WILSON, William Harold

NAME                    WILSON          William Harold
RANK                    Flying Officer / Pilot      20710                                                                                                                                      Group 6 - RAF Bomber Command                                                                                        SQUADRON         RCAF No. 431 “Iroquois”
                              “warriors of the air”
                              RAF Croft Airfield in Yorkshire
                              Squadron Markings SE                                                                                                              Born                      January 19, 1918 - Exeter - Townships of Stephen / Usborne - County of Huron                        Residence             London - Ontario                                                                                                                            Died                       May 9, 1944          26 years   4 months
Cemetery               Wevelgem Communal Cemetery - Wevelgem - West-Vlaanderen - Belgium
                              E 457
Parents                  Mr. Charles and Laura Wilson - Exeter                                                                              Brothers                 Mr. Charles Wilson Jr. - London - Ontario                                                                                                                  Messrs. Hugh and James - Exeter - Ontario                                                                          Sister                     Miss Norma Wilson - Exeter - Ontario

William was born in Exeter on January 19, 1918. He took all of his public schooling at Exeter Public School 1925=31 plus high schooling at Exeter Collegiate from 1932-1938.. He seemed to enjoy hunting and fishing as well as tennis, golf, hockey, baseball and swimming. Growing up he had scarlet fever and the measles. The family would have attended Exeter United Church. Prior to enlistment he was employed in London at Strong's Drug Store as an apprentice. He had also volunteered for the Militia from November 40-July 41 with the Canadian Fusiliers.

Canada

William went across London to enlist into the Royal Canadian Air Force on September 22, 1941. At the time he was 5' 10" tall and weighed 143 pounds. He had a fair complexion with grey eyes and brown hair. He received the rank of Aircraftsman 2. He was posted to the London Recruitment Centre until October 7 and at that time he was posted to No. 5 Auxiliary Manning Depot in Valcartier - Quebec. He remained there until November 11 and at that time was posted to No. 13 Service Flying Training School in St. Hubert - Quebec.                                        His next posting was on January 18, 1942 to No. 5 Initial Training School in Belleville - Ontario where he remained until the end of March and here he earned the rank of Leading Aircraftsman. His average was 89% and he placed 5 in a class of 117. He then went to No. 22 Elementary Flying Training School based at L'Ancienne-Lorette - Quebec and he remained here until June 6. While here his average was 75% in ground training and he was 15 in a class of 27. His Flying training was a 68% average and he was 12 in a class of 25. Then it was back to Ontario to No. 5 Service Flying Training School at Brantford - Ontario. Here he received the rank of Sergeant and then Pilot Officer and earned his Pilots Badge. His ground training average was 74% and he was 25 in a class of 56. His flying training average was 68% and he was 16 in a class of 56. In the autumn on October 23 he was posted to Prince Edward Island to Charlottetown to RCAF No. 31 General Reconnaissance School.              Sergeant Wilson on January 9, 1943 was posted to No. 32 Operational Training Unit at Patricia Bay - British Columbia. This unit was based at the east camp and he remained here until the middle of May when he was ordered to No. 1 "Y" Depot in Halifax in preparation for heading overseas. On May 36 he volunteered for the RAF Training Pool.

Overseas

Flying Officer Wilson embarked from Canada on May 27, 1943 and disembarked in the United Kingdom on June 4 and the following day he reported to No. 3 Personnel Reception Centre at Bournemouth - Dorset. He remained here for a month before being sent to RAF Whitely Bay for another month. On September 24 he was discharged for a commissioned rank. On October 6-15 while still stationed at Bournemouth he was assigned to RAF No. 7 Elementary Training Flying School based at RAF Desford - Leicestershire. Then on October 19 he was stationed with RAF No. 22 Operational Training Unit based at RAF Wellesbourne Mountford - Warwickshire.  In February 1944 he was assigned to Battle School at RAF Dalton - North Yorkshire from February 8-22. His next posting took him from February 22-March 20 to RCAF Heavy Conversion Unit 1664 based at RAF Croft - North Yorkshire.

In the Field

On March 20 he arrived at his squadron RCAF No.431 Squadron based at RAF Croft  During May of 1943 he was posted overseas and after a year was promoted to Flight Lieutenant and by this time he had been mentioned in dispatches and had completed 5 previous bombing missions over enemy held territory totaling 35 hours. The mission of May 9, 1944, thirteen aircraft from 431 Squadron had been detailed to be part of this mission which was to bomb the rail marshalling yards of Haine St. Pierre.                                                              As the mission began the visibility was clear with some slight ground haze. The moon was brilliant and the
target was able to be identified from the moonlight. His final mission was the target of Haine St. Pierre in Belgium. Flight Lieutenant Wilson and his crew aboard Halifax MKIII MZ 521 SE-T were airborne at 1:16 am on May 9th. During the mission there was severe damage to the railway yards and locomotive sheds at Haine St. Pierre. They had bombed from 7,500 feet. Halifax MkIII MZ 521 was attacked and shot down by a German night fighter. F/O Wilson stayed with his aircraft so that his crew would be able to bail out. All the crew survived with 4 men becoming POWs and 2 members evading the enemy but F/O Wilson lost his life. Halifax MZ 521 crashed at Zwevezele 10 miles north-east of Roeselare at 3:30 am. (West Vlaanderen) about 6 miles nne of Roeselare. Oberleutnant Hermann Greiner of II./NJG.1 took off from St. Troden airfield in a Bf 110 G4 aircraft and he shot down Halifax MZ 521.

In November of 1945 Mrs. Wilson received the Memorial Cross and this was followed in December of 1946 of her receiving the medals awarded to William which included the 1939-45 Star, the Aircrew Europe Star, the Defence and War Medals plus the Canadian Volunteer Service Medal with clasp.

There is a memorial statue to Halifax MZ521 located at Zwevelzele-West Vlaanderen-Belgium in honour of Flying Officer Wilson and his crew. William is honoured and remembered on the Exeter Cenotaph and on the Memorial Plaques of Exeter United Church and Exeter High School. He is also honoured and remembered on the RCAF Bomber Command Museum and in the Books of Remembrance located in the Centre Block of the Canadian Parliament. He is honoured and remembered in the Canadian Virtual War Memorial.