This presentation will include the early aviation in Victoria, from balloon flights off Willows Beach to operations from RCAF Station Patricia Bay. The second half will be about the BC Aviation Museum and their commitment to preserving the aviation history of British Columbia.
Captain Steve Nichol is the second of four sons of Sabre/Starfighter pilot S/L Jack Nichol and the only one to follow his father’s footsteps into the Canadian Air Force.
Steve entered Royal Roads Military College in 1974, graduating in 1978 with a BSC in Physics and Physical Oceanography. From there he finished his navigator training, receiving his wings in February 1979 and was posted to 415 squadron in CFB Summerside on the CP-107 Argus. He converted to the CP-140 Aurora in CFB Greenwood in 1981.
In 1983 Steve was accepted for pilot training, receiving his second set of wings in Sep 1984. A 3 year tour with 407 Squadron in CFB Comox on the CP-140 Aurora was followed by an instructional tour on the Aurora with 404 Squadron in CFB Greenwood. In 1989 Steve was selected for an exchange tour and was posted to the UK as the CAF exchange pilot on the BAe Nimrod.
In 1991 Steve was hired by Cathay Pacific Airways in Hong Kong where he flew all models of the Boeing B747 for 10 years before converting to the Boeing B777, which he captained for the next 17 years. Steve retired from Cathay Pacific in 2018 as a Senior Check and Training Captain. After one year flying back in British Columbia, Steve hung up his commercial aviation wings.
Steve is a current Board Director and former president of the British Columbia Aviation Museum, a member of the Vancouver Island Ex-Cadet Club, a member of the RCAF Association.