Canada’s Jet-Age Dream: The Avro Arrow

The story of the Arrow starts with the establishment of Avro Canada, in December 1945.

Taking over operations at a former government-run military aircraft plant called Victory Aircraft, Avro was founded with the intention of designing aircraft in Canada—not merely building foreign-designed planes on licence.

The Avro team was young and ambitious. The three key players were Frederick Smye, President of Avro Aircraft during the Arrow project; Crawford Gordon, President of A.V. Roe Canada between 1951 and 1959; and James C. Floyd, Avro’s Chief Engineer, who led the team that designed and built the Avro CF-105 Arrow.

The Avro Canada team started with 350 former Victory Aircraft employees, and eventually grew to a staff of over 14,000.

Facilities in the small town of Malton increased dramatically due to Avro Canada’s presence, including housing, infrastructure, and amenities.

Between 1946 and 1952, the Avro Canada team achieved several impressive Canadian “Firsts,” such as the design and production of the Jetliner—the first commercial jet designed and flown in North America—and the CF-100, the first Canadian-designed fighter aircraft.

By 1952, Cold War tensions were rising, and talk of supersonic fighters, guided missiles, and Soviet spies filled newspapers.

Although the CF-100 was just barely entering service, the heightened arms race between superpowers threatened it with obsolescence. The Royal Canadian Air Force needed a new type of aircraft, one that could maintain supersonic speed for an extended length of time, in order to intercept future enemy bombers over northern Canada.

The Royal Canadian Air Force design specifications were formidable and surpassed anything documented in any other country in the Western world.

Chief Engineer Jim Floyd would later comment that, “What the air staff were asking for was the moon.”

––Jim C. Floyd (Shutting Down the National Dream, page 180, from from a June 10, 1979 interview.)

A dedicated team of engineers and designers, led by Jim Floyd, were given the task of proposing an aircraft that would meet these advanced specifications.

To move from drawing board to production line, Avro Aircraft conducted one of the most extensive programs of wind tunnel, structural and systems testing ever undertaken.

Testing was intense, including a program of large, instrumented free-flight models mounted on Nike rocket boosters, and launched over Lake Ontario for aerodynamics tests.

Machinery was built for production as soon as specifications were available, including a specialized metal-bonding autoclave, milling machines, and assembly jigs.

“A full-scale metal mock-up was made from the detail tools as they became available, and this mock-up acted not only as a tool proving device, but was also used to train the production crews.”

—Jim Floyd, British Commonwealth Lecture 1958, “The Canadian Approach to All-Weather Interceptor Development," published in the Journal of Aeronautical Engineers, Vol 62)

A cockpit mock-up was even strapped to a truck, and tested on the runway for visibility.

The Arrow was also one of the world’s first aircraft to employ a fly-by-wire control system, replacing mechanical controls with electrical wires.

In addition to a new aircraft, Avro Aircraft engineers determined that no engine currently in existence would be powerful enough to meet the Royal Canadian Air Force’s advanced specifications.

Sister company Orenda Engines stepped up to create a follow-up to the innovative engine they had designed and built for the CF-100, the Orenda.

Building a new airplane and a new engine at the same time was risky, but Avro Canada decided to move forward with both projects.

The new engine was named the Iroquois, and it was capable of 12,000 kg (23 450 lb.) of thrust.

Production of the first Arrow, called RL201, was started in 1956, with an anticipated first flight by the end of 1957.

Scheduling delays and technical problems delayed the date.

This was the first time the Arrow would be unveiled to the public, and the first time many employees would see it put together.

Following the speeches, Minister of National Defence George Pearkes pulled a cord to drop a golden curtain, revealing the sleek, white delta-wing aircraft to the crowd.

A band played, press photographers snapped pictures, and the crowd applauded and cheered.

Although the rollout had been carefully stage-managed by Avro Canada's PR Department—right down to holding the event at 2:00 p.m. to ensure that newspapers could file stories for their evening editions—controversy surrounded the project. Over 4,000 glossy 8x10 promotional packages were sent out.

With costs mounting, and a change from a majority Liberal to a minority Conservative government in 1957, the Arrow program was under intense pressure to perform—especially since many were debating whether or not the age of manned aircraft was coming to an end.

Chief Experimental Test Pilot Janusz Zurakowski was a Polish-born Second World War veteran of the RAF, with a reputation for being an excellent pilot. He had tested the CF-100, and was now going to be the first pilot to fly the CF-105 Arrow.

As Zurakowski made his final inspections, all non-essential employees flocked to the tarmac to witness the flight.

Zurakowski took off at 9:51 a.m. on March 25, 1958—almost five months after the Arrow's public debut.

Employees were thrilled to see the delta-wing aircraft lift off the runway—although also nervous that something might go wrong.

The first flight went as planned, lasting 35 minutes. Zurakowski was pleased that the aircraft handled much like the flight simulator.

Zurakowski gave interviews to several newspapers and radio/television stations, and film footage was broadcast across the country.

RL202 was ready in August, but was badly damaged in November of 1958 when the tires burst on landing. The pilot, “Spud” Potocki, was not injured. Earlier that day, he had reached March 1.98, the highest speed achieved by the Arrow.

RL203 was rolled off the production line in September 1958. It was flown at supersonic speeds on its maiden flight, with Zurakowski at the controls.

RL204 has the distinction of being the only Arrow to land outside of Malton. Test pilot Peter Cope made an unscheduled stop at the Royal Canadian Air Force base in Trenton in February 1959, due to a blocked runway.

RL205 was only flown once, in January 1959. Engine trouble grounded the aircraft, and it was never flown again.

“Spud” Potocki made RL201’s final flight on February 19, 1959. The program was cancelled the following day.

RL206 was almost complete when the government cancelled the Arrow program on February 20, 1959.

February 23, 1959 was the 50th anniversary of powered flight in Canada, and Avro had ramped up publicity leading to a series of planned events.

Unfortunately, the Arrow project would be cancelled just three days before the festivities.

Prime Minister Diefenbaker, announcing the cancellation in the House of Commons, said:

“Unfortunately these outstanding achievements have been overtaken by events. In recent months it has come to be realized that the bomber threat against which the CF-105 was intended to provide defence has diminished. . . Potential aggressors now seem more likely to put their effort into missile development.”

(Hansard, February 20, 1959)

“[The Arrow] would have been obsolete by the time it was ready for squadron use. No one advocates building buggies in the age of motor cars.”

(—Prime Minister John Diefenbaker, The Globe and Mail, February 24, 1959)

Following the cancellation of the Arrow program, Avro Canada laid off almost 14,000 employees (between Avro Aircraft and Orenda Engines).

Many more lost their jobs with subcontractors and suppliers.

The completed aircraft, along with many blueprints and models, were destroyed by order of the Department of National Defence—but the story and controversy surrounding the Arrow lives on.

The Avro CF-105 Arrow captured Canadians’ imaginations in a way few projects have, before or since.

The combination of nationalistic promotion, Cold War fears, and the attractive, futuristic aesthetic of the aircraft created a lasting impression.

Even today, almost 60 years later, the Arrow remains the subject of intense scrutiny, conspiracy theories, countless newspaper and magazine articles, books and even television and theatre.

Many of the talented engineers who worked on the Avro CF-105 Arrow project went on to work in other aerospace companies in Canada, the USA, and the UK. Some were involved in NASA’s Gemini and Apollo programs, helping to put the first human on the Moon.

The technological advances made during the Arrow's development thus continue to live on, in aircraft design and development around the world.

In addition, the Museum houses a collection of over 500 images of the Arrow in different stages of planning, production, flight testing, and final disassembly, donated by Avro Canada’s parent, the Hawker Siddeley group.

Many of the images the Canada Aviation and Space Museum has of Avro staff, the Avro CF-105 Arrow, and production facilities were taken for the Avro News Magazine employee newsletter, and other promotional pieces.

The Canada Aviation and Space Museum also has a collection of blueprints, plans, and several pieces from the six Arrows produced.

Although no complete Arrow survived the cutting torches, it continues to fly in photographs, articles, documentaries and artifacts.