7960

 

7960 D.F. (Dana) Ferguson

College of Entry: Collège militaire royal de Saint-Jean

            

  Review 1969                  

Present location: Victoria

In 1969, as a young graduate engineer in Mechanical Engineering from RMC, I left for a three year tour of duty in Europe. I was mildly interested in airplanes, but my job was in an engineering support role as a RCEME officer.  I did get the odd ride in jets but it was not my main focus, in a world where Mechanical Engineering as a career made more sense. In 1969, pilots were a dime a dozen.

Athens bound in a T-33 while posted

at the base in Baden circa 1971

 Four years later, back in Canada, with the Military experience as an engineer under my belt, and way too much confidence born out of youthful exuberance, I purchased my first airplane, an ex-military trainer DeHavilland Chipmunk, while working for Gulf Oil, one of the Major Oil Companies in Calgary.

My first airplane. Tight for luggage

.

Note the Registration

 No house, just wings. These were the first hints of bias to flying stuff. I thought I was working for the Majors to become Mr. President one day. In hindsight, it now appears I really took the job to support my need for expensive personal transportation on weekends, and whenever I could make the excuse to the boss, use it on the job. It was great being based near the Rockies, and I managed to get my fair share of fabulous mountain flying and great skiing while I was there

The Oil Company work proved to be a great learning experience, and gave me the toolset and idea to start my own engineering firm in the Canadian Arctic Frontier, in Yellowknife NWT in 1978. Those were the heady days of Beaufort Sea exploration, and boundless optimism, just like I had, so it was a great fit.  With two partners I founded Ferguson, Simek, Clark.

In those days, the NWT legislation allowed us to operate as an integrated Engineering and Architectural Firm, for which we took full advantage. As one of the first firms to physically locate there, Stu Hodgson (the Commissioner at the time) liked what we did, and our fortunes grew as we expanded operations. It was a nice time to be there. The most attractive part of those years was the fact that I got to fly all over the Arctic. Both of my daughters were born there, and we used our company airplanes to go everywhere, including taking the kids to grandma’s house in Saskatchewan (1000 nm) for the weekends, and to the Maritimes for the other set.

Me and my two daughters, Sarah and Erin

Sarah dead reckoning for dad

Because we lived in the Arctic, we used our airplanes like most people use cars. The kids thought that was a perfectly normal way to get from A to B. They would actually complain to the grandparents when they had to sit in a car for more than an hour. Cars were only for getting to the grocery store. On the longer flights, they would sit up front, and actually got quite good at reading the instrumentation, and helped with the radios and transponder frequencies. They could even spot things like alternator and vacuum pump failures on the panel as they occurred over the years.

Midnight Sun fishing expedition

One of the greatest flying pleasures was to be able to jump in the float plane around 9pm, after finally shaking the dust off the business day, and head out to one of our secret fly fishing spots to spend a few hours in absolute solitude, in absolute wilderness, sharing only the mournful cry of a pair of loons silhouetted across the absolutely still mirror that reflected the perfect purples of the midnight twilight. If you’ve been there, you understand exactly. If not, there is no way for me to pass that feeling on in words.

In the early 1980’s, the Government put out the call to find Canada’s First Astronauts. Over 4,400 applied, including me. The selection process went on through refinement and elimination interviews, medicals and trips to Ottawa over a period of many months. It was an interesting adventure, filled with interesting people. In the end, it boiled down to 18 finalists, of which I was one. 

The Original Canadian Astronaut Finalists

(I’m in the second row behind Donald Johnston’s right shoulder)

Out of that group, Marc Garneau (far right at the rear in the photo) had the honor of being the first Canadian in Space. Subsequently, a number of those chosen have flown on Shuttle Missions, forming the original team of six who became the first full time Canadian Astronauts.  Marc was subsequently the Director of the Canadian Space Agency.

Sarah and Erin and the Foxmoth

During the last few years in Yellowknife, I headed up a volunteer group called Operation Fox Moth which built and donated an aviation wing addition to the Prince of Wales Northern Heritage Center. It was a most satisfying undertaking that involved a whole range of fabulous people and companies who pitched in to make the Aviation Wing a reality in the spirit of getting things done. That was exactly how Canada’s Arctic got opened up this century, with the airplane as the centerpiece.

The Piper Aztec – 3/4 Ton Truck of the North

The Company owned or leased the planes

needed to fly where needed in the Arctic

Ferguson, Simek, Clark was sold to Stantec when they were on an acquisition spree, looking for arctic expertise.  The firm still operates, with expanded operations around the world. So after 16 years in the North, I retired from the Company that I co-founded and moved to Victoria BC to semi retire.

Not happy to retire, I started another company in 1991, Success Information Systems with a local guy, this time in software development. We expanded that to carry on projects in BC, Alberta, Quebec and later Australia. It was quite successful.  In 2022 at the start of the Covid kafuffle, I called it a day, retired and took the money.

In wandering through my photo albums, there are more flying stories related to other aircraft that I have had the privilege of flying. In reflection, they are the continuity that glues the rest of the story together. Memories rise as morning mist from each page – like the time the left engine quit on takeoff, just as I lifted the nose from that short little dirt strip out of Lac LaMarte when we were hauling all that survey gear…or, the time we were in Grise Fiord on Ellesmere Island…

Arctic Ice Pilot – Rule 1: Warm feet

I don't have a plane now, but am up to date on the glass cockpit Garmin G5000 for the C700, having taken the course @ King Schools in San Diego.  I don't do near enough to keep current though, so just out of interest.  While in Frobisher Bay [Iqaluit now], I was OK’d to fly right seat with Norm Cross in the RCMP Twin Otter stationed there at the time. [CF-MPF] – fun times!

I always wanted a Jaguar XKE, but they were a bit expensive for an officer cadet. So I finally closed that little circle for the experience to fill in that gap in my life contract.  It needed restoration so I got my hands dirty on it, managed  ‘the project’, made sure I got exactly what I wanted but hired a specialty shop that is well known to do the heavy lifting and keep things moving.