Flight Time: The Breitling Colt
This is a Breitling Colt, Reference A74388. However it isn’t just any Breitling Colt. This Colt was awarded to the individual after being a runner up in the Webster Memorial Trophy Competition.
John & the Curtiss-Reid Rambler Mk. III
The Webster Memorial Trophy sets out to determine the best amateur pilot each year. The word “amateur” can be a bit of a misnomer. The word “amateur” in this context means a pilot who hasn’t had an established professional career yet; however, the pilots that are competing are arguably some of the best pilots that Canada is producing for the future.
In order to qualify for this competition, one has to first qualify in one of the 9 designated regions in Canada before competing in the national competition. To put it into perspective, the 9 regional finalists collectively had to have qualified against all other newly licensed pilots that year (~800 pilots annually) in Canada for a finalist spot.
To determine competency, the competition filters out the candidates based on the combined results of a written examination provided by Nav Canada, and the results of the candidate’s flight test scores from either their Private Pilots License or Commercial Pilot license which is regulated by Transport Canada (Canadian FAA equivalent). The candidate with the highest combined score in each of the 9 regions qualifies for the national competition.
After qualifying for the competition itself, the 9 candidates are assessed through a series of 4 different tests. The assessments include: a theory exam, a simulator evaluation, an interview and a flight skills demonstration. The best combined score wins the Webster Memorial Trophy. It’s torture, but pilots seem to have a natural proclivity for torture.
Please visit the official website to learn more about the Canadian aviator and the rich history behind the competition by clicking here.
Close & Cigar
The prize sponsors of the Competition are typically Hamilton or Breitling, and for that particular year only the first place and runner-up received a timepiece.
The watch belongs to a long-time colleague Owen. Aviation-wise he has worked as dispatcher for a flight school, cleaned Navajo gear wells for air taxi operator, worked as a seasonal pilot for a northern mom & pop shop flying the Cessna 172, Cessna 206 as well as a Twin Otter in the Northwest Territories.
After transitioning from the northern flying operation, Owen successfully landed a job for a regional airline based in Vancouver, B.C. He had just successfully completed training for the B1900 type rating only to have the opportunity disappear as a result of the reduced demand caused by COVID-19. For the time being he works as a flight Instructor.
Tell me what the watch means to you? Do you wear your watch with pride or do you wear it for just for timekeeping?
“I wear it because it’s a timepiece right now, because I feel this was something I wanted to get anyways. I wanted to buy myself one [Breitling], but only once I got my first Airline Captain position. That was always my goal, not always, but before getting this watch that was the idea. When I got this, I was kind of disappointed because I felt like I missed out on an opportunity to do that. That is why I don’t wear this with pride necessarily, because I kind of took an easy route to get it. I haven’t reached my goal yet where I would feel like ‘okay now I deserve it, now I want it.’ Don’t get wrong, I am stoked to have the watch, but it came too early.”
Owen has always been a humble individual, even after achieving some success so early on in his career, there is still that spirit of pursuit for further growth in the way he carries himself. With the Covid-19 pandemic, the timelines of a lot of young pilots have been pushed back. Opportunities evaporated overnight when the global and domestic travel restrictions were put into place.
You’re currently a flight instructor, but what are some goals that you have for yourself in aviation? Where do you see yourself?
“A 705 operation up north, it would be definitely up north. It’s a place that you’d really never get to see, it’s a mystical place, and it’s pure wilderness. It offers unique challenges as well. It’s not always pavement to pavement. Big metal has its place as well, but I see it as a secondary goal to a 705 operation up north.”
So you’re still have the same goals from years ago, do you ever consider just going there to visit instead?
“Of course the north is still number one in my books. I wouldn’t go visit there though. I mean I would like to go to Whitehorse and Yellowknife, but I want to see the other spots that are tucked away that I wouldn’t get to see by just visiting. I am more interested in flying the boundary between the Yukon and Northwest Territories, and Baffin Island.”
What’s your personal philosophy when it comes to being successful as a pilot?
“Don’t always chase the quickest path, but rather go for the more interesting one. Never take the the relationships with your co-workers for granted, take an interest in them because it will make your job that much more enjoyable.”
