Page 13 - December 2018

There was some truth, as it turned out that the brightest My instructor was an old fellow - about twenty-eight
and highest educated would be selected as observers as years of age, by the name of Alfie Cockle. Our
that required the greatest skill in mathematics. Over half temperaments were suited and we progressed
of the class had several years of university behind them, without much pain - about two-hour instruction in
so with my four years of high school (junior the air each day, with the rest of the day in ground
matriculation certificate), I was not likely to be chosen as school.
a navigator. Like most of the class I decided to work like
It wasn't long before it became obvious that some of
hell and hope for the best. It was be general agreement,
the students were disappearing and we soon found
the most intensive schooling most of us had ever had. It
out why. They were "washed out"; i.e. failed as
lasted only two weeks, but if it had been much longer possible pilots. One third of our class were "washed
there would have been many of us with health
out" before ever being allowed to go solo. Eight to
breakdowns. On the second Friday night we were all
ten hours dual was the time in which we were
given forty-eight hour passes and told to report in expected to be sent solo. At about the nine hour
Monday morning and we'd find out what was in our
mark, I was getting concerned and then Alfie quietly
future.
asked me to park over at the flight office and let him
I hitch-hiked home to St. George - a two hour drive and out and go off on my own. I was to just do a take-off,
as luck would have it I got a ride all the way with a chap circuit the field and land and bring the aircraft to the
who had been a pilot in the first world war, 1914-1918. I flight office. I managed to do that without attracting
told him I expected to start pilot training the next week, too much attention - and pull the power off and
and until we arrived in St. George, (in fact he drove me touch down. There were ground crews there to help
home to the farm), he proceeded to give me a lot of get the aircraft back to the parking area.
advice about how to survive in combat. His advice was Two incidents stand out in my memory about flying
still good advice, as I later found out.
at Windsor Mills.
I enjoyed the two days at home and told the family not One day, with a very strong wind blowing Alfie
1.
to be surprised if I ended up as an air gunner instead of a and I took off and it wasn't very long before I
pilot.
noticed we were backing away from the airport
On returning to Toronto on Sunday night, all of our because of the strong wind. On my mentioning
postings were on the bulletin board and I found my this to Alfie he cautioned me not to make a turn
name with about twenty others on a posting to the or we would never get back to the field. The
Elementary Flying Training School at Windsor Mills, procedure was to back away until downwind
Quebec, for pilot training. I was so happy, I cried. from the field and then stick the nose down and
power down at a fast enough speed to gain on
A lot of the others had come back on Sunday evening as
the field again and when half way down the field,
well and a bunch of us who were posted to Windsor
Mills found each other and celebrated with a few beers - pull into a 360 degree turn, and line up over the
middle of the field and allowing suitably for the
a traditional way of celebrating good or bad news.
wind, keep on enough power to land on the field
On Monday morning we Windsor Mills pilots were given close to the flight office.
our travel documents including first class tickets on a
Again on a dual flight with Alfie we were out to
train for Windsor Mills.
do a little emergency landing practice when at
This was early November 1940, very much winter in about 1500 feet above the ground, the engine
Windsor Mills, Quebec (see photo) and the aircraft, all quit completely - caused by carburetor ice as it
Fleet Finches, were ski-equipped - no wheels. After a turned out. I said "Over to you Alfie". He said
few days of ground school, we were finally each "Hell no it's yours. Find a safe place to put it
assigned to an instructor - each of which had four down." I looked around for a suitable field. There
student pilots to start with and we started getting were not many choices, but I picked one I
actually instructed on flying an aircraft. This was exciting thought we could make and headed for it. Of
stuff. course there was a fence at the approach end of