RCAF WWII questions

Fri Jun 30, 2006 8:57 pm

Thanks groundpounder

Sat Jul 01, 2006 7:59 pm

DAVE:

ON DECEMBER 17, 1939, REPRESENTATIVES OF CANADA, GREAT BRITAIN, AUSTRALIA AND NEW ZEALAND GATHERED IN THE OTTAWA, ONTARIO OFFICE OF CANADIAN PRIME MINISTER MACKENZIE KING AND AFFIXED THEIR SIGNATURES TO A DOCUMENT WHICH CREATED THE BRITISH COMMONWEALTH AIR TRAINING PLAN (BCATP).

FROM THE BEGINNING OF HOSTILITIES, IT WAS RECOGNIZED THAT ONE OF CANADA'S MAJOR ROLES IN WORLD WAR II WOULD BE THE TRAINING GROUND WHERE INSTRUCTIONS COULD BE CARRIED ON AWAY FROM THE ACTUAL BATTLE AREAS.

THE PLAN CONVERTED CANADA INTO WHAT UNITED STATES' PRESIDENT FRANKLIN D. ROOSEVELT LATER TERMED "THE AERODROME OF DEMOCRACY".

WHEN THE PLAN BEGAN TO WIND DOWN IN MARCH, 1945, MORE THAN 136,849 AIR CREW HAD GRADUATED. OF THIS TOTAL, 7,002 WERE ROYAL NEW ZEALAND AIR FORCE (RNZAF) MEMBERS.

THEY TRAINED IN ALL PARTS OF CANADA AND UTILIZED ALMOST ALL OF THE 184 PURPOSELY BUILT TRAINING FACILITIES.

CHEERS,
TOM WALSH.

Tue Jul 04, 2006 7:19 am

Thanks again to all of you who've helped with these mysteries.

I have been beavering away (hehe, Canadian reference slipped in) updating the page on my website for Ken Law, RNZAF pilot from Cambridge, NZ.

I have now split the page into three, and the first two tentative efforts are online. However as I am still going through the information and masses of photos, more will be added, particularly to page two on Canada.

Page three is not up yet but will be soon and will conclude his story with his two years as a bomber pilot and also instructor in England.

You can take a look at the two pages here
http://www.cambridgeairforce.org.nz/Ken%20Law.htm
and
http://www.cambridgeairforce.org.nz/Ken%20Law%202.htm

And I'll alert you all through this thread when more is added. Please feel free to gently nudge me if I have made any errors thus far. I do intend to eventually go through the photos again once all is complete, and trim those awful white edge strips that appear in some. You don't notice it till they apear on the black background, doh!

Cheers
Dave