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Soviet Aircraft Wrecks Color Photographs

Most of these photographs were taken during the first weeks of Operation Barbarossa, which saw the Soviet Air Force sustain losses on an unimaginable scale.  On the first day the VVS lost over 2,000 aircraft, and by the end of the year that figure exceeded 21,000. Here are a pair of Polikarpov I-153s disabled on […]

Soviet Aircraft Wrecks Color Photographs

Links shared by Jim Christie

At 95, Ottawa Bomber Command veteran recalls harrowing night flights, German attacks
Ron Moyes and his six-man crew were among the lucky 41 per cent who came home unscathed, at least physically.

https://ottawacitizen.com/news/local-news/ottawa-bomber-command-veteran-recalls-harrowing-night-flights-german-attacks

https://bombercommandmuseumarchives.ca/s,halifaxlw682.html

Halifax Bomber LW692 Crew Ceremony

Click on the link below for the PDF file. 1. Halifax Bomber LW692 Crew Ceremony     By Bill Anderson Text version (images will be inserted later) I began researching the war experiences of my Dad, Robert Allan Anderson (R191468, Pilot Officer J/92326, Prisoner of War #4176 Stalag Luft 3) over 15 years ago, focussing […]

Halifax Bomber LW692 Crew Ceremony

May 9, 1942 – 18 months as a Staff Pilot at No. 7 Bombing and Gunnery school

Usually comments are seldom read. This is the original post written in 2010 on Lest We Forget.

Eugène Gagnon, the French-Canadian Mosquito pilot who served in Europe from December 1944 through May 1945, was stationed there in 1942.

Eugène Gagnon DFC

Application form for training and Employment in RCAF

Eugène Gagnon arrived in Paulson, Manitoba, on May 9, 1942 from No. 6 SFTS in Dunnville, Ontario.

He became a Staff Pilot.

In this document we see what airplane he flew.

Fleet Finch

Tiger Moth

Cornell

Yale

Harvard

Battle

Cessna

Anson

Bolingbrooke

Oxford

Wellington

Mosquito

Note

WWII Training Schools

During WWII, young airmen from the Commonwealth flew over the Dauphin area while training for the war effort.

On February 27, 1941, training commenced at No.10 S.F.T.S (Service Flight Training School) located at the present day Lt. Colonel W.G. Barker V.C. Airport, as well as at the No.1 and No.2 Relief Fields: No.1 “North Junction” was located on Highway 362, six kilometres north of Dauphin, while No.2 “Valley River R.C.A.F.” was situated six kilometers west on gravel road 151.

Here, the student pilots practiced touchdowns and take-offs on the grass runways.

The No.7 Bombing and Gunnery School opened on June 24, 1941 at Paulson, located 13 kilometres east of Dauphin on Highway 20. Because of its proximity, Lake Dauphin was used as a practice bombing target range, where there are still a few visible remains of a once-thriving base.

There were many crashes in the area and over 50 men lost their lives. Some of the airmen, from Britain, New Zealand and Australia, are buried at the Riverside Cemetery in Dauphin.

Eugène must have met a lot of airmen in his stay in Paulson, Manitoba. This is why I am posting this article.

We never know. We might get information and even pictures from that era.

If you know someone who was there, then please send me an e-mail by clicking here.

Next time we will talk about airplanes.

End of the original post

One comment that was left by the son of S/L David L. (« Bud ») Quinn, CD

Armament Officer in Charge of Gunnery No.7 Bombing and Gunnery School, Paulson, Manitoba June 1941 to July 30, 1942…

My father (above) probably knew both P/O Gagnon and LAC Norm Pringle. Thanks to your blog, I have discovered more about my father’s wartime service. After transferring from the militia (7th Toronto Field Artillery), he joined the RCAF in 1934, starting over at the bottom as an LAC. He was an original member of what was then No. 10 Sqn (later 110 and ultimately 400 Sqn.) when it first formed up. He had risen to the rank of F/Sgt by the time of the declaration of war and was commissioned shortly after. He served throughout the war, managing to find a way to get his pilot’s wings and an overseas posting, and served with RAF 2nd TAF HQ in Europe. As a permanent force member, he stayed in the RCAF after the war and retired as a Sqn.Ldr in 1962.

I always knew he had served as a bombing and gunnery instructor in Manitoba during the first part of the war, and names like Paulson and Jarvis had sometimes been mentioned, but I had no details. As an air force brat growing up on RCAF stations throughout eastern Canada, I have always maintained an interest in the history of the service and my father’s service in particular. I cannot ask him, as he passed away in May 1993 at the age of 80. I was both shocked and pleasantly surprised to find his name and picture in one of the documents on your blog.

The post on your blog from March 30, 2010 contains a link to copies of the Paulson Post. In Vol 1, No. 1, from Sept. 1942, there is a brief article on my father, then a Flight Lieutenant, on page 15. I have now learned that he was probably a key player in establishing the air gunnery sections at B&G Schools no. 2, 3, 5 and 7 in Mossbank, MacDonald, Dafoe and finally Paulson. Based on the opening dates of each of those schools I have an idea of when he was at each and definite knowledge of his time at Paulson. It also tells me the date of his initial commission and the date of his promotion to F/L and when he was posted to AFHQ in Ottawa.

This was a very pleasant surprise for both myself and my two brothers. Thank you for the time and effort you have put into this wonderful resource. If you have any questions, please feel free to contact me. I will try my best to answer them.

Per Ardua ad Astra!

Bob Quinn
Mississauga, Ontario

Time to reflect… Battle of Moscow Color Photographs – Artur Grimm Collection Part I

Here are a series of photographs taken by German photographer Artur Grimm during the Battle of Moscow during October 1941 – January 1942.  These show elements of the 11th Panzer Division in action assaulting a small village in the Wolokolamsk / Klin area.  Panzer III “14” is central to this series, note the second storage […]

Battle of Moscow Color Photographs – Artur Grimm Collection Part I

Obituaries – Part 4

These obituaries were shared last week by Jim Christie. They have a link with veterans. Jim’s mother had collected them through the years. Sometimes an obituary doesn’t tell the whole story. Transcription MCKINNON, Donald Lawrence (D.F.C Squadron Leader, RCAF 5000 Intelligence Unit, Ret’d.; former Director of Sales, Eastern Division, Canada Packers.) Passed away on October […]

Obituaries – Part 4