The Beach and East Toronto Historical society hosts presentation on Canadian plane the Avro Arrow

Author Greig Stewart will speak about the Avro Arrow during a presentation hosted by The Beach and East Toronto Historical Society (TBETHS) on Wednesday, April 22.

The presentation will take place from 7 to 8:30 p.m. at the Beaches Sandbox, located at 2181 Queen St. E., just east of Lee Avenue.

An historian and award-winning author, Stewart will talk about his book Shutting Down The National Dream: A.V. Roe and the Tragedy of the Avro Arrow. The book is the winner of The National Business Book Award.

The story of the Avro Arrow is considered a Canadian business and technology tragedy by many.

Stewart’s book examines the history of the A.V. Roe Canada company and its subsidiaries Avro Aircraft and Oneida Engines, focussing on the years from 1946 to 1959.

In that time, Avro’s aircraft engineers were considered among the best in the world. By 1958, the Avro Arrow jet interceptor plane was on the verge of going into production, and it was considered “the most sophisticated piece of aviation design and technology the world had ever seen” and it was decades ahead of other designs.

However, in 1959 the Canadian government scrapped the entire Avro Arrow aviation program and ordered the destruction of the six existing planes.

Stewart’s book has been called a story of “the right stuff” at the wrong time, as it chronicles a “tragedy” of government errors. The book tells the story behind the story and looks into the political, economic and technological reasons behind the plans to stop the production of the Avro Arrow.

Admission to the April 22 presentation is free. For more information, please visit The Beach and East Toronto Historical Society at http://tbeths.com/