By Ross Smyth
Ross Smyth's story is the story of a lifetime in the rapidly-developing world of aviation. As a schoolboy he started an aviation club in Toronto, persuading prominent airmen like Erroll Boyd to speak at their monthly meetings. Problems with his eyesight prevented him from becoming a pilot until middle age. But this did not prevent him from following an adventurous route in the fledgling industry.
Smyth joined Trans-Canada Air Lines when only a dirt road linked Toronto with its main airport. Working as a cargo agent, radio operator, transatlantic dispatcher and public relations manager, he enjoyed a satisfying career. He grabbed every chance to get into the air, accompanying flights to all parts of our vast country, and across the oceans to faraway lands. Not every flight was routine; his tales of dangerous passages and close shaves pepper his life story with the taste of adventure.
When he finally gets his hands on the controls himself, he immediately plunges whole-heartedly into fresh opportunities. He becomes an instructor and ferry pilot. In a light aircraft he flies throughout the continent and across mountains. Never shy about expressing his well-informed opinion, Smyth has something to say about everything from the regulation of private flying to the best approach to world peace.
More than a love affair with flight, Ross Smyth has lived a love affair with life.
"This is the story of a lifetime love affair with aviation and flying."
|
