December 1999

Band Spectacular Reaches for the Sky [page 1]

RCMI President Col paul Black (L) and Museum Chairman, Lt Bill Smyth poer over one of the artifacts in the Richthofen display.

The Institute's 10^th annual Military Band Spectacular held at Roy Thomson Hall, paid tribute to the 75^th anniversary of the founding of the Royal Canadian Air Force. Virtually all the military brass and pipe bands in the Toronto area took part in the two-hour serenade. The selection of music covered all aspects of flight, from biplanes to interplanetary travel, The Magnificent Men in their Flying Machines to Star Trek.

As has become the tradition of the RCMI before, during intermission, and after the concert, the near capacity audience had the opportunity to visit military displays inside Thomson Hall and on Simcoe Street. This year marked a couple aeronautic firsts and an enigma. For the first time in years Baron Von Richthofen's seat was on public display outside the Wings Room. Among the many over displays available for viewing were ones from the Canadian Forces Search and Rescue, air force weapon systems used in and around Kosovo, the rear turret from a Lancaster Bomber, and one of the few infamous Second World War German code encryption machines known as Enigma. On Simcoe Street, among other displays, was the second aeronautic firsts, a CH-146 Griffin from 400 (City of Toronto) Squadron, based at CFB Borden. That morning it had been flown to the parking lot at the rear of Mospark Armoury, located at Jarvis Street and Queen Street East. After being jacked up onto a set of wheels that were attached to the skids, and it's four main rotor blades folded back, with a Toronto Police and a TTC escort, the twin engined utility helicopter was towed along Richmond Street to Thomson Hall.

Sgt Shaun Mootoo of 2 Intelligence Company explains the use of stereo scopes in photo analysis.

The annual concert concluded with the combined pipe and brass bands playing in Grand Finale of marches, concluding with Auld Langs Syne, in a salute to all ranks, past, present and future of the Royal Canadian Air Force.

Snooker at its best - at the RCMI! [page 6]

(Photographs taken to compliment the story)

Cliff Thorburn, former World Snooker Champion	Bob Chaperon, former British Open Champion and Canadian Champion, World Team.	F/L Bob Taggart, Prsident of the Billards Club for many years, was the official referee of the Millennium Match

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