Official Army photo, M. D. 13 _________image_________ In September 1943, Camp Wainwright was honored with a visit from Deputy Minister of Defence Col. G. S. Currie shown here listening to the “wireless” set on the training field. Accompanying him on his tour is Lt. Gen. Kenneth Stuart, CB, DSO, MC.

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Aircraft Down in Barnes Lake At 1100 hours on July 29, 1943, onlookers in the vicinity of Barnes Lake (also known and Clear Lake) were entertained by a military trainer aircraft, circling and swooping over the treetops and lake. The Harvard II held the pilot J. R. Cameron and a passenger A. Hunter, participants in training exercises at Camp Wainwright. Mr. and Mrs. Gerard Touchette, farming near Barnes Lake, witnessed the plane, obviously out of control, take a nose dive toward the water. Gerard was not sure if he heard the motor stall, but reports indicate the aircraft engine flicked out during a loop and dived straight into the lake. The Touchettes hurried over to the lakeshore area where several vacationers were already congregated. The police were notified; the occupants of the plane did not survive the crash. Military equipment winched the aircraft from the water and removed the debris. The Wasp engine block and the propeller were salvaged, the former being in the possession of Phil Johnson and the latter now mounted in the Wainwright and District Museum. The military report lists the purpose of the flight as “Familiarization”. The technical officer’s findings suggested a “wire may have been picked up during low flying and may have rendered the elevators temporarily ineffective”. This was suspected because of marks on the port wing and tail of the plane. Official investigation conclusions state the accident was the result of “deliberate unauthorized low flying and aerobatics”. No additional action was taken.