The Roots of Our Name — And a Needed Correction!

February 2021 – Hal Bryan is not only a senior member of the editorial staff at EAA in Oshkosh but he's also very familiar with the Canadian flying scene. In fact, he is so well acquainted with a certain aspect that he was able to confidently correct an error that I had perpetuated in my own mind but never really put into words.

Our eNewsletter is called Bits and Pieces. I've often used the shortened Bits 'N Pieces as I'd believed that was closer to the original name of the aircraft that our newsletter was based on. As you will see in this article from 1959 , Bits and Pieces was a Baby Ace built in Goderich, Ontario, and was residing in Guelph, Ontario (where I happened to learn to fly), when Hal Bryan was visiting the famous Guelph Airpark Tiger Boys. In fact Hal became an honourary Tiger Boy. Apparently he never flew it but was able to sit in Bits and Pieces, and was confident in correcting me about my Bits 'N Pieces error. My understanding is that Bits and Pieces was only the second Canadian amateur built aircraft to receive amateur built registration.

You can read the article about Bits and Pieces here.

Ian – I take great pride in being an hono(u)rary part of the wonderful world of aviation in Canada, and tip my hat to you for helping set the record straight! My best to all of our readers to the north – Hal.

So there you have it "Bits and Pieces," never "Bits 'N Pieces."