|
--------------------------------------------------
The Youngest Fighter Pilot of WW2*
--------------------------------------------------
Born on the Osage Indian Res. in Okla., 30 Nov. 1925.
It is believed that "Danny" earned his private pilot's
license when he was about 13 & that his father was able
to provide him with a false birth certificate for the RCAF
that said he was born 30 Nov. 1921.
Joined the RCAF, 20 July 1940 in Winnipeg.
To No.2 ITS, Regina, 31 August 1940.
(Graduated & promoted to LAC, 22 October 1940)
To No.1 EFTS, Malton, 22 October 1940.
To No.2 SFTS, Uplands, 11 December 1940.
(Graduating 21 February 1941 as a Sergeant)
To embarkation depot 4 March 1941.
Commissioned 19 August 1941.
On 13 October 1941, Daniel is shot down into the
Channel, floated around for a few days & taken POW.
He later claimed he had destroyed 3 before they got him
but post war research has shown this to be untrue.
Spent the remainder of the war at Stalag Luft III.
Promoted to F/O 19 August 1942 (while in captivity)
& F/L 19 August 1943 (while in captivity).
Reported safe in the UK on 10 May 1945.
Repatriated back to Canada 1 June 1945.
Posted to No.8 Repair Depot (12 June 1945)
No.2 Flying Training School (5 December 1945), &
No.6 OTU (22 January 1946).
He was released from the RCAF on 6 June 1946.
Joined the USAF in 1948 or '49.
Serving in Korea as a radar operator & earning a DFC.
Apparently as a pilot during the Lebanon Crisis &
a Staff Officer during Vietnam.
He retired from the USAF in 1969.
Daniel died 4 September 1992.
He is buried at the Osage Gardens Cemetery, Okla.
His headstone (incorrectly?) shows his birth year as 1917
and incorrectly shows both a British "S/C" & DFC.
(The S/C probably refers to a DSO he claimed along with
the DFC. It seems neither was actually awarded).
I will attempt to get his RCAF service records & update
this page when & if I do.
The info about his training & when he joined is probably
accurate however, as it was taken off RCAF microfilm by
Hugh Halliday & posted at forum.12oclockhigh.net.
* This claim needs to be proven with a 'real' birth cert. |
--------------------------------------------------
Six Canadians Missing In Overseas Operations
Ottawa, Oct. 16, 1941 (CP) — The Royal Canadian Air Force reported today that six men were missing from operations overseas and that three previously listed as missing now are known to be prisoners of war. One man was listed killed on active service in Canada.
This brings the total air force dead and missing listed officially since the war started to 810.
Following is the latest list with official numbers and next of kin:
MISSING AFTER AIR OPERATIONS
Daniel, Gilmore Cecil, Pilot Officer, Can. J15016, missing. P. C. Daniel (father) Strong City, Kansas.
--------------------------------------------------
Two Are Listed Missing, 2 Others Now Prisoners
Ottawa, Nov. 13 (CP) —Two men were reported missing after air operations overseas, one previously reported missing was reported killed on active service and two previously reported missing were reported prisoners of war in the Royal Canadian Air Force’s 110th casualty list issued late today.
Two men were reported killed on active service in Canada, two seriously injured in an automobile accident in Canada and one seriously ill in Canada.
The list brings to 1,003 the number of air force dead and missing, reported officially since the start of the war.
Following is the official casualty list with official number and next- of-kin :
MISSING AFTER AIR OPERATIONS
Weir, John Gordon, Flying Officer, Can. C1650, missing. Mrs. J. G. Weir (mother), 272 Forest Hill Road, Toronto.
PREVIOUSLY REPORTED MISSING—NOW REPORTED PRISONER OF WAR
Daniel, Gilmore Cecil, Pilot Officer, Can. J15016, prisoner. P. G Daniel (father), Strong City, Kansas.
--------------------------------------------------
No Confirmed Victories
--------------------------------------------------
Awarded an American DFC during the Korean war. He was not piloting at the time.
--------------------------------------------------
Eagle Squadron Holds Reunion
SAN DIEGO (UPI) — They recall the Spitfires and Hurricanes — the fastest planes in the air at the time.
They remember the shiny silver eagle wings worn on their British Royal Air Force uniforms — the wings that gave the famous Squadron its name in 1940.
But they also remember the fear — a third of them never made it back.
And the pride is still there — the pride of the Eagle Squadron whose 240 members became the first Americans to enter World War II nearly 40 years ago.
Most of the 60 or so remaining Eagle Squadron pilots gathered in San Diego this weekend for their reunion, held every year at various cities since 1968. It provided them with a chance to relive a special time and place in history.
"In the beginning it was an adventure, getting to fly the hottest airplanes in the world," said retired Col. Edwin Taylor, who organized this year’s meeting. "Some of us were idealists. Some were romancers and adventurers, and some just went for the flying.
"But when you saw Britain with her back to the wall ... well, it made you proud, proud to fight the forces of oppression.
"We all knew the U.S. was going to be in the war eventually and some of us couldn't qualify for service at the time," Taylor explained. "But we could qualify with the British. So we told lies about our ages and we joined up. Later, when the U.S. entered the war, we transferred to our own service."
Col. (Ret.) Bill Dunn of Colorado Springs, also at this week's reunion, holds a special place in the squadron — he was the Eagle’s first ace.
"I got 15 and a half in the air (he shared one kill with a Polish pilot), destroyed 12 German aircraft on the ground, destroyed 168 enemy vehicles and sank a 4,000-ton German troop ship," Dunn said. "Like I said, there wasn't anything else going on. I didn’t have anything else to do." Dunn, who was shot down twice over Germany and once in the English Channel, recalled his first dogfight: "In very simple terms, it scared me. You really got a kick out of seeing all the little red balls flying by you."
Gilmore C. Daniel left his home in Tulsa, Okla., to join the Eagle Squadron at age 15.
"I went to join the Air Force in Canada and they wouldn’t let me in," he said. "My father said, ‘How old do you have to be?’ I told him and three days later, I had a birth certificate that said I was 18.
"It was fun," Daniel admitted. "There was the awe of flying fast airplanes and being in a war. We got $85 a month but we weren't flying for the money."
Nearly 40 years later, the remaining members, most of them in their 60’s and many walking with canes, quietly came to San Diego, virtually unnoticed by a generation that remembers little of the war.
"We're the last of this breed," Taylor reflected. "When the going got toughest, only a few of us survived. A lot of people may not know who we are, but ... we're kind of proud."
|
