by Martin Zeilig
Sergeant (ret) Devin Beaudry called the new $2 dollar (toonie) coin unveiled by the Royal Canadian Mint (RCM) in Hangar 11 to celebrate the 100th anniversary of the Royal Canadian Air Force (RCAF) quite an “impressive” achievement.
Sgt (ret) Beaudry, who served 35 years in the CAF, including the RCAF, was one of about 70 people in attendance for the unveiling ceremony on September 18, 2024.
“It was a very pleasant surprise to have been invited here,” Sgt (ret) Beaudry said to a reporter following the brief official ceremony, as live jazz music from the RCAF band brass ensemble played in the background.
A joint multi-year effort between the RCAF and the RCM, the coin depicts aircraft that have played significant roles in supporting the RCAF over the last century, said Marie Lemay, President and CEO of the RCM, who flew in from Ottawa, along with other RCM board members, for the ceremony.
“On the 100th anniversary of the Royal Canadian Air Force, we pay tribute to the generations of Air Force members who dedicated their lives to defending our country and our freedom,” said The Honourable Chrystia Freeland, Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Finance, in a press release posted on the RCM website (September 18).
“I invite all Canadians to join in commemorating this proud history, the people who have served, and to celebrate the bright and promising future of the Royal Canadian Air Force.”
“The Royal Canadian Mint is delighted to commemorate the RCAF’s first 100 years with a special circulation coin manufactured in Winnipeg, home to our circulation production facility and to one of the first air force bases in Canada,” Ms. Lemay said.
"We are proud to have crafted a coin designed to capture many different chapters of RCAF history and helps recognize its members’ past and current contributions to national security.”
“The Royal Canadian Air Forces belongs to all Canadians and in our centennial year, we are pleased to partner with the Royal Canadian Mint to showcase some of the aircraft that have contributed to training and security at home and around the world,” said LGen Kenny, commander of the RCAF.
“As Canadians go about their day, they will soon carry with them a reminder of the iconic aircraft that have carried our aviators past and present over the last century. Like a new coin, the future of your Air Force is bright.”
The one side of this historic coin was designed by Canadian illustrator Pui Yan Fong, said Phyllis Clark, Chair of the RCM, who lives in Edmonton, Alberta.
The toonie features the RCAF roundel above a Model H of the CC-130 Hercules, “which has been the mainstay of the RCAF transport fleet for over 60 years; the upward angle of the Hercules is a nod to the RCAF motto, Sic itur ad astra (“Such is the pathway to the stars”),” says the RCM’s website.
The double dates “1924 2024” appear beneath the soaring CC-130H.
Eight current and historical RCAF aircraft appear on the outer ring, clockwise from the left:
1. CF-100 Canuck Mk. 5,
2. F-86 Sabre Mk. 6,
3. CSR-123 Otter,
4. the Finch Mk. II,
5. the CT-114 Tutor,
6. CC-115 Buffalo,
7. CF-188 Hornet and
8. CH-146 Griffon helicopter.
The other side features the effigy of His Majesty King Charles III, designed by Steven Rosati.
“Development of the Centennial Toonie was underway in September 2023,” Major Mathias Joost (retired), who served over 31 years in the Canadian Forces first in the Regular Force and later in the Air Reserve, said in an email to the Voxair.
For the last 18 years, Maj (ret) Joost was an Air Reservist working at the Directorate of History and Heritage where he oversaw the war diaries / operational records section and in answering inquiries related to the RCAF. He retired in March 2021 and would serve as the RCAF Centennial Committee (CC) historian from September 2023 to August 2024.
“The CC Historian reviewed the aircraft and made suggestions as to suitability,” he said.
“The aircraft had to be representative of the broad range of tasks and environments in which the RCAF has operated and continues to operate.
“Consultations and reviews between the Mint’s production manager and the historian were made until the aircraft was portrayed as accurately as possible. The historian would also provide information regarding the aircraft for the Mint to use in text prior to the coin’s release.”
An interview with, Col Margaret Jacula, Campaign Manager for the RCAF Centennial Committee and Master of Ceremonies for the unveiling, said “the big thing” for her was the collaboration with the Royal Canadian Mint.
“There are going to be three million of these coins in circulation,”
“One of aims for this centennial was to honour our history and heritage while inspiring future generations of Canadians to take interest in air and space in Canada. I’ve been in this job for four years now. A few years ago, we did a public opinion research poll. Of the people who could identify the roundel, only sixteen percent could identify it as the RCAF.”
There were also a lot of people who didn’t know it was the RCAF, she emphasized.
“One of the big things we wanted to do with the centennial is to bring awareness to Canadians,” Col Jacula continued.
“We wanted the centennial to highlight the men and women in the RCAF. I was really excited about the collaboration with the Mint because I knew that this two dollar coin would probably do so much to raise awareness in Canadians about the RCAF, because they were going to have this coin and see the roundel and the aircraft and make the connections.”
Well done RCAF Centennial Committee and the Royal Canadian Mint for having created a coin for the ages.