The planes and pilots who forever changed how British Columbia forest fires were fought.
"1956::The Last of Four Mars Planes Leaves Hawaii"
Photo Clip: The Honolulu Advertiser (1960)
Honolulu, Hawaii
In 1956, Hawaiians received word that their beloved Mars planes would be honourably retired and possibly scrapped. The large flying boats had broken aviation records for the US Navy while transporting troops and cargo between California, Hawaii, and the South Pacific during the final days of World War II. In the years after the war, they safely flew more than 200,000 passengers and carried more than 20,000 tons of high-priority cargo over a distance equivalent to 23 round trips to the moon. They had become familiar in Hawaiian skies, and islanders were sad to see them go. With hula girls, speeches and leis, thousands showed up at the docks of Keʻehi Lagoon to bid the Philippine Mars, the last of their old friends, a fond Aloha! At the sound of its engine's friendly roar, the Philippine Mars flew over their heads and began its journey towards its new life and purpose on Vancouver Island, British Columbia.
"1912::Martin Breaks World Record With Hydro-Aeroplane Design"
Photo Clip: Los Angeles Express (1912)
Los Angeles, California
The story of the Mars aircraft is rooted in the birth of aviation when it was believed that if a flying machine could be made to land in water, it could fly across an ocean - such power could rule the airways. Many of the world's first record-breaking flights were made with such a craft, and at the helm was amateur aviation pioneer Glen L. Martin, a young automobile salesman from Santa Ana, California. Martin's daring stunts in his own flying machines made him a local celebrity, but his bravery and skill soon caught the world by storm. In 1912, he flew his newly constructed hydro-aeroplane from Balboa to Santa Catalina Island, California, to claim the world's longest cross-water flight, a record previously set by Frenchman Louis Blériot in 1909 when he crossed the English Channel. This feat caught the attention of the US Navy, and within just three short years of his first flight, and shortly before the outbreak of World War 1, Martin's aircraft designs were being developed on a mass scale.
"1942::The Martin Mars On her Maiden Flight"
Photo Clip: The Sphere (1942) London, England
In 1941, just weeks before the attack on Pearl Harbour, Martin launched the first flying boat of its kind, the Martin Mars. The Martin Mars was designed to be a long-range high-altitude bomber but was soon converted to a cargo plane after breaking world transport records. Within its first year, it set aviation standards that were thought to be grossly futuristic and impossible to achieve. With its ability to fly to Europe and back on a tank of gas, and encircle the globe on only five stops for fuel, it was the largest and most successful carrier the world had ever seen. Impressed with its performance, the US Navy ordered 20 Mars planes to help facilitate cargo and troop-carrying operations in the South Pacific. These planes were to be modelled on their smaller 1941 prototype, the Martin Mars.
"1945::The Flight Path of the Mars Flying Boats in the South Pacific"
Clip: (tbd)
On July 21, 1945, the Hawaii Mars became the first of 20 Mars planes to be launched with an official christening in the presence of its maker, Glen L. Martin. 2 weeks later, while the B-29 bomber Enola Gay was on its way to drop a bomb on Hiroshima, Japan, thus beginning the age of atomic warfare, the Hawaii Mars crashed on Chesapeake Bay when its US Navy pilots were attempting to land their first test flight. Though the plane was quickly recovered and used for parts, the US Navy used the event to reduce its order of 20 Mars planes to 11. The order was further reduced to five when, two days later, a second atomic bomb was dropped on Nagasaki, Japan, and it became evident that the war's end was near. Within the following year, all five Mars planes, the Philippine, Hawaii 2, Marianas, Marshall, and Caroline, were launched and named for South Pacific Islands where scenes of WW2 military combat had occurred.
"1950::The Crash of the Marshall Mars" Photo Clip: The Sphere (1950) London, England
In 1950, on a routine flight, the Marshall Mars was forced to make an emergency landing after one of its engines caught fire. The crew escaped without injury before a series of small explosions burned the plane down to the waterline. After a short career of breaking numerous transport records, the Marshall Mars sank to the ocean floor, reducing the Mars fleet to four remaining craft. In 2004, the Marshall wreck was discovered on the sea floor just outside Hawaii's Ke’ehi Lagoon, home of the Mars flying boats.
"1959::Marianas Mars - the First of Four Mars Planes to Arrive at Patricia Bay Airport on Vancouver Island"
Clip: Times Colonist (1959)
Victoria, British Columbia
Years after the Second World War, a select few Canadian pilots traded in their Lancasters for a different kind of bomber. They joined BC's Forest Industries Flying Tankers, who had rescued the Mars flying boats from a California scrapyard where they were sent after several attempts to acquire the entire fleet from their Hawaiian guardians had failed. In 1959, with a deal finally in place, the planes were on their way to Vancouver Island to be repurposed. It was believed that this model of craft, previously used for cargo and passenger flights, could become the world's largest and most efficient amphibious aircraft used for fighting fires from above. Many pilots relocated to Vancouver Island to become part of the team tasked to convert these crafts into a scooper of water.
"1960::The First Martin Mars Waterbomber Test Flight - Sidney, British Columbia"
Photo Clip: Vancouver Sun (1960)
Vancouver, British Columbia
By 1960, the first Mars Waterbomber was ready for its first test flight. From the shores of Sidney, British Columbia, reporters and onlookers watched as the plane skimmed the ocean's surface at 75 mph and scooped as much as 7,000 gallons of water. This was ten times more water than the smaller crafts used for firefighting at the time. When its four distinguished pilots flew the plane back around, they dumped the water within view of the awed spectators. Some called it a logger's dream as it was apparent that this new plane meant an end to the days of hauling hose from the nearest lake to an unpredictable and unreachable forest fire. The test flight was an enormous success, but sadly, two of the pilots who helped convert the massive plane into a waterbomber would later perish doing what they had initially set out to do: fight BC forest fires.
"1961::The Crash of the Marianas Mars"
Clip: Nanaimo Daily News (1961)
Nanaimo, British Columbia
Only one Mars craft, the Marianas, had been converted for the trial run. It was hoped that after it proved a successful year of service, the other three planes would likewise be converted. However, one year after its first test flight over Sidney's harbour, the Marianas crashed near Englishman River Falls on Vancouver Island while battling a fire. The pilots had held back their water drop after they saw men on the ground below and feared they would hit them with the dump. Witnesses observed that the plane failed to clear a tree in their attempt to turn back around, resulting in a tragic crash on the mountainside. Sadly, all four pilots perished in that fateful flight, including one of the four test pilots of the Marianas Mars.
"1962::The Wreck of the Caroline Mars at Patricia Bay Airport, Vancouver Island"
Photo Clip: The Vancouver Sun (1962) Vancouver, British Columbia
The Mars Waterbomber project remained in limbo for several months after the Marianas Mars tragedy at Englishman River. Ultimately, however, after weighing the enormous benefit that the Marianas had brought to British Columbia in her short year of service, the decision to continue on was decidedly worth the risk. The conversion of the remaining three planes -the Philippine, Hawaii 2, and the Caroline- forged ahead, but a 3-plane Mars Waterbomber fleet was not meant to be.
On October 13, 1962, just months after being converted, the Caroline Mars was torn apart when the southern tip of Vancouver Island took a direct hit from unsuspecting Pacific storm Typhoon Frieda. The Caroline Mars lay in ruin at Patricia Bay Airport and was eventually dismantled and used for parts. The remaining two planes were given a coat of red and white paint and were sent proudly into action from their new home at Sproat Lake near Port Alberni, Vancouver Island.
"1967::The Flying Firemen"
Photo Clip: Times Colonist (1967)
Victoria, British Columbia
Several years later, a company called The Flying Firemen was developed using Canso planes. It was the baby of one of the four test pilots of the Marianas Mars. The business was going well for the young pilot who, by 1967, had several planes in use fighting fires throughout British Columbia. That summer was a hot one though, and by July, almost 300 fires were raging, 23 on the island and lower mainland alone. All fires were in control except for one. The fire on Skirt Mountain in Victoria, BC, began late Sunday afternoon when a Canso plane was called in. Hundreds of spectators around the Goldstream and Millstream area watched in horror as the aircraft flew over the mountain and disappeared into the smoke. Moments later, a fireball lit up the sky.
"1967::Tragedy On Skirt Mountain"
Photo Clip: Times Colonist (1967)
Victoria, British Columbia
Tragically, both pilots perished in the crash, including the Mars Waterbomber test pilot in his own Canso plane. It was to have been his last flight of the day. The crash caused an even greater fire on the mountain, and a second newly converted Mars Waterbomber was called into service. Days passed before the fire finally began to smoulder. Eyewitnesses gave their accounts of the tragic event, and amateur photographers in the Goldstream area shared their photos of the plane as it approached Skirt Mountain.
As distraught as they were when it crashed, they kept snapping their camera, hoping it might help to record the event. Some said the plane struck a tree, and others said they saw one of the wings disintegrate before the plane disappeared into the smoke. One year later, a similar fatal crash occurred nearby in the Sooke Hills. In a terrible twist of fate, one of the two firefighting pilots who had perished in that crash was supposed to have gone up on the fatal Skirt Mountain flight the previous year but had been swapped out at the last minute by a different pilot. It was to have been his last flight of the day.
"2022::The Flying Firemen Memorial Park"
Photo: Private Collection (2023)
The remaining Mars Waterbombers, initially stored for conversion at Patricia Bay Airport in Sidney, BC, and later stationed more centrally on Vancouver Island at Sproat Lake, served the island and area for many years. And just like the Hawaiian Islanders before them, Vancouver Islanders came to love and appreciate the planes and the pilots who flew them. In 2022, a new neighbourhood was developed on Skirt Mountain, and a peaceful park was dedicated to the pioneer firefighting pilots who perished in the Skirt Mountain crash.