
April 27 – Edmonton does away with it’s City Historical Board
Edmonton history buffs consider impact of looming dissolution of historical board | CBC News
Twenty years ago I recall the Provincial Geologist researched a ‘Fossil Walk’, of fossils to be found in stone in older downtown Edmonton buildings, but it was not possible as most of the older buildings had been or were being knocked down for development, and those left would have needed a bus, not a path. Seriously, Edmonton does Real Estate, not History.
April 26 – After a month the extent of damage to US bases in the gulf is coming out. And one was by a strike by an airplane that should not have succeeded
Don’t Sleep on the Tiger II – Lawyers, Guns & Money
April 25 – The Dutch remember more than Canadians from their liberation
The grave adopters still caring for fallen Australian soldiers – ABC News
April 25 – A220 sales looking good Sad that Bombardier sold it
Why The Airbus A220 Is Becoming More Attractive To US Airlines
April 24 – Need for screening for flights from Yellowknife and Nunavut noted
Nunavut leaders push for screening at Yellowknife Airport, amid rise in organized crime | CBC News
April 24 – China’s Mars sample return mission planning
China Selects Five Global Projects for Landmark Tianwen-3 Mars Sample-Return Mission – Aviation News
April 23 – A look at the G-23 Delphin/Goblin displayed at Pensacola. A history of it’s past and some on the G-23 in general, some of which is curious. At least it recognizes the Canadian history of this aircraft, which the US Naval Museum doesn’t (but that is their policy).
The First of the Grummans: The Grumman FF-1 at the National Naval Aviation Museum – Vintage Aviation News
April 23 – X-Files, or just odd?
Killing of Calgary-born scientist tied to mysterious U.S. deaths, disappearances despite quick arrest | CBC News
April 22 – Analysis of Rob Ford’s Challenger shows of limited use in province
$28.9M private jet province bought, plans to sell, could have used only 10% of Ontario airports | CBC News
April 22 – Rising fuel prices having major effect on air travel. Here is one example. And this will affect A.220 sales.
Lufthansa cuts 20,000 summer flights as fuel prices surge
April 22 – And Air Transat
Air Transat cutting hundreds of flights due to high jet fuel costs
And WestJet too
WestJet cuts flight capacity due to jet fuel costs
April 22 – Expensive Selfie
South Korea fighter jets collided due to pilots taking pictures, report finds
April 22 – Finnish Air Cadets get into trouble for GPS sketching
Finnish trainee pilots investigated after drawing phallic flight path
April 22 – An amusing video about a prison in Kansas that is seeking an ‘environmentally safe’ method of dealing with flocks of Canadian Geese that are assaulting the guards and damaging buildings. Unfortunately, permissions for copying the URL are set to not allowed, and this locks your computer. I think this is done to prevent companies like Facebook and others from stealing and grabbing stories for free. They still do.
Good luck fighting the Canadian Geese! One can already hear the jokes on this story. This Hour Has 22 Minutes will be on it.
From some other sources
Canada geese harassing Kansas prison
Kansas prison has a Canada goose problem, so KDOC will harass geese – Rural Messenger
April 21 – Scrap a PV-1 Ventura with a wartime past, but save a PV-2 Harpoon with none. California be crazy.
March
Field Air Museum Secures PV-2 Harpoon – Vintage Aviation News
April 21 – Field too muddy? Using drones for seed planting
Drone seeding gives P.E.I. farmers a head start on season | CBC.ca
April 20 – Spitfire replica donated to Canadian Harvard Aircraft Association
Spitfire replica removed from KW Surplus rooftop, donated to aviation association in Tillsonburg
April 20 – Blue Origin rocket fails to get required orbit of satellite
Blue Origin rocket grounded after satellite ‘mishap’
The Space Review: The great launch constraint
April 20 – Uninvited Guests, but no damage when balloon lands in small back yard
Hot air balloon makes emergency landing in California backyard
April 19 – Loss of one heck of a volunteer!
Wichita’s “Rosie the Riveter,” B-29 DOC volunteer Connie Palacioz dies at 101
April 18 – Game Delay
Skydiver rescued after crashing into scoreboard before Virginia Tech spring game | College football | The Guardian
Watch: Skydiver crashes into jumbotron at US football game
April 18 – Emergency diversion. Passengers evacuated. Bomb squad called. Sometime the news has no news at all! Still, Pittsburgh. That’s a shock.
United plane makes emergency landing in Pittsburgh over ‘possible security issue’ | Pennsylvania | The Guardian
April 18 – And another, B.747 Cargo emergency landing in Whitehorse
China Airlines plane diverted to Whitehorse due to concerns around smoke onboard | CBC News
April 17 – IWM Bolingbroke goes to South Yorkshire Museum. I guess Bolingbrokes that served in Alaska, completed all tasks asked of them, and without any losses don’t count as operational outside of Canada
Rare Bolingbroke Joins South Yorkshire Aircraft Museum for Restoration – Vintage Aviation News
WW2 aircraft donated to Yorkshire Aircraft Museum for restoration
April 17 – Air Canada cancels all flights to JFK, based on economic reasons
Air Canada Abruptly Cancels All Flights To U.S. Destination That Is “No Longer Economic”
April 17 – US trying to outlaw civilian drones that might record ICE activities
Balloon Juice – Trump take (drone friendly) sky
Balloon Juice – Trump Take Drone
April 17 – Sweden’s Space Centre
Inside the Nordic base key to Europe’s orbital space race
And Canada’s plans
Federal bill aims to enable ‘homegrown’ space launches | CBC News
April 16 – A look at aircraft nose-art, from the Bomber Command Museum
How nose art became symbolic for second world war planes
April 16 – Winnipeg Museum begins building replica Artemis II capsule
Artemis II: Capsule replica at Winnipeg’s aviation museum
News & Stories – Royal Aviation Museum of Western Canada
April 16 – Effect of Iran War on aviation jet fuel, as last tankers from Gulf dock in Europe.
Europe has ‘maybe 6 weeks of jet fuel left’, energy boss warns
April 16 – Flight Attendants still fighting against unpaid work
Flight Attendants Renew Call for Unpaid Work Legislation | The Tyee
April 16 – 100 years of American Airlines Cargo
Marking One Century of American Airlines Cargo Innovation — Air Cargo
April 15 – Yorkshire Museum celebrating 30 years of Halifax replica with special exhibit on the type
Yorkshire Air Museum Marks 30 Years of Halifax Restoration with ‘Operation Halifax’ Exhibition – Vintage Aviation News
April 15 – Not what I usually think about when I hear getting ‘Water Bombed’
Vancouver Island WildFire Whisky pairs nicely with iconic Mars water bomber | Maple Ridge
News
Not the first to come up with this idea
Trans Canada Brewing Arrow Ipa | Manitoba Liquor Mart
April 14 – Documentary on the final flight of the Mars to Museum
World premiere of Martin Mars documentary coming to Port Alberni | Vancouver Island Free Daily
April 13 – Canadian Forces to update tactical air defence systems, that had become almost ‘non-existent’, in light of wars in Ukraine and Iraq
Military takes notes on wars in Europe, Middle East as it revitalizes Canada’s air defences | CBC News
April 13 – Archiving Cold War reconnaissance satellite lauches
The Space Review: Who watches the birds? Cold War era launch vehicle photographs
The Space Review: Who watches the birds? Cold War era launch vehicle photographs (part 2)
April 13 – Artemis II and Apollo 8 compared
The Space Review: Artemis 2, Apollo 8, and the problem with history
April 12 – Seven great prototypes that never saw production. Guess which leads the odd list 7 Revolutionary Prototype Aircraft That Flew Brilliantly But Never Entered Production
April 11 – Media concerns as US restricts access to private satellite imagery
Concerns after satellite provider restricts Iran images following US pressure
April 11 – Flight Records established by Artemis II flight
Artemis II sets new benchmark for distance in space exploration | World Air Sports Federation
April 10 – Iran-Israel-USA war puts export of aircraft to Jet Air Museum in London on hold
Starfighter jet headed to London, Ont. delayed
Seriously, border agents have no soul sometimes. A shipment of B-24 parts into the USA was once embargoed because it had bomb parts (ie, bomb bay doors, bomb racks, bomb hoist), and an import of a Jet Provost to Canada was killed (and the aircraft lost) because it was determined to be an “armed military aircraft’, because the pilot could carry a side-arm!
April 10 – US FAA wants to reduce Air Traffic Controllers shortage by hiring On-line computer gamers
The FAA wants gamers to apply for air traffic control jobs
April 9 – Turning an RAF control tower into a holiday home
Abandoned Battle of Britain control tower to become a home for holidaymakers … and six species of bat | Hampshire | The Guardian
April 8 – Kawanishi N1K2-J recovered in Japan
Kawanishi N1K2-J Shiden-Kai Returns: WWII Japanese Fighter Raised After 81 Years Beneath the Sea – Vintage Aviation News
April 7 – Program to make flying in Labrador more affordable is cancelled, Province promises new program
‘The need is there’: Liberals ask why N.L. government ended Labrador Air Access pilot program | CBC News
April 7 – Cleaning up destroyed aircraft in Iran rescue, differing accounts of what happened.
Aftermath of a rescue: wreckage of aircraft at site of US mission in Iran | US-Israel war on Iran | The Guardian
April 7 – Old airplanes versus new airplanes
Why airlines are switching to very old planes
April 7 – Why does Dublin Airport seem to attract parrots?
Dublin Airport parrot reunited with owner after search
April 7 – Citizenship question after in-flight birth
Stork warning: woman gives birth midair on Jamaica-to-New York flight | New York | The Guardian
April 6 – Mixed feelings for plane spotters in England
A bittersweet thrill: daytrippers watch US warplanes in action at RAF Fairford | Military | The Guardian
April 6 – Did you ever just sort of lose a Mars lander?
The Space Review: Thirty years later, Mars 96 has not been found
April 3 – The New Glenbow coming in 2027
A
Calgary Museum Reinvents Itself | The Tyee
April 1 – Snowbird 1 arrives in British Columbia
Snowbird 1 arrives in Sidney after 3,500-kilometre journey – Victoria Times Colonist
April 1 – Airline Passengers get aerial view of Artemis II launch. Awesome!
Passengers watch Artemis II blast off from commercial plane
April 1 – Alberta cuts funding to historical groups, downloads to municipal funds already committed.
Alberta cuts funding to historical, archaeological and genealogical societies, NDP says – The Albertan News
March 31 – Air Canada always cares about it’s customers, right
Air Canada to dispute $426K penalty from airline regulator stemming from 2025 events | CBC News
But they are not alone
CTA
to lower air passenger complaints fee after pressure from airlines, transport
minister, documents show | CBC News
March 31 – Scale Flying Model Contest returns
The FAI F4 World Championships for Scale Model Aircraft returns to Great Britain in July 2026 | World Air Sports Federation
March 30 – You would wish this was posted on April 1, but it wasn’t
Airport near Trump’s estate cleared to be renamed after him | AP News
March 24 – Missed this one, Montreal to get new Regional Airport at Saint Hubert
MET Montréal Metropolitan Airport Terminal Opening 2026: Flights, Airlines & What to Expect
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