Released in 1991, this $20 sterling silver coin is the third release in Canada's acclaimed ten-coin series, Powered Flight in Canada: The First 50 Years. Celebrating the nation's aviation heroes and their groundbreaking achievements, each coin in the collection features a stunning 24-karat gold-covered cameo portrait of an aviation hero.

This piece honors the A.E.A. Silver Dart as well as F.W. Baldwin and J.A.D. McCurdy, who piloted the Silver Dart for Canada's first military demonstration of powered flight in 1909.

The Design

The reverse features the A.E.A. Silver Dart along with a gold plated cameo of F.W. Baldwin and J.A.D. McCurdy. The obverse features the effigy of Queen Elizabeth II by Dora de Pédery-Hunt.

The A.E.A. Silver Dart 

Developed by the Aerial Experiment Association (AEA) under the leadership of Dr. Alexander Graham Bell, the Silver Dart was the fourth and most advanced of the organization's pioneering aircraft. Following initial testing in New York State in December 1908, the plane was shipped to Baddeck on Cape Breton Island, Nova Scotia, for further flight trials. It made history on February 23, 1909, by flying for over half a mile above the frozen waters of Bras d’Or Lake. This flight marked the very first controlled, powered, heavier-than-air flight in Canada.