David John "Blackie" Williams

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Fierce Fires Burning After Mass Air Raids by RCAF on Bremen

London, July 3, 1942 (CP Cable) — Scores of Canadians helped the R.A.F. smash at the remaining vital points of Bremen in a "very heavy" attack last night it was disclosed today. Canadian aerial gunners shot down at least one of the numerous night fighters that challenged the attackers. I
The Canadians agreed it was the most satisfying of recent raids on Bremen and said fires were burning so fiercely when they reached the target that bombing the port city was like "aiming at a patchwork quilt.”
It was the third blasting attack on Bremen in a week. In the first, 1,000 planes poured death and destruction on the important docks and warehouses June 26.
Thirteen Fail to Return

Thirteen raiders did not return
"The weather was good and many fires were left burning," the air ministry said. "One enemy night fighter was destroyed."
The Canadian crews said their gunners were more active than for some time because of the presence of many enemy fighter planes.
PO. David Williams, Vancouver, reported fierce fires blazing over his objectives while other crews, including those of a squadron commanded by Wing-Cmdr. D.A.R. Bradshaw, of London, Ont., said, searchlights were heavy, but their aircraft had little difficulty in finding bombing targets.
Sgts. N.C. Cassibault, of Brockville, and H.W. Bond, of Stratford, Ont., flying a Wellington bomber, brought down a Junkers 88.
A long engagement between a Messerschmitt 100 and a Wellington captained by Flight-Sgt. Alurence Swanson, of Edmonton, ended when the Canadian crew saw the Nazi plane disappear in a long dive with smoke pouring from its engines.
Flying with Swanson were Flight-Sgt. K. Crosby, of Yarmouth, N.S., and Sgt. Pat Murphy, of Halifax, whose trigger finger sent the Nazi heeling. Murphy said he did not know whether the Nazi plane was badly hit, and its destruction was not claimed.
P.O. John Higham, of Assiniboia, Sask., and Sgt. Karl Sveinson, of Elfros, Sask., said they saw a night fighter which attacked their plane hit by the fire of Gnrs. Sgt. Art Loach, of Islington, Ont., and F/S Ernie Burnett, of Toronto.
Making his first flight against the enemy, F/S Russ Harling, of Winnipeg, fired a burst into another fighter, but could not see the result. His ship, piloted by P/O S.R. Fillmore, of Alma, N.B., was right over the target at the time.
The Moose Squadron, under Wing-Cmdr. John Fulton, D.F.C., of Kamloops, B.C., sighted several fighters, but was unable to get in any bursts. F/S Jack Wiggins, of Winnipeg, and his crew, Sgts. P.H. Rosenberg, of Toronto; Ray Woods, of Niagara Falls, Ont., and Harvey Powell, of Frankfort, Ont., sighted three enemy planes but did not get close.

Flak Fairly Heavy
Another R.C.A.F. squadron, led by W/C J.D. Twigg, of Ottawa took part in its third successive big-scale raid without a single casualty, although it got a "fair pasting" from flak. F/L Gordon Fisher, of Regina, flew as Twigg's navigator.
S/L Leonard Fraser, of Vancouver, took part in the bombing of an enemy night-fighter aerodrome while other Canadians hammered Bremen. Warrant Officer Bill Bandeen, of Winnipeg and F/S Larry Axnadeau, of Cornwall, Ont., who were with Fraser, said they thought his bombs hit the runway.
W/C John Fauquier, of Ottawa, reported he evaded a Junkers and his wireless operator and air gunner, F/S Ray Gardiner, of Hanover, Ont., said: "We flew straight to the target area, bombed and came straight out.”
F/L Bill Swetman, of Kapuskasing, Ont.; P/O Floyd Luxford, of East Angus, Que., and Sgt. Dick Fernyhough, were also on the raid.
Nazi air fields in Belgium and the Netherlands were singled out as the objectives of other raids, and coastal command Hudson bombers attacked German shipping off the Dutch coast, it was announced.
The thrust at Bremen was the third following up a mass attack by more than 1,000 R.A.F.-R.C.A.F. planes upon docks, warehouses, factories, railways and other targets the night of June 26, which followed similar four-figure raids against Cologne and Essen.
(In view of recent estimates that losses in the night raids upon Germany ranged about four percent, the announcement that 13 bombers are missing would indicate about 325 planes were involved last night.)

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CANADIANS DOWN GERMAN FIGHTER, HIT SIX OTHERS
Beamsville Airman Takes Part in Daring Raid

HEAVY OFFENSIVE
London, Aug, 18, 1942 (CP Cable) Canadian Spitfire pilots who formed part of the united nations' fighter screen around American Flying Fortresses on their first bombing mission from British bases were credited today with the destruction of one Nazi fighter, the probable destruction of four and the damaging of two others.
Credited with one Focke-Wolfe 190 probably destroyed, was Sgt. H. P. Fuller, of Hortonville, N.S., who after tangling with eight enemy craft, saw one of them heading toward the ground with smoke streaming from it.
The engines of the Spitfire were still warm when other Canadian squadrons roared into the night to continue the air offensive that will become heavier as United States forces muster their strength on this side of the Atlantic.
A Boston intruder squadron whipped over German aerodromes in northern France, where another German machine was shot down. At the same time a Hampden bomber squadron commanded by W/C John Twigg, of Ottawa, Joined the R.A.F. force which took advantage of the weather to deliver another bomb blow at Germany.

Canadians Aboard
Two young Canadians, P/O Stephen Best, of Woodstock, Ont., and P/O S. P. Marlatt, of Lillooet, B.C., were aboard the Boston intruder squadron which destroyed the returning German aircraft over a station in occupied France.
Osnabrueck, the target of the bombing raid, was plastered with explosive and incendiary bombs and the navigator in Twigg's aircraft, F/L Gordon Fisher, of Regina, said, "The town really was given a beating and I do not think any sensible German would have wanted to be within miles of it."
The crews, all of whom returned safely, reported night fighters out in force.
Evasive action became even more violent than usual and P/O Dave Williams, of Vancouver, threw his machine around so violently that the entire crew, long experienced on operations, became as air sick as rookies in a training school.
On his first operational trip Sgt. Gunner Bill Coward, of Montreal, found his first glimpse of Germany "a bit of all right." With him were Sgt.-Pilot Thomas Kaye, of Winnipeg, and Sgt.-Observer Ron Moyer, of Beamsville, Ont.

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WILLIAMS, F/L David John (J6991) - Distinguished Flying Cross - No.408 Squadron
Award effective 5 September 1942 as per London Gazette dated 26 September 1942 and
AFRO 1653/42 dated 16 October 1942.

This officer has participated in bombing attacks against many of the enemy's important heavily defended targets. One night in August 1942 he was captain of an aircraft detailed to attack Kassel. On the outward flight his aircraft was intercepted by a Junkers 88. By skilful tactics Flight Lieutenant Williams enabled his gunners to deliver effective bursts at the attacking aircraft, setting one of its engines on fire. It then dived steeply towards the ground where on impact it exploded. Although his own aircraft had sustained damage, F/L Williams pressed on to his target and bombed it. On the return journey a Messerschmitt 109 was encountered and driven off by a well directed burst of fire. Throughout, this officer has displayed a great determination to complete his allotted task. He has at all times won the confidence of all with whom he has flown.

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- late 1943, Williams goes from bombers to fighters -

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TWO CANADIANS SET HIGH MARK FELLING PLANES

Ottawa, March 24, 1944 (CP) — Two pilots flying with the R.C.A.F.'s City Of Edmonton Intruder Squadron, F/L D. MacFadyen of 29 Chestnut Park Rd., Toronto, and Lieut. J. Luma of Helena, Mont., destroyed three German aircraft in the air and left 17 more either flaming or damaged on the ground during an attack deep in Occupied France last Tuesday.
The R.C.A.F. said tonight in its weekend summary of operations that the mark set by MacFadyen and Luma is believed to establish a new record for enemy aircraft bagged by two United Nations crews in a single sortie.
During the week, the R.C.A.F. was active over Germany, Occupied France, Burma, the Anzio Beachhead and Cassino fronts in Italy. Other Canadian pilots accounted for five enemy aircraft.
Frankfurt was hammered Wednesday and Saturday by Lancasters and Halifaxes of the R.C.A.F. bomber group, and Halifax squadrons attacked strategic railway installations in Amiens Thursday,
The operation by transport aircraft and the 3rd Tactical Air Force in North Burma, which placed Allied troops some 200 miles beyond the Japanese, was participated in by Canadians from all parts of the Dominion.

City of Windsor Squadron
During the bombing of Casino, four pilots of the R.C.A.F.'s City of Windsor Spitfire Squadron broke up a formation of 20 ME-109's which was about to attack one of the Allied bomber formations northwest of the disputed town.
An R.C.A.F. pilot brought down an ME-109 near Rome. Hits were scored on enemy shipping off the Norwegian and French coasts by Beaufighters of a Canadian squadron and R.C.A.F. Albacores of the R.A.F. Coastal Command.
In the Wednesday attack on Frankfurt, the Canadian bomber group struck in full force, and Flt. Lt. Don Paterson of Lynwood, Calgary, said he saw five large fires.
"Fires were visible 150 miles from Frankfurt," said F/S Harry Grayson of London, Ont., a flight engineer. For Wing Cmdr. W. H. Swetman, D.F.C., of Kapuskasing, Ont., leader of the Thunderbird Squadron, it was his 53rd sortie over enemy territory.

Street "With Lights On."
Of Saturday's blow at Frankfurt, F/O L. D. Proctor of Biggar, Sask. said, "It looked like Portage Ave. Winnipeg, “with the lights on."
Halifax squadrons of the R.C.A.F. group paid a return visit to Annens last Thursday to bomb railway objectives, and F/O Jack Barlow of Ottawa, bomb aimer with the Moose Squadron, said it was "the best precision bombing I've seen in a long time—you could even see the bomb bursts going right through the target indicators."
For this raid the Canadian bomber group provided nearly half the force, and many other Canadians flew with R.A.F. formations.

Over Burmese Hills
In the Southeast Asia war theatre Canadians flew night after night over Burmese hills carrying Gurkha and Indian troops, mules, jeeps and a great quantity of supplies.
Shortly after the landing behind the Japanese rear F/L Bob Day of Vancouver shot down a bomb-carrying Zero.
On the Anzio Beachhead F/L Bruce Ingalls of Danville, Que., destroyed an enemy fighter near Rome Sunday, and Tuesday P/O S. B. (Red) Ruppert of Winnipeg and F/O J. S. (Blackie) Christie of Montreal and London, Eng., pilot and observer respectively, accounted for a JU-88 bomber during a raid on London.
S/L D. J. Williams of Vancouver, Beaufighter pilot of an R.C.A.F. night fighter squadron, destroyed a Heinkel 177 southwest of Guernsey, in the English Channel, Sunday. His navigator was P/O C. J. Kirkpatrick of Hamilton.
R.C.A.F. Spitfire squadrons of the 2nd Tactical Air Force provided escort for American heavy bombers returning from attacks on industrial targets in Germany.

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F/O Kirkpatrick in Epic Encounter May 1, 1944 - Flying Officer C.J. Kirkpatrick, of Saskatoon, whose wife's address is given as Westdale, Hamilton, was one of two men in the crew of a Canadian Beaufighter which shot down two German raiders over Britain in 11 minutes Saturday night. S/L D.J. Williams, of Vancouver, B.C. was the pilot. He closed in on a Dornier 217, caught it in his searchlight cones and sent it crashing down in flames. Then he pursued a second German bomber out to sea where he said the enemy plane was shot down into the water. "Blackie" & "Kirk"

DISTINGUISHED SERVICE ORDER
Sqdn, Ldr. G. W. Northcott, Minnedosa, Man.
Sqdn. Ldr. H. T. Tilson, Regina,
Sqdn. Ldr. D. J. Williams, Vancouver.
DISTINGUISHED FLYING CROSS
FO. C. J. Kirkpatrick, 149 Arkell St. W., Hamilton.

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--- Canadian Aces ---

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