Rex Terpening (1913-2018) began an interesting and rewarding career in aviation at a young age in Fort McMurray, AB. During his career, he travelled widely and was deeply involved in the development of aviation in the Canadian North. After retiring from CP Air in 1978, he and his wife Trudie spent many summers in the Yukon. Rex was one of the very last of a breed of air engineers who flew with the bush pilots and shared all of the routine hazards they faced. He was also a perceptive observer who writes not only with an insight gained from a lifetime in aviation—much of it at the grassroots level—but with humour and sensitivity. He was inducted into Canada's Aviation Hall of Fame in 1997.