P-51 Mustang Lost at Air Show

Post Supplied by: Bill Bishop

A pilot had a miracle escape July 11, 2011 when he bailed out of his Second World War plane after a mid-air collision at an airshow.

Thousands of people watched as the P-51 Mustang plane clipped wings at the annual display show and plummeted to the ground south-west of the former World War Two RAF Duxford base in Cambridgeshire, yesterday.

Pilot Rob Davies parachuted to safety following the mid-air accident at the Flying Legends show which happened after three planes had formed a triangle in the sky.

Read more: http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-2013219/Pilot-Rob-Davies-escapes-WW2-fighter-mid-air-collision-airshow.html#ixzz1RyqbFpDR

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New Web Address in Effect

Post Supplied by: Bill Bishop

On July 1, 2011 (Canada Day) we registered, our own domain name for our web site. Effective immediately you can access our New Web Site, 400 Squadron History Hangar, at this custom address: 400squadron.ca

Using the Contacts & Links page on the new site, you will be able to navigate to all our other presences on the web, this news blog, our photo albums, and others.

If you haven't already done so, we encourage you to take a peek preview at this site which is the permanent home for our History pages, Honour Roll, Articles, and much more. If you don't have the time to view it all at one session, we urge you to return and explore the many unique features we have included such as the complete original 'On Guard' series written by FreddyK, and the new Arts Centre highlighting music, artwork, original stories, and poems written by our Squadron members.

Some portions of the site are still being worked on. So, if some links are broken, or photos missing, bear with us for another week or so. We plan an official roll out later this month and all on our mailing list will be notified.

We also urge you to sign our log book at the new site so we can get a feel for the numbers who have visited.

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Proof That Good Things DO Come in Small Packages

Post Supplied by: Bill Bishop 

Yesterday, upon my return home from visiting a good friend, I had several emails waiting from 'Little Ray' Muise who identified himself as a member of the Permanent Force assigned to 400/411 squadron from 1959 to 1962 at Downsview.  The email mentioned that he now resided in Dartmouth, NS.

As many of you know, I reside in Halifax, NS and I so identified this to 'Little Ray' when I responded asking him to call me at his earliest convenience.  He phoned shortly after receiving my email last evening and, as today was a day off for him from his position as Commissionaire at the Halifax Dockyard (about 5 mins from my residence) we met from just after lunch hour until about 16:00 at my home and had a truly memorable initial get together, with a commitment to repeat this enjoyable experience over the weekend.

As I had been up since about 04:00 I did my usual thing, had a bit to eat and went for a little hibernation.  On awakening about 21:00 I had another email waiting from Ray ... this one with the subject "Your inspirations will trigger memories in others too."  Following is the content of that email from my diminutive friend (Ray is a towering 5 feet tall and looking great at 73)

"Here's the first draft; tell me what you think."  ... attached was the following:

An Expedited Flight


Today…
I soared through hazy clouds of yesterdays
as I was flown into my 400/411 Squadron past with wild abandon
Waiting for me in the ether were reminders of friends
and happy moments long forgotten


Some are crystal clear
while others slowly rise from hazy dormancy
Memories are like long lost treasures
they need to have the years wiped away to bring back their lustre
Just like looking through an old treasure chest
old memories kept shining from behind each other


I smiled as old scenes came flooding back
The friendly faces
The songs
The drinking at Avenue Road
The Downsview tarmac
The summer camps
The aircraft


Now I know how beautiful it is to grow old…
I found a way to soar through my past with wild abandon
any time I want
and happily share my treasures with future generations


And Bill Bishop was my pilot…
Thanks Bill!
Raymond (Shorty) Muise
June 21, 2011

Well Ray, I chose to respond to your most mundificant offering through our PropWash Blog.  {Mun*dif"i*cant\, a. Serving to cleanse and heal. -- n. A mundificant ointment or plaster.}

Here's what I think my friend:

1)  First efforts are usually the best ... don't change a thing

2)  As the tears of joy clear  my vision, I realize how lucky I am to have you as a friend.

3)  This is proof positive that good things certainly DO come in small packages.

In closing I wish to share with my 400 Squadron comrades that Ray will be taking an active part in our efforts to preserve our Squadron's history through our Web presences .... the above is just a sample of the many, many talents our Comrade Ray Muise has to share.  I for one, look forward to the future unfolding ...as it should.


See Ray's page, with lots of his songs, on our History Hangar Site

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Several Updates

Post Supplied by: Bill Bishop
All 10 articles in FreddyK's 'On Guard' series have been installed on our WebSite.  All but the last two have had photos and other 'goodies' added to the originals.  They may be viewed here. "On Guard"  We are trying to encourage Fred to undertake a 'winter works project' and do one final article for the series .... more to come we hope.

The four-foot deep concrete base has been excavated and poured for our Squadron Monument being constructed at the RCAF Museum in Trenton.  The final drawing for the front panel of our Squadron Standard has been received and this is what it will look like.

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Monuement Started and Honour Roll Completed

Post Supplied by: Bill Bishop 

The sod was turned last week for the 400 Squadron Monuement in Trenton.  We'll keep you posted on completion date and dedication ceremony date.

The Honour Roll section on the Blog has been removed and can now be accessed on our web site CLICK HERE TO VIEW.  The section has been completely revised and contains more complete information along with a guest book for each member on the honour roll.

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400 SQUADRON MONUMENT

Post Supplied by: Carl Mills   

On Thursday May 27, 2011, I accompanied Col. Gerry Gilroy to Belleville and Trenton where he signed the contract documents to commence the construction and placement of 400 Squadron’s Monument.  The project was initiated by Col. George Georgas some years ago, and although there were some changes to the design, the memorial features were all of Col. Georgas’ ideas.  The monument will be placed in the RCAF Memorial Air Park of the National Air Force Museum in Trenton, ON.  The monument also satisfies all of the Museum’s requirements.

The monument will be two-sided as shown on the drawings and will be 5 foot - eight inches high.  The front side will feature the squadron Standard plus the original dialogue as written by Col. Georgas.  Colour for the Standard was considered, however, it was determined that the colour eventually fades.  Because of this the Standard will be on a polished black granite insert.  The black insert is two inches thick.

Col. Georgas’ dialogue has been translated into French and is in accordance with the Museum’s rules which states, “Monument inscriptions must be in both official languages, however, the extent of bilingualism is discretionary.”  

The reverse side will contain the Honour Role of 35 names.  The main part of the monument is unpolished grey granite.  The grey granite is smoothed by using high velocity steel shot.  The black granite comes from India while the grey granite is from Vermont.  Apparently Ontario granite is too grainy for lettering.

The memorial will be located as shown on the layout (marked by an ‘X’) and will be about 15 feet from the Museum’s walkway.  The path will be three feet wide and made of light grey brick with a dark grey trim.  The path will surround the monument.  This is the same location as originally considered by Col. Georgas.  The memorial will be placed on a four foot deep concrete base to prevent heaving by ground frost.  There will be ample space for those who wish to have their own inscribed in-ground stone (Ad Astra stone program) in the future.  For those who may have already place a stone at the Museum, there is a free relocation opportunity for those who wish to have their stone near the 400 memorial.

The view is toward the west with a vista of several of the Air Park’s aircraft.  On the left is a CF-100 while on the right is an empty grassed space backed by trees.  Across the Park is a Canadian flag with a long row of trees.  There was some discussion about the empty space.  It was expressed that it should be a 400 squadron type aircraft.  The T-33, Kiowa, F-86 are already in the Air Park.  Perhaps a Vampire or surplus Griffon helicopter would fit.  This could be another 400 squadron project.

This project was funded from the 110 Squadron Trust Fund and is estimated at $14,000 including the installation, brick walkway, and a 10% perpetual maintenance fee to the Museum.  The Fund was established when the squadron went to war in 1939.  It resulted from the sale of furnishings from the Trethewey farm airfield in Toronto.  Over the years it has been entrusted to several of 400 Squadron’s senior officers and has been invested.  It has paid for other items such as the Squadron’s Standards in 1961.  The latest trustees were Cols. Georgas, Gilroy and Davidson.

The Honour Role is an important part of our heritage but has been a ‘moving target’ for the squadron over the years and previous documentation has some errors and omissions.  For this project, there was a significant review to confirm the information.  During the 110 Squadron era in the UK, there was also a 110 RAF Squadron and this caused some confusion with the four fatalities during this era.  The 400 Squadron history book (1996) was a significant basis for the Honour Role.  To confirm some information, the book published by the Commonwealth Air Training Plan Museum (1996) was used, however, there were also errors in this book.   Other information came from tombstone data, the Veterans Affairs on-line data, and the Book of Remembrance in Ottawa.

One story is of interest.  All of the personnel who were killed in the UK are buried at the Brookwood Cemetery near London with the exception of F/O McKiggan.  Although his Spitfire crashed near the airbase (Odiham), he is buried in a town in Wales.  It turns out that he was married to a lady from that town.  F/O McKiggan was from Sault St. Marie, ON and it also turns out that his wife emigrated to SSM.  Further, we found out that his wife was expecting a daughter when he was killed.  We were able to find both his wife and daughter in SSM.  The daughter was delighted to know about the memorial cairn with her father’s name on it.  She also said that they often visited friends in Belleville. 

The National Air Force Museum of Canada’s RCAF Memorial Air Park is a significant location for the memorial and the Honour Role.  Our memorial joins a growing number of other significant military memorials around the Park.  An attempt will be made to contact descendants of those on the Honour Role.  See the website for more details on the Honour Roll.

The memorial should be ready for viewing early in August.  At this point there are no immediate plans for a ceremony.  Suggestions are welcome.  Information will be posted on the 400 Squadron website.  Next year is 400 Squadron’s 80^th anniversary.

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400 SQUADRON DOES WHEELS AND WINGS DOWNSVIEW – SAT. & SUN. 28 & 29 MAY 2011

Post Supplied by: Carl Mills

Sometime during the first week of May,  I got an urgent e-mail from the Canadian Air and Space Museum (CASM) (aka Toronto air museum) indicating that they needed volunteers for their annual 'Wheels and Wings' aviation event at Downsview.   I had no idea what I was volunteering for, however, I also volunteered my long-suffering (due to my aviation stuff) wife, Sonia, for two-days of duty.  It turned out that they needed over-night guard duty, for me, and Sonia got to supervise the kids' air-filled bouncy castle.

The CF-18 Hornet and 400 Squadron’s Griffon arrived later on Saturday morning due to weather but were a great hit along with the many other aircraft on display.  There were also over a hundred exhibitors in the hangar with all manner of interest and excitement.  It was great to see old friends including Col. Chris Colten (Executive Director of our National Air Force Museum in Trenton), Col. Dan Dempsey (of Snowbird and author fame),Gen. Paul Hayes (Past Honourary Colonel of 400), and the folks from the Canadian Aviation Historical Society – Toronto Chapter.

For guard duty on Saturday night, I parked my car between the Griffon and the Hornet in full view of an open fence area about 100 yard away.  You have to understand that the old 400/411 hangars are now a sportsplex with vast spaces for floor hockey, soccer, and basketball etc.  Hundreds of young males patronize these facilities until midnight, every night.  They depart all pumped up and ready for more action.  The first thing that they saw on Saturday night was the two aircraft on the ramp.

I had several interesting challenges up to about 0100 but managed to keep these guys away with my car horn and by flashing my lights.  I did have the Downsview Park (that’s what they call the base now) security as back up and was on the verge of calling them a few times.  That part of the evening gave a whole new meaning to our motto “On The Watch To Strike”.

During the night it was dead quiet and I could hear the red ‘remove before flight’ tails hitting the airframes in the light breeze - kind of spooky.  At 0700, my relief showed.  It was raining and the ramp was inundated with squawking sea gulls – the finale to a nostalgic (sort of) night on the old 400 ramp with the 400 Griffon.

PHOTO COURTESY: TERRY MOSSMAN

Sunday, I arranged a photo op. with the four-man crew from Borden.  Gen. Hayes was there and then I found Peter Mossman and Terry Cleland.  Terry has been our exceptional 400 Squadron bandmaster forever and Peter, the well-known Canadian aviation artist, has created six of the 21 known pieces of 400 Squadron artwork.

L to R: Gen. Paul Hayes,  Cpl. Arthur Pidgeon, Capt. Courtney Hunt, Peter Mossman,  WO “JP” LesParance, Capt. Geoff Baker, Terry Cleland, Carl Mills

After nearly two days of endless and inquisitive spectators who wanted to know all about the machines and who wanted to get inside and touch everything, both the Griffon and Hornet crews prepared for departure at about 1500.  The 400 guys, after a detailed check of the helicopter, fired up and did a neat exit.  They hovered and then moving backwards toward the runway – the crowd applauded.

PHOTO COURTESY: TERRY MOSSMAN

They then rotated away, came around for a great flypast, and a wave to the crowd.  Bravo Zulu (well done in navy speak) 400 Squadron – northern branch!!!

WO “JP“ LesParance waves farewell to the crowd during the departure flypast.

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Joyful Breaking News

Post Supplied by: Bill Bishop 

What an amazing, and joyful, discovery I have made.  

Freddy K's unofficial 400 Squadron site is Alive

I have just email Fred Kuzyk to let him now that I have found his original site alive and well in cyber space.  A truly dedicated, and very skillful, computer enthusiast in The Netherlands managed to copy almost ALL the files from the GeoCities website owned by Yahoo before they shut it down completely in late 2009.  He then created a new site called ReoCities and has restored (to date) some 2,370,970 old GeoCities accounts.

Freddy K's Unofficial Air Reserve Squadron Web Pages is alive and well with most of the original content restored in tact.  For those of you who desire (for curiosity or nostalgia) wish to view the offerings from "The Father of 400 Squadron In Cyberspace", check it out by clicking here.

I'm sure that Fred will have much to say about this on his blog and, after I have a chance to chat with him, may make a further post on this subject here at PropWash.

Rejoice !

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They Are Not Forgotten

Post Supplied by: Bill Bishop 

I was helping Carl Mills to get photos for the cemeteries and/or grave sites of our Squadron members listed on our Honour Roll.

Pierre Vandervelden

I discovered a truly remarkable website called In Memory run by Pierre Vandervelden of Belgium.  This site contains links to 3,561 cemeteries  (both large and small) in Belgium, France, and Switzerland.

A link on the main page accesses a cemeteries section which provides a list of all cemeteries (be they WWI, WWII Memorial, Military cemeteries, Communal cemeteries, or Churchyard cemeteries) by country or region.
Once a country or region has been selected, all the cemeteries in that region and the number of veterans (by country of origin ... UK, CAN, NZ, AUS, S.AF, IND) who are interred there will be displayed.
Selecting a specific cemetery displays a listing of all veterans in the cemetery, sometimes with picture(s) of the cemetery and/or individual tombstones.
The work required to create this site and keep it current boggles the mind !
But read on....
On May 2, 2011 I left the following message on Pierre's web site :

Merci mille fois, Pierre, for your excellent efforts....they are appreciated.

I am the administrator of the 400 squadron RCAF blog (http://400sqn.blogspot.com/) and came across your site while looking for a picture of the Epinay Churchyard in Eure, France to include with the details of one of our past members buried there.

F/O ROBERT WILLIAM CLARKE - PILOT - J12318 - From Ottawa, ON. 

Killed 2 June 1943 - age 20. F/O Clarke was engaged in operations in a Mustang aircraft (#AM256) over the Cabouty - Tisieux area of France and crashed, due to enemy action, at Epinay. 

F/O Clarke is buried in the Epinay Churchyard at Eure (Epinay), France

If you have a picture I would deeply appreciate same by return email.

Once again, many thanks for your outstanding efforts.

Today, May 12 (just 10 days since my guest book entry) an email arrived from Régis Biaux who received permission from Pierre (site owner) to email me.  His mail read, in part:

 I am a contributor with Pierre to cover the region, departments where he has not the possibility to go.Also I visit systematically the french cemeteries where there are Commonwealth graves, specialy in Normandy and for the Seine-Maritime, Eure, Calvados, Orne, Oise..
Recently I have read you message on the guest book of Pierre and I have seen your require.Last saturday, I have visited the Epinay Churchyard in Eure and I have pictures of the RCAF Pilot RW Clarke grave. Epinay will be on line next thursday or friday...

I have attached two photos of the grave and if you want others pictures of the site, church, churchyard entry with the Commonweath Grave Plate, large view of the cemetery..., I can return to you in a next message and I will be a very high pleasure to send to you these pictures. Also as the photos are mine, you can used them on your site if you want but only with the legend "Photo Coutesy Régis Biaux" as we note on the Pierre site..

Here are the two pictures Régis sent me:

Photo Courtesy Régis Biau

Photo Courtesy Régis Biau

View F/O RW Clarke

Here is my reply 

Dear Régis,

… or I should say dear Comrade,

Many thanks for what you have done.  It is deeply appreciated.  I just put your photographs on our blog.  You can look at your fine work here: F/O R.W. Clarke (link)

Régis, in addition to providing a link to Pierre's “In Memory”, I have also written an article describing how we connected. You can see it here: They Are Not Forgotten (link)

At your convenience, I would also appreciate a copy of the other photos you mentioned.

I used a translator to change English to French.  I hope it is understandable in French.

Again, in the name of all the members of 400 Squadron, of the  Royal Canadian Air force, I express our sincere appreciation for your efforts.

Best Regards,

Bill Bishop
Now, something truly amazing !
The following information is relative to my Uncle Herbert, after whom I am named 
...William Herbert Bishop

Flight Lieutenant HERBERT BOND  CLARKE 

138020: Royal Air Force Volunteer Reserve

Division: RAF Transport Command, Group 45

who died age 24,on February 6,1945

OTTAWA MEMORIAL

Although F/O R.W. Clarke and my Uncle Herbert, F/O H.B. Clarke share the same last name they are not biologically related . However.....

No one can convince me that there was not unseen, and unknown, guidance involved in leading me in the direction I have travelled during this search. 

Maybe not biologically related ....but I wonder ?

Return To: F/O Clarke

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A BIG 'atta boy' to Carl Mills

Post Supplied by: Bill Bishop
Carl Mills served with 2 Wing from 1965 to 1983, retiring as a L/Col.  He was posted to 400 Squadron in the 70's and was with 420 and 2420 Squadrons in London prior to this.  Unbeknownst to many in the Squadron Carl has, on his own, and ably assisted by his wife Sophia, completed a number of projects of great import to our squadron.

Of particular note are 6 completed dioramas (scale models on one-foot square wooden plates) representing either a specific historical event or some aspect of our Squadron's heritage.  I am pleased to feature each of the completed dioramas which have won a first prize, three seconds, and one third when they were entered into hobby contests to seek a form of 'peer review'.  These awards give a reasonable indication as to the quality of  his work.  

To view each of these posts, which include photos, click on the 'Dioramas' in the SUBJECT LIST on the left side of this page. 

Through Carl's diligent and persistent efforts he has recently been successful in finding and repatriating the Squadron's original 110 Squadron Flag from WWII.  This effort was neither easy nor cheap.  To view the post of this remarkable story and view a photo of the flag click the Squadron Flag link.

Some of the other projects Carl has in mind, or various stages of completion are:

The Father of "Downsview In Cyber Space"

Post Supplied by: Bill Bishop
All members of 400 Sqn., 411 Sqn., and 2ARW owe a deep debt of gratitude to Fred Kuzyk for creating and managing the original "Unofficial Site" for members.  He did this when the technology for creating this type of site was in its infancy [2001 to 2009].  Over the years, Fred devoted many, many hours to keeping us connected.

When Gerry Stewart reconnected with me late last year he wondered what had happened to Freddy K's Unoffical 400 site as there had been virtually no activity on the site for quite some time.  As I had lost my photo albums during one of my many moves over the years I asked Gerry to scan and send any photos he had of our squadron days.  This led me to create our current presence in cyber space.

It also led me to get in touch with Fred Kuzyk to let him know what I was planning and to solicit his support for our endeavors.  The assistance Fred has provided has been more than generous.  He has sent me a disk containing all his e-mail addresses, the photos from his now defunct web site, and many of the postings from that site.  Much of this information will be incorporated into our photo site and here on the Propwash Blog.


Fred was kind enough to create and post on his new site "Freddy K's Blog-Off" a message for all previous members of his  site (and new arrivals to this site).  Links to Part 1 and Part 2 of his "Message to the Troops" are shown below.  Both are about 12 mins in length but I believe that anyone interested in the 2ARW family would find both videos entertaining and informative.
Part 1

Part 2


View the OnGuard Series
There will be much more added in the coming months so just click the link on the right hand side to subscribe to the free email notification of new posts.

Da Bash - August 10th, 2010

Post Supplied by: Fred Kuzyk & Bill Bishop

Thanks to Fred Kuzyk for this video from his YouTube site showing some of the sights and sounds from our get together at my daughters home in Richmond Hill, Ont.

Thank you for your interest.  We encourage you to leave a comment.

400/411 SQUADRON’S CKEY LETDOWN TO DOWNSVIEW

Post Supplied by: Carl Mills
During the 400/411 Squadron jet era (1948 to 1958) when the units flew the Vampire, T-33, and later the F-86 Sabre, a carefully designed letdown chart and procedure was used by all jet pilots.    The procedure allowed pilots to return to the Downsview airbase in marginal weather (IFR) with limits permitted as low as a 500 foot ceiling and a one mile forward visibility. 

The procedure used the CKEY radio station tower as a beacon which was 8.7 miles east of the air base.  All procedures started over Lake Ontario near Whitby and up to four aircraft, in formation, could letdown together.  The leader used the aircraft’s ADF (automatic direction finder) to accomplish the entire letdown.