The Fokker Universal model is an exact replica of one of the six open-cockpit single-engine Fokker Universal monoplanes used on the 1927-1928 Hudson Strait Expedition. This model, donated to the Canada Aviation Museum in 1970, was not built using a prefabricated kit or instructions but was made during the expedition by Sergeant Andrew Caggie using wood, metal, wire, fabric and glass found around his camp at Wakeham Bay. The 183cm wingspan model is a reflection of Sergeant Caggie’s knowledge of the Fokker Universal and was perhaps built to alleviate the boredom during the winter months when he was unable to work due to weather conditions. The 1927-1928 Hudson Strait Expedition was an attempt to determine the likelihood of using the Hudson Strait as a shipping route between the Canadian Prairies and the wheat purchasing countries in Europe. Grain would be shipped from a newly constructed port at Churchill, Manitoba, bypassing traditional routes such as the St-Lawrence River and the Great Lakes. The members of the expedition collected data on weather and ice conditions during aerial patrols and by taking daily measurements of the depth of sea ice at each base in order to determine the best routes to navigate on the Strait at different times of the year. Eventually, the 227 aerial patrols (over 370 hours of flight time) and the 2,285 photographs taken of the region contributed to the correction of the maps of the area and to the future success of Northern aerial operations. It was only after the Second World War that the port of Churchill came into its own as a shipping point for mineral rather than agricultural products.

Alexandra Mills