Cochrane resident Col. Gerry Morrison and Calgarian Cpl. Gary Watson are hoping to preserve some of the Canadian history from the Cold War by rebuilding a Royal Canadian Air Force (RCAF) jet fighter, the CF-104 Starfighter at the Springbank Airport.
“We’re restoring it to the classic mid-‘60s look, right down to the classic Maple Leaf emblem,” Morrison said. “It won’t be fully operational, but it gives Canadians a chance to see it as it would have been.”
Watson was a member of the RCAF from 1963 to 1969, where he worked on planes such as the CF-104, the T33 Silver Star training aircraft and the CF-5 Freedom Fighter – another retired Canadian jet fighter. Watson is now the director at the Air Force Museum Society of Alberta (AFMSA).
“We want it so people will actually be able to sit inside the plane and get the feeling of what it was like to pilot one of these,” Watson said.
Morrison joined the RCAF in 1955 and would spend the next 36 years rising through the ranks, eventually being promoted to Colonel in 1987. Morrison retired after logging 5,600 hours as a pilot in 31 different aircrafts, including the CF-104 and the CF-5.
“The Starfighter is an iconic plane for Canada,” said Morrison, the former director and chairperson of the AFMSA. “It’s still the fastest aircraft the Canadian military has ever flown.”
The Starfighter Watson and Morrison are currently helping to restore, number 846, will be placed at the Air Force Museum of Alberta in Calgary early this fall after its completion this summer.
On Dec. 31 1963, Canada joined the nuclear arms race when more than 50 nuclear warheads were delivered to the North Bay Air Force Base in Ontario. Soon the nation had 90 CF-104 jets capable of being armed with nuclear weapons.
It was a time Col. Morrison and Cpl. Watson say they don’t want Canadians to forget.
“The Cold War isn’t something many Canadians remember or know too much about,” Watson said.
“Building this plane is about helping people learn of those times.”
In 1962, the Starfighters replaced the CL-13 Canadair Sabre jet fighter, which was in service from 1950 to 1962.
The Lockheed Aircraft Corporation (now Lockheed Martin) designed and built the original F-104 Starfighter. The California-based company pitched a partnership with Canadair (now Bombardier) to produce the Canadian variant, CF-104 to the Canadian government.
“It was a win-win for the Canadian and American government,” Watson said.
“Not only were the CF-104s made by a Canadian manufacturer, but they were made with Canadian built engines.”
The 846 model served in the RCAF from 1963 to 1971, doing photo reconnaissance roles based from France to a nuclear strike role in West Germany. Watson worked on the 846 over 30 years ago.
The plane was sold to the Royal Danish Air Force (RDAF) in 1971, where it would serve another 13 years before being retired. The plane was on display at the RDAF museum in Billund, Denmark until 1998.
When Watson and Morrison found the plane, it was being stored in pieces by an American collector in Maine. The aircraft was then purchased and moved to Alberta by the AFMSA in 2013, where it has been in restoration ever since.
The museum purchased the plane for $90,000 and will likely cost around $50,000 for the restoration.
The plane is expected to be on display once the new hanger at the Museum is fully constructed in September or October.
