Entrance to tent city of No. 443 Squadron, May 1945
Category Archives: readers’ contribution
From the personal collection of Leslie Birket Foster
A copy of a page in his logbook
Erks, squadron personnel and a pilot
All images are courtesy of Leslie Birket Foster’s daughter
What’s a Blog?
“What’s a Blog?”
Answer: “A regularly updated website or web page, typically one run by an individual or small group, that is written in an informal or conversational style.”
What’s the RCAF No. 443 Blog? Just a way to pay homage to unsung heroes nobody would have heard about or read in history books. It’s mostly about sharing what relatives had shared when they find my blog.
This blog isn’t the only one. I have more than 30 because so many people wanted to share their pictures and stories like Nicole Morley who stumbled on one of those 30 blogs and wrote about her granduncle Art Horrell.
This blog was created to pay homage to Arthur Horrell then it evolved from there. This is post no.114.
Next time someone has contributed a beautiful love story about a Spitfire. I just can’t wait to share it.
Tribute to Art Horrell and Paul Piché – Peel en Maas Venray –
A video here…
http://www.peelenmaasvenray.nl/pagina/tv
With the kind permission of the photographer
Remembering…
More contribution
Shared by Tara
Any comments?
More than just names…?
This is post 94 on this blog.
It started here
In fact it started in 1952 on page 4, last paragraph.
Flying Officers L. P. E. Piche and A. J. Horrell set out in an Auster to fly to Antwerp. They arrived there safely, took off again and vanished into the blue. Both pilots had been with the squadron since Gander days.
443squadron(1)
More than just names…?
I had never heard of those two pilots before Nicole Morley wrote a comment on my blog paying homage to another RCAF fighter squadron, No. 403.
Nicole had written a simple comment posted in March 2013.
Hi
My name is Nicole Morley and my Great Uncle Arthur James Horrell was in the 443 squadron. I don’t know if my Great Uncle ever knew William Irvine Gould but I imagine he probably did. I’m doing some research on my Uncle and was wondering if there was anyone who had pictures or information about the 443 squadron or anything related to my Uncle. You can reach me at my e-mail address.
Thanks
It was about this article.
I had replied that she had the wrong squadron, but that I could help her by creating a new blog about 443 squadron.
This blog had evolved a lot since 2013.
Names are now more than just names…
E. H. Fairfield?
E. H. Fairfield?
Tara’s Notes
E.H. Fairfield:
Service No. J20018
127 Squadron: May 1943 to Dec.1943
443 Squadron: Feb 13, 1944 – Feb 13, 1945
He was in Course No. 51 (March 14 – July 13, 1942) at No. 2 SFTS – Uplands. There was a photo of this class, so if we can compare the unknown pilot from the 443 photo with the attached photo, perhaps we can confirm that this is in fact E. H. Fairfield.
Leslie Birket Foster’s Memoirs
His daughter wrote them, and I posted them on this blog.
Carol sent me some pictures yesterday, and I posted only this one.
I just wanted to make a point.
Hey! We’re a team…
I’m sure Les Birket Foster would agree.
Post 75 – About this picture
This is a montage I made using Paint from Windows.
Simple to make. Just copy a section, paste it, resize it (400%), and move it where you want to place it.
Take this image sent in 2013 by Nicole Morley, whom I never met.
Nicole is the person behind the idea of this blog. She shared what little she knew in 2013 about her granduncle, and I got curious and created this blog about 443 Squadron.
In April 2013, Nicole met Ivor Williams, another Spitfire pilot with 443 Squadron, and he identified for her most of the pilots on this picture.
Nicole wrote everything down and passed it on.
Nicole just wrote me about it.
Hi
I just wanted to let you know that after doing some digging I learned that Philip Bockman changed his last name to Vickers after the war. I originally had put the name Bickers underneath his full name but I realize afterwards that I misunderstood Ivor Williams. Also where you listed the name Ferguson with regards to Squadron 443 it should read Percival Edward Ferguson.
Take care.
Nicole Morley
There was another correction made earlier by this pilot’s daughter…
Rooney Alexander Hodgins should say instead William Alonzo Cramner Gilbert aka “WAC Gilbert”
How can I make that correction?
Simple…
RCAF No. 443 Squadron 