The Hawaii Mars waterbomber is back to flying status. And its time in the Alberni Valley is winding down.
The aerial firefighting tanker, owned by Coulson Aviation of Port Alberni, took its first flight in eight years on Thursday, Aug. 1, surprising dozens of photographers, boaters and onlookers when a high-speed taxi turned into a takeoff.
Rob Frolic of Port Alberni, who grew up living at Sproat Lake, took some time off work Thursday so he could "chase" the plane with his pleasure boat. Frolic and friend Ben Morgan launched at Sproat Lake and toured up and down the lake while the plane was taxiing and then took off.
"When I heard it was going to fly yesterday I had to clear my schedule to be there to watch it," Frolic said Friday. "This whole event is very bittersweet because I know it's all leading up to it leaving the Valley forever."
Frolic said he wants to be in Victoria to see the Hawaii Mars land in Patricia Bay for a final time before it is hauled up on land and stored by the B.C. Aviation Museum to await a new hangar and wildfire fighting exhibit.
Richard Mosdell, who is in charge of the Save the Mars program for the B.C. Aviation Museum, was in Port Alberni over the B.C. Day long weekend and said taxiing in the Mars "was just thrilling." Fifty or 60 boats followed behind or alongside the waterbomber on Saturday, Aug. 3, he said. The waterbomber flew briefly on Sunday, Aug. 4, the same day Coulson hosted an event at the bomber base for more than 400 employees and family members.
Coulson Aviation confirmed the Hawaii Mars will fly out of Sproat Lake on its final mission next Sunday, Aug. 11. both time and flight path are still to be determined.
"We're super thrilled with how this is all coming together," Mosdell said. There are many "moving parts" behind the scenes, and he said the whole operation will involve a couple of hundred people. The final flight is only part of the process of transitioning the Hawaii Mars to its final home at the museum. The plane will be moored in the water until it can be "dewatered" and hauled onto shore. Moving it from the seaplane ramp across Victoria International Airport to its temporary base near the museum will take a few days. The aircraft won't be on display for visitors until the end of September.
Mosdell anticipates upwards of 10,000 people will flock to Victoria to see the Hawaii Mars land in Patricia Bay near the Victoria International Airport for one final time.
Details on the Mars' final flight will be released on the B.C. Aviation Museum's website on Tuesday, Aug. 6 at bcam.net.
