De Havilland Canada Beaver

De Havilland Aircraft of Canada Ltd began the preliminary design of the Beaver in 1945; the prototype of which is on display at the Canada Aviation Museum. This particular Beaver was first flown in 1947 and was still in use by a Northern operator when the museum purchased it in 1980. The registration number of this Beaver, CF-FHB, is no accident: FHB are the initials of Fred H. Buller, who played a pivotal role in the Beavers design. Buller, originally a sailboat designer, later studied aeronautical engineering and stated that: "After all, what is an aircraft wing, if not a sail turned on its side?" The Beaver is a Canadian success story: it is one of the most produced Canadian designed aircraft. Almost 1700 single-engine Beavers were produced and a few hundred remain operational today. In 1987 the Engineering Centennial Board included the Beaver on the list of the top ten Canadian engineering achievements of the twentieth century. Punch Dickins, one of Canada's early bush pilots and the first to reach Canada's western Arctic coast by air, was hired by de Havilland Canada to poll bush pilots, therefore affecting the Beavers final design. Those consulted wanted a powerful, durable, rugged, easily accessible aircraft with short-takeoff-and-landing qualities. Pilots also sought a versatile aircraft with interchangeable landing gears so they could deliver goods year-round regardless of geography and weather conditions. In 2006, Vancouver's Viking Air Ltd. purchased the type certificates for most de Havilland Canada's designs from Bombardier Aerospace, obtaining the exclusive rights to rebuild and manufacture new Beavers.

See this treasure on the official Canada's Got Treasures website!
http://www.museevirtuel-virtualmuseum.ca/sgc-cms/expositions-exhibitions/tres...

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