By Karen Richardson
To The Haldimand Press
In 1939, British Prime Minister Neville Chamberlain approached Canadian Prime Minister William Lyon Mackenzie King with a proposal for Canada to be the site for a training program for Commonwealth airmen. In 1940, the first of the 28 Service Flying Training Schools (SFTS) constructed under the British Commonwealth Air Training Plan began opening in towns across Canada, and Haldimand County played a significant role.
Two of the British flight training schools were in Dunnville and Hagersville, while one bombing and gunnery school was built in Jarvis. These schools were responsible for teaching Allied soldiers from around the world how to properly operate aircraft, guns, bombs, and similar weapons.
The government expropriated more than 3,100 acres of farmland to build the three schools, plus two relief fields, located at Kohler and Dawson City. These schools had a significant impact on the economy of Haldimand County, creating hundreds of jobs for the civilian population.
On November 25, 1940, Dunnville opened Station No. 6 SFTS, a single-engine aircraft training school for fighter pilots. After an eight-week course at an Elementary Flying Training School, students spent an additional 12-16 weeks in Dunnville before earning their wings and proceeding to an Operational Training Unit. Harvard and Yale aircraft were used for pilot training and the Ansons were used for navigation exercises.
Station No. 6 SFTS was situated on 415 acres of land between Dunnville and Port Maitland. The layout consisted of five steel-framed hangars, three double runways ranging from 1,800 to 3,200 feet, and a sprawling camp area consisting of some 50 H-huts and numerous other buildings.
On January 24, 1942, 120 members of the Canadian Women’s Auxiliary Airforce (CWAAF, Women’s Division, RCAF) arrived in Dunnville. Their duties included clerical work and serving as weather observers, photographers, wireless operators, parachute riggers, aircraft mechanics, and air traffic controllers.
During the four years of No. 6 SFTS operation in Haldimand, a total of 2,436 pilots from Canada, Great Britain, Australia, New Zealand, and the United States earned their wings at the school; of these men, 47 lost their lives. After the war, the No. 6 SFTS was decommissioned and became the Dunnville Airport.
Hagersville No. 16 SFTS was dedicated in 1941 and served as a twin- and single-engine pilot training school. Pilots were trained on Ansons and Harvards. Many civilians were employed at the school; one of the local workers was Ruth Parsons of Jarvis, who accepted a position as the Chief Flying Instructor’s Secretary. She recalled her salary back in 1941 was $60 per month and she purchased a 1929 Model T Ford to commute from her home to the school.
Between 1941 and March 30, 1945, 1,783 young men received their pilot’s wings at the Hagersville School and 16 died during training. The station remained operational until September 21, 1945. After the training school closed, the site – known as Camp Hagersville – was used by the Canadian Army for various purposes and was designated as No. 1 Vehicle Company, Central Mechanization Depot. The Camp was closed in 1964.
No. 1 Bombing & Gunnery School, RCAF in Jarvis was the first of 11 such schools in Canada during World War II. The school was selected and constructed for the purpose of training air observers (or navigator-bomb aimers), air gunners, and wireless air gunners for active service in Europe. It was one of the largest bases in the country. In addition to the main aerodrome on the 600-acre site, the school also operated five bombing ranges, a marine section, and two gunnery ranges in an area extending from Turkey Point to South Cayuga.
Between August 18, 1940 and February 17, 1945, more than 6,500 observers, bomb aimers, and air gunners from throughout Canada and the British Commonwealth graduated from the school. The trainees would undergo an extensive 24 weeks of instruction followed by another four weeks of machine gun practice and shooting at targets before receiving their wings. Thirty-nine men lost their lives serving at Jarvis.
Women were admitted to the Royal Canadian Air Force in 1941 as members of the Women’s Division. Seventy women arrived at Jarvis in April 1942 and served in many areas of the Bombing and Gunnery School, including the control tower, the bomb plotting office, the kitchens, and the stores.
By 1947, the Crown Assets Disposal Corporation had scrapped the airplanes and dismantled and sold off the hangars and other buildings before clearing the site. For eight years, the land was leased to local farmers. In 1974, the property was sold to Texaco Canada and turned into the Nanticoke Oil Refinery.
Victory in Europe – or VE Day – was officially celebrated on May 8, 1945.
In Germany, where the Canadian Army fought right to the last day, soldiers were too relieved to celebrate very much. In Paris and London, Canadians joined people in the streets in an outpouring of emotion. In Toronto, thousands danced in the streets while three Mosquito aircraft dropped tickertape overhead. In Haldimand, every community celebrated with people spilling into the streets.
Karen Richardson, Museum Curator at Haldimand Museum & Archives, presented the above information as part of a series of events related to local military history. For information on upcoming events, visit haldimandcounty.ca/calendar.
