"Lima Yankee Lima" nearly airborne off of Sproat Lake for her last round trip flight from Port Alberni. A historic and bittersweet moment for all those in BCs Forestry Industry as well as those who worked on the Mars.

At rest on the top of the slipway at its Sproat Lake base on Vancouver Island. Bird dog spotter plane for the two Martin Mars flying boat fire bombers of Forest Industries Flying Tankers stationed on the lake. Constructed as a US Navy Grumman JRF-5, BuNo 84806. Became N62899 in 1952. Joined Forest Industries Flying Tankers as CF-VFU in 1967, changing to C-FVFU in 1979. Flew for European Coastal Airlines of Croatia from 2002 until 2006. Became C-FMXW in 2015, then N345GG in 2022.

It was just announced in March 2024 that C-FLYL, the Hawaii Mars, will be going to the British Columbia Aviation Museum in Victoria. A team of AME's and flight crew will be re-certifying and the aircraft will be prepared for its last flight, which will be from Sproat Lake to the Saanich Inlet beside Victoria International Airport. The final stage will take place on the Canadian Coast Guard Base Patricia Bay where the aircraft will be brought up on a ramp, mounted on a trailer and moved across the runway of the Victoria airport to the museum. Great to see this historic BC aircraft to be preserved.

Forest Industries Flying Tankers (FIFT) acquired the Grumman G-21A Goose (ex-Bu84806 and N62899) in April 1967 to support its water bomber operations using a pair of four-engine Martin Mars flying boats. Goose C-FVFS served with FIFT until 2000 and with its successor Flying Tankers Inc. until it was sold to Klaus Dieter Martin in Munich, Germany and ferried across the Atlantic in Nov. 2001 for use by European Seaplane Service in Croatia but was damaged when the gear collapsed in 2002. Registered to Victoria Aircraft Maintenance at CYYJ in Oct 2015 as C-FMXW. Cancelled/Exported in Nov. 2021.

Bell 206B, C-GKMO, was acquired by Forest Industries Flying Tankers (FIFT) based at Sproat Lake in Port Alberni, BC for aerial firefighting in June 1978. FIFT was owned by six of the largest timber companies in BC and operated two Martin JMR 3 Mars flying boats, CF-LYL (pictured) and CF-LYK, to protect valuable timber leases on the BC coast. The Mars only flew during the fire season but FIFT's helicopters operated year-round operated. In the 1980s, the FIFT fleet included Grumman G-21, C-FVFU, and three Bell 206L-1: C-GWFW, C-GWFH & C-GZFT. C-GKMO was cancelled in June 1994 after an accident.

Forest Industries Flying Tankers was the first operator for this LongRanger (1979 - 2001). Later with forest company Weyerhaeuser (2001 - 04) and Discovery Helicopters (2004 - 19) when the registration was cancelled on February 26, 2019. Ascent Helicopters registered a Bell 206L C-GWFW in March 2022, but it is a different and newer aircraft (cn 52276 ).

This will never be seen again. C-FLYL, the Hawaii Mars is up for sale for 5 million. Total time on the frame is listed at 23,497.8 hours. C-FLYK, the Philippine Mars was painted in its former US Navy scheme in anticipation of a sale that never materialized. The future for both of them remains uncertain.

Philippine Mars gets some service during a day of firefighting out of its Sproat Lake base.

Ex US Army H-25A. Transferred from the Aerospace Museum at Calgary, Alberta. I was advised that the helicopter in the background is Sikorsky S-61L N619PA New York Airways (C/N 61427) which had a landing accident on top of the Pan Am building in New York City 16 May 1977.

The interior was open for public access.

This is the nose section of the eighth Mars (BuNo 76825), which was never finished because the war ended. It sat out in the elements at Sproat Lake Tanker Base for 62 years until Coulson took over the company in 2007 from the previous consortium. I remember seeing it overgrown in the bush behind the base. It has been nicely restored and at the time was part of their visitor center.

Wfu but kept in flying condition awaiting a contract that never came...

On hot stand by during British Columbia's fire season.

Ex-US Navy JRF-5 84806. To N62899 in 1948 then to CF-VFU in 1967, later C-FVFU. To Croatia in 2005.

The British Columbia government cancelled their contract with Coulson Flying Tankers after the 2013 fire season. Both Martin Mars aircraft were put up for sale and the US Navy had planned to buy C-FLYK for display at he National Naval Aviation Museum in Pensacola, FL. Problems arose and the deal is yet to be consummated, so the big flying boat remains in Port Alberni painted in original US Navy colors.

The Hawaii at rest on Sproat Lake on Vancouver Island