The Royal Canadian Air Force in World War II
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World War II air crew flight kit. |
The Royal Canadian Air Force (R.C.A.F.) was formed in England in
1919, shortly after the First World War when aircraft had first
been used in military operations. During the Second World War,
Canada was the primary focal point of the British Commonwealth Air
Training plan (B.C.A.T.P.). The Plan trained pilots, navigators,
gunners, bomb aimers, flight engineers, other aircrew, groundcrew
and support staff for the Commonwealth Air Forces.
Elgin County was home to three of the training facilities: No. 1
Technical Training School (No. 1 T.T.S.) located south of St.
Thomas; No. 4 Bombing and Gunnery School (No. 4 B&G) located at
Fingal; and No. 14 Service Flying Training School (No. 14 S.F.T.S.)
at Aylmer in what is now the site of the Ontario Police
College.
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| This
book about No. 4 Bombing & Gunnery School at Fingal,
written by Bill erguson, is available at the Museum shop. |
No. 1 T.T.S. was the largest single establishment in the plan
with over 5000 students and instructors. It was housed at the
recently completed ( 1939 ) Ontario Hospital, which was one of the
first sites offered for use to the B.C.A.T.P. Over 40 000 students
graduated from this school during the War.
No. 14 Service Flying Training School at Aylmer provided advanced
training on single engine aircraft, while No. 4 Bomber and Gunnery
School at Fingal trained bomb aimers and air gunners. Currently
also on exhibit at the museum is a Training Gun Camera, which was
used at Fingal to 'shoot' (take pictures) of targets out of a lens
below the barrel of the "gun."