Vol 2 No 1 - October 5, 2017

Well friends, it has been a very hectic eleven months {from November 2016 to October 2017} for your overworked volunteers in the History Hangar. Much midnight oil has been burned.

After many lengthy, and yes, sometimes heated discussions, you, our Members and Guests are about to reap the rewards.

As you have already noticed, the History Hangar has a completely new and hopefully more pleasing look.

We mentioned in a previous issue of our "On Watch" newsletter (Vol 1 No 1) that Google was about to release its new website builder ... that happened in November 2016, and you're seeing the results.

It initially had some severe limitations that we found somewhat limiting (primarily from a technical point of view), but these are being rectified and we expect them to all be resolved by early 2018.

We will gradually be switching our BAYS from the existing site to our new home.

When you click on a BAY in the current site, you may end up on our new site. We'll try and make it as seamless as possible.

We plan to 'shut down' the current site by late 2018 and be comfortably settled in our new home.

More information will be provided in a later newsletter.

When you have finished reading this issue of On Watch I strongly urge you to explore the New History Hangar website.

[To access our New website's Menu, press the "View Our Tiled Menu" button at the very bottom of this page]

Starting immediately the short URL www.thehistoryhangar.ca will take you to our new website. The short URL www.400squadron.ca will take you to the original History Hangar website.

The new site offers a cleaner layout, easier readability of articles, crisper photographs, and easier navigation to areas of interest.

A new Tiled Menu, accessible from the menu on the left, or from a Button on the home page, will allow you to easily locate and go to the desired Bay.

Most pages will have a 'Your 2 Cents Worth' form at the bottom of the page where we encourage you to leave your comments. This is one of the ways we have of knowing your feelings about the different areas of our website. Please don't be shy ... we really want to know.

Please be aware that not all pages will be complete on the new site. Some may send you to the original website for the information you desire.

We are diligently working to get the 'old to the new' as soon as possible, so please be patient and above all ... enjoy.

Despite making a modest ($300) profit on the 400 Squadron 85th Anniversary Gathering held in August at CFB Borden, we are still in desperate need of funds to continue our work.

We currently have just $275 in our bank and about $900 in ongoing expenses coming due before Christmas.

We were remiss in not sending out renewal reminders to our existing members earlier this year and as a result we have 34 members registered: ..........13 are active (paid up) and 21 are overdue.

I am using this newsletter to ask all existing members to renew their membership TODAY !

For those of you who are not members ... our annual membership fee is just $30.00 (the cost of one speciality coffee ($2.50) per month) ... we urge you to support our efforts in "Keeping Our History Alive" by purchasing a membership.

To put it bluntly, I am rather dismayed that out of a mailing list of 347 with an affiliation to our squadrons only 10% deem our work worthy of support. Gives one pause for thought as to whether what we are doing is worth all the time and effort we put in.

There is a link button at the very bottom of this page labelled 'You Can Help' which will take you to our Membership registration (for both new and renewals) as well as our Donations page where you can donate any amount to either the History Hangar or 400 Squadron Historical Society.

Please help today, we would appreciate it !

The following articles were written by LCol Mills (Retd) RES: 416-495-0907 eMail: carlmills@rogers.com

CARL DOES CARDBOARD: A humorous look at behind the scenes activities for the 100th Anniversary Art Project

NOT EVERYONE WAS ENAMOURED BY THE CANADIANS IN BRITAIN: Selected verbiage from the 242 Sqn. story by RCAF historian Hugh Halliday

THE BRASS POPPY – HEADSTONE PHOTO PROJECT HOMEWORK: A quick look at what was involved in organizing this major effort

As you know, the 400 Squadron Historical Society is involved with the 400 Squadron 100^th anniversary artwork project. There are at least 20 historic pieces (possibly 24) planned and all are 2 ft. x 3 ft. plus the frame – a sizeable package. In addition, the artworks are created by a group of the best Canadian aviation artists and they are valuable – they must be protected.

Each piece has a pink bubble-wrap sleeve and a suitable cardboard box with handles and decals. The bubble-wrap comes in 2 feet x 25 feet rolls, however, the sleeve must be 46 inches wide to cover the artwork. Two rolls are taped together to get the correct width. The wider roll is then cut into sections to form several open-ended sleeves. The open ends are identified with green tape and the sleeve slides over the entire artwork like a sock. The bubble wrap and tape are found at the local RONA hardware store.

It would have been too much to expect that the correct size cardboard box was available for purchase. However, a slightly larger size box is available and, with some effort, can be chopped and re-glued to suit. The chopped box is 48 inches x 33 inches x 3 inches. The finished box also has a handle. The box straps are coloured ribbon from the Dollar Store (near RONA) and the handles are 12 inch, reinforced plastic tube pieces from RONA.

The glue used is standard exterior carpenters glue from RONA. Smaller pieces are weighed down with full wine bottles from a store near RONA. The finished box with art weighs 11 pounds and has four “400 Squadron Historical Society” decals on each side. To date, 18 boxes have been completed.

The boxes are supplied from a location in west-central Toronto and I live in northeast Toronto. The boxes are too large to fit into the car so that they are placed on the roof and tied down with good old yellow rope from RONA. I then wind my way through the city to home. The trip home always passes by the RONA store.

The chopped boxes fit in the back hatch of the car with the back seats down.

The work is done outside on the back deck and the deck has a sizable Maple tree protruding through a frame opening. I’m frequently visited by the chatty small red squirrels and by birds such as the Blue Jays, Cardinals, Robbins and Sparrows. My wife, Sophia, considers the work messy but brings snacks and drinks - for the wildlife – not me.

Cheers

Cardboard Carl

PS1- My working gloves were from RONA.

PS2 - Occasionally the wine-bottle weights get opened.

PS3 – The materials for the deck came from RONA.

NOTE from Webmaster: "Me thinks Carl either has shares in, or gets a hell of a discount from, RONA".

ARTWORK COMPLETION SCOREBOARD

18 artwork boxes ………………………………....... 75%

Six artworks are now complete …………….... 25%

Two more are due in late Nov. 2017………... 33%

Four more are under design for early 2018..50%

Six sponsorships secured ...............................25%

Eight brass easels purchased........................33%

Although the 110 (City of Toronto) Squadron, RCAF (later 400 Sqn.) was the first RCAF Squadron to deploy to war in Feb. 1940, many other Canadian-trained Air Force pilots were already in the UK with the RAF.

It was customary for RCAF trained pilots (especially Reservists) to transfer to the RAF. One of 110 Squadron’s pilots, F/L Robert John Renison (Jr.), transferred in March 1938. According to the 400 Sqn. history book (by Ron Wylie 1996 - pg. 13), “In his honour, the Squadron (110) held a spirited mess dinner (in Toronto) and sent him on his way.”

F/L Denison was the son of Bishop Robert John Denison (Sr.) who became 110 Squadron’s first Honourary Officer in 1938. Unfortunately, F/L Renison was shot down in May 1940, while flying with his CO, and spent nearly four years as a POW at Stalag Luft Three which was near the German border in Poland. He returned to Toronto in July 1945. Reference – the book “One Day at a Time” (by Bishop Renison 1957).

A second 400 Squadron pilot, F/L F.B. “Mel” Pepper, was also shot down in April 1943 while flying a Mustang over the French coast. He was also flying with his CO at the time and stayed about 1½ years in Stalag Luft Three. It is likely that Pepper and Renison knew each other, however, it was a sizable camp of nearly 11,000 inmates. F/L Pepper was found by his Wing HQ dentist in Hamburg just before VE-Day (8 May 1945). He was reunited with 400 Squadron which had moved to an airfield near Hamburg but that is a whole other story. Reference – interviews Mills/Pepper.

In Oct. 1939, a month after war was declared by both Britain and Canada, the 242 Squadron was formed as an all-Canadian unit within the RAF. This new unit collected most of the Canadian fighter pilots into a single RAF Squadron. It made “good press” in Canada to have such a unit operating before the RCAF presence could be established in England.

Only about 40% of the ground crews were Canadian, however, almost all of the pilots were Canadian who had enrolled with the RAF before the war. S/L Fowler Morgan Gobeil, an RCAF pilot on exchange duty with the RAF, was selected to Command 242 Squadron. At Dunkirk (May /June 1940) and as a detachment in France, 242 Squadron did well and the CO was credited with one aerial victory and one damaged aircraft in combat.

There were some unusual difficulties in 242 and some light is shed in letters written by F/O McKnight to a friend in Calgary during 1940.

The most surprising item to emerge from F/O McKnight’s letters is his attitude to newly arrived Canadians. It has been noted that at the beginning of 1940, some members of 242 Squadron had declined to wear the “Canada” shoulder badge because First Division Canadian troops had “busted up” the town of Aldershot.

{ALDERSHOT – is a vast area and is the home of the British Army – it is located 32 miles southwest of London. Apparently, the Canadian Army First Division were sent there to “set up camp” and begin training for the oncoming war. At some point just after Oct. 1939, “the boys” became a bit rampagey and caused considerable damage to the nearby town. This was embarrassing to other Canadians in England. - Mills}

F/O McKnight was even more scathing; in a letter dated 24 April 1940, he wrote;

“Why the Canadians wear that little badge on their sleeve with Canada on it. I don’t know, when you walk into a bar or café while in London you can spot the Canadians right off, or if you can’t see them you can hear them – shouting and swearing, drinking more than they can hold and generally with the worst looking whore this side of both places.”

This was clearly aimed at the Canadian Army personnel but was almost equally contemptuous of the RCAF’s 110 Squadron, which had arrived in Britain in February 1940. Writing on 25 February 1940, F/O McKnight declared;

“We get a hell of a kick of the Canadian pilots over here – they’re bloody near frightened to death because our aerodromes are so small and can’t see how we land Hurricanes and Spitfires on them. One bloke overshot in a Moth trying to land here and we’re still laughing about it.”

{The letter is peculiar, in that 110 Squadron had just stepped of the boat in Liverpool. The 110 Sqn. Moth incident is not mentioned in the 400 Sqn. history book. - Mills}

{We know that F/O McKnight fled Calgary and joined the RAF to avoid an unsuitable romance. Later, while on detachment with 242 in France, he tried, unsuccessfully, to smuggle a young lady from Paris into England. - Mills}

Apparently, most of the Brits greeted the arriving 110 Squadron Canadians with significant appreciation. This is expressed in the 400 Squadron history book (page 25). Upon disembarking from the Atlantic ship, the squadron marched to the train station to continue to the RAF Stn. Old Sarum. On observing the “CANADA” shoulder patch, the town folks shouted out, “God bless you boys”

However, the “trashing” of British real estate was also included in 110 Squadron RCAF (there was also a 110 Sqn. RAF) activities as indicated in the history book (page 29). The live-firing area for the Lysanders was near the town of Bridgewater. Bridgewater was an older town that honoured a senior naval officer in the town square. It was a handsome 17^th century statue of a British Admiral.

Observing that the statute looked somewhat decrepit, one evening, it was decided to treat the Admiral to a fresh coat of paint. At dawn, the villagers were horrified and the wrath of the RAF soon descended on 110 Sqn. The issue was settled with a letter of apology to the Mayor along with numerous pounds sterling.

Shortly after this, 110 Sqn. relocated from RAF Stn. Old Sarum to Stn. Odiham in June 1940. The neighbourhood had been extremely supportive of the squadron and to show their appreciation the squadron hosted a garden party with a drink made of Guinness stout beer and mediocre champagne.

The alcoholic mixture was dubbed “Black Velvet” and the event was the squadron’s first “Black Velvet” which is still celebrated annually by 400 Squadron in Toronto. 2017 is the 77^th anniversary of 400 Squadron’s “Black Velvet”.

{F/O William Lindstone McKnight, DFC & Bar, achieved 18 aerial victories before being killed on 12 Jan. 1941 in a Hurricane fighter. He is MIA in the English Channel, was 23 years old, and was from Calgary, AB. – Mills}

MISSION BRAVO

In early 2017, many who were familiar with the project suggested that the project should continue back in Canada. However, with limited resources, the 400 Squadron Historical Society established Zone Toronto. This was an area extending from Windsor to Montreal and Niagara to North Bay plus Alert and SSM.

A review of nearly 700 RCN and RCAF aircraft accidents since the end of the Second World War in Canada was soon completed with a list of 170 headstones at 85 cemeteries in Zone Toronto. Unfortunately, the source did not carry cemetery information for about 10% of the accidents so that the research is not definitive.

This second project is known as MISSION BRAVO and is nearing completion with about 20 headstones remaining. MISSION BRAVO does not have any 400 or 411 Squadron content. However, the content is widespread and involves accidents with the Snowbirds, Search & Rescue missions, Hercules activities, several fighter aircraft as far back as 1949, training accidents, and memorial headstones of the many missing in the Pacific, Atlantic, and in Northern Canada. The project does not involve European flying activities.

DRIVING LOOPS

Most of the photos were completed with a series of driving loops from Toronto which involved several cemeteries in each loop. For example: Toronto – Windsor – Sarnia – Chatham – Toronto – took ten hours: Toronto – Peterborough – Warsaw - Wilberforce – Toronto - took eight hours: Toronto – London – Arva – Crediton – Hanover – Toronto - took nine hours.

There were ten loops and other loops included; Oakville/Hamilton – Niagara/St. Catherines – Aylmer/Simcoe – Orillia/Meaford/Owen Sound – Kingston/Cornwall – Trenton/Belleville - Ottawa (Smiths Falls/Merrickville/Carp/Almonte/Gatineau and Sarsfield)– and Pte. Claire/Montreal.

The poppies were shipped to North Bay where the Curator of the Canadian Forces Museum of Aerospace Defence took several photos at two cemeteries. The RMC Alumni arranged for an excellent photographer and coordinated with the Canadian Force Liaison Officer at the National Military Cemetery in Ottawa to completed 15 headstone photos.

HOMEWORK

There is absolutely no point in trekking off on a “loop voyage” to photograph headstones without a substantial amount of homework. In most cases, the cemeteries are huge and without a cemetery map, with exact locations marked, there is little chance of finding the required headstone – especially if it is a flat stone.

This means that there is “a ton” of homework. Each cemetery office (there were 85) must be contacted and the project explained. Some were suspicious and didn’t understand while others understood and appreciated the project. Some required permission from their managers to provide information while others placed temporary high-vis markers near the headstones to ensure easy location.

Some cemeteries are so large that they require an in-cemetery road map plus a section map with the headstone. The headstones can be the typical military upright or flat stones. Some are family upright while others are flat brass stones – some others have both.

I’m totally thankful to my wife Sophia who not only accompanied me on the “loops’ but ensured outstanding navigation to the cemeteries. She also spent time tromping and searching for headstones and took most of the photos.

GREAT DRIVING

The drive to most of the cemeteries, by necessity, required the use of the larger, high-speed highways but also much secondary and back-road travel. These routes were always new and interesting and often scenic. Often there were places to stop and shop for artefacts, homemade cooking, and wine. There was always good weather and the “loops” were fun for my wife and mother-in-law who always shared the travel.

The cemeteries range in size from hard-to-find small older church cemeteries to mammoth, map-required, hilly, treed, windy-road estate-sized territories. Some cemeteries are maintained by volunteers while others have a permanent staff and sheds full of equipment.

It was an overall surprising pleasure to visit these unique places of tranquility and beauty. There were valleys of ornate and varied headstones as well as hill-top profiles of huge and varied styles and colours. Some cemeteries are saturated with trees while others are all flat-stones with wide-open spaces.

CEMETERY ANIMALS

One cemetery in London, ON, has a sizeable herd of white-tail deer who keep their distance but are curious enough to watch any human activity. Another had a sizeable flock of Canadian Geese who also were friendly enough to stand close-by our photo activities.

MUSTANG CRASH

In early 1955, I departed from Air Cadets and joined 420 Squadron as an Air Force Reservist in London, ON. Because I had been an Air Cadet, I was allowed to wear the uniform and attend prior to the summer course. During this interval, I was trained to assist with aircraft activities on the flight line (aka “ramp rat”).

The Squadron flew mainly Mustangs and Harvards but also had a T-33 jet trainer. The work included assisting with towing, pumping fuel, assisting pilots in the cockpit, engine starts, wheel chocks, and hand signals. It was all great fun for a sixteen-year-old.