Two guests stood out among a crowd of families enjoying spring break at the Alberta Aviation Museum Tuesday afternoon.
As 100-year-old Ralph Arrison, a former Royal Canadian Air Force pilot and flight instructor, and former RCAF pilot Bill Hind, 85, admired the aircraft on display, they shared stories about their time in the sky.
Pausing to inspect a bright yellow Avro Anson II, Arrison recalled taking his first solo flight in the same type of plane over Fort Macleod.
“I remember being 500 feet up on my first solo and thinking, ‘Will I get all this machinery back down on the ground?’ ” Arrison said.
Executive director Tom Hinderks said the museum hosts visitors like Arrison two or three times a year, “senior seniors” who flew the aircraft types on display during the Second World War.
“It brings back a lot of memories and brings back a piece of their life and a piece of their youth,” Hinderks said.
“You can almost see the years melt away as they come in. They look younger, they take a step back in time.”
Arrison, who recently celebrated his 100th birthday with a trip to Hawaii, recalls dates and stories from the past with ease.