A Calgary Stampede Crash Landing
A First World War Flying Ace, a merry-go-round and a wrecked biplane
Frederick Robert Gordon McCall was one of the best pilots in Canada during the early-20th Century.
Born in Vernon, British Columbia on Dec. 4, 1896, he enlisted to fight in the First World War in February 1916 but it was not long before he transferred to the Royal Flying Corps to become a pilot.
During the First World War, he emerged as a flying ace with 35 confirmed victories in the air, and two unconfirmed victories.
Over the course of the war, he earned the Distinguished Service Order, the Military Cross and Bar and the Distinguished Flying Cross.
After the war ended, McCall went into civil aviation and quickly found a love of stunt flying.
This involved going to fairs and exhibitions and doing tricks in the air to the delight of people on the ground. Sometimes, he also took passengers up with him to give them the thrill of a lifetime.
On July 5, 1919, McCall was doing some stunt flying over the Calgary Stampede, still an event in its infancy, when his engine suddenly failed.
With two passengers in the plane, McCall had to get his plane back on the ground and without injuring anyone.
With the ground coming up fast, McCall guided the plane to land on top of a merry-go-round at the Stampede.
Thanks to his skills as a pilot, neither he nor his two passengers were injured.
In 1920, McCall formed a commercial freight company and in 1928 he flew 200 quarts of nitroglycerin from Montana to Calgary. One year later, he flew a doctor through bad weather to the Skiff oil fields to help two injured workers.
During the Second World War, McCall became a squadron leader with the Royal Canadian Air Force at various bases in Western Canada.
He died on Jan. 22, 1949. For a time, Calgary’s airport was named for him until it was renamed Calgary International Airport.