Pasta dinner Saturday in support of plane restoration project

An effort to restore an aircraft that has been on display near Sugarbowl Park for nearly 25 years is in need of community support.

A pasta dinner will be held Saturday at the Royal Canadian Legion branch on Garrison Road to support the cause, which has an estimated price tag of about $30,000, says Lesley Kinghorn, a legion member who is involved with the project.

About $4,000 has been raised so far, and Kinghorn hopes that corporate donations will play a role in reaching the goal.

The dinner will take place from 4 to 6 p.m. and a silent auction will begin at 2 p.m.

The aircraft set to be overhauled is a T-33 Red Knight, which was erected in 2001 and received some minor touchups in 2007.

Through the Royal Canadian Air Force (RCAF) Association, as well as the legion, plans are being made on improvements to the vessel, which will include new paint, clear coat, and decals, as well as anything that needs to be repaired inside the cockpit.

Stan Grabstas, a retired pilot with RCAF and a former engineer with the United Nations, previously told Fort Erie Radio that the T-33 Red Knight was in production from 1945 to 1959. There were 6,500 of them built, and 656 were manufactured by Canadair in Montreal.

They were not used in combat by the RCAF, but for training purposes like targeting and radar calibration, as well as for aerobatics and demonstrations.

His research shows that they were only flown between 1958 and 1969.

Tickets to Saturday’s dinner are $15 and can be bought at the door or reserved by calling (289) 321-0876.

Stay Informed

Events, offers, contests, and breaking news, all delivered straight to your inbox.

Please enable JavaScript in your browser to complete this form.

Subscribe