First Aeroplane Flying in Canada National Historic Event
Baddeck, Nova Scotia
Location of HSMBC plaque
(© Parks Canada / Parcs Canada, 2000)
Address :
Baddeck, Nova Scotia
Recognition Statute:
Historic Sites and Monuments Act (R.S.C., 1985, c. H-4)
Designation Date:
1934-05-28
Event, Person, Organization:
-
J. A. D. McCurdy
(Person)
-
Mabel and Alexander Graham Bell
(Person)
Other Name(s):
-
First Aeroplane Flying in Canada
(Designation Name)
-
The First Airplane Flight in Canada
(Plaque name)
Importance:
Flight of the Silver Dart in 1909, first in Canada
Plaque(s)
Existing plaque: Alexander Graham Bell Museum / Homestead Baddeck, Nova Scotia
On February 23, 1909, more than 100 people witnessed the first successful powered flight in Canada, as the Silver Dart lifted off the ice of Baddeck Bay and flew 800 metres. The biplane, piloted by J. A. D. McCurdy, reached a speed of 65 kilometres per hour and an altitude of about 9 metres before making a smooth landing. Designed and built by the Aerial Experiment Association, founded by Mabel and Alexander Graham Bell, the Silver Dart was the culmination of this group's pioneering aeronautical research. Their success heralded the age of aviation in Canada.