425 Squadron's Halifax III (#MZ-538) coded KW-V was one of 188 Halifax aircraft and 42 Lancasters which set out on an operation over Duisberg in Germany on 18 Dec 1944.
Shortly after its take-off, Halifax III (#MZ-538) crashed near the village of Alne in North Yorkshire, killing the eight aircrew members on board. The Halifax, which had a full cargo of bombs, crashed into some trees close to the village. The resulting explosion which caused the loss of the crew. Before the crash, the pilot, RCAF Flying Officer Demarais, DFC , managed to skillfully manoeuvre the aircraft away from the village, thus avoiding civilian casualties.
The casualties of this accident were-
RCAF Flying Officer Joseph Wilfred Laurier Fernando BERNIER,
RAF Pilot Officer Joseph BLACKBURN,
RCAF Flying Officer Joseph Raymond Jean Marie DESMARAIS,
RCAF Pilot OfficerJoseph Edward Lawrence DUBOIS,
RCAF Pilot Officer Raymond Charles GAUTHIER,
RCAF Joseph Rosaire Jean Charles LABRECQUE,
RCAF Flight Sergeant Joseph LARIVIÈRE and
RCAF Flight Sergeant Joseph Maurice PARADIS.
Military Service-
Rank: Pilot Officer
Trade: Air Gunner
Service Number: J/90899
Age: 20
Force: Air Force
Unit: Royal Canadian Air Force
Division: 425 RCAF Squadron (MOTTO: 'Je te plumerai' ['I shall pluck you'])
A shipping clerk by trade, residing on Morand Street in Tecumseh, Ontario, Canada, he enlisted in the RCAF on 27 April 1943 in Windsor, Ontario.
Son of Neldo B. Gauthier and Denise (née Dejardins) Gauthier of Tecumseh.
Pilot Officer Raymond Charles Gauthier is commemorated on Page 313 of Canada's Second World War Book of Remembrance.
He is also commemorated by the Commonwealth War Graves Commission.
425 Squadron's Halifax III (#MZ-538) coded KW-V was one of 188 Halifax aircraft and 42 Lancasters which set out on an operation over Duisberg in Germany on 18 Dec 1944.
Shortly after its take-off, Halifax III (#MZ-538) crashed near the village of Alne in North Yorkshire, killing the eight aircrew members on board. The Halifax, which had a full cargo of bombs, crashed into some trees close to the village. The resulting explosion which caused the loss of the crew. Before the crash, the pilot, RCAF Flying Officer Demarais, DFC , managed to skillfully manoeuvre the aircraft away from the village, thus avoiding civilian casualties.
The casualties of this accident were-
RCAF Flying Officer Joseph Wilfred Laurier Fernando BERNIER,
RAF Pilot Officer Joseph BLACKBURN,
RCAF Flying Officer Joseph Raymond Jean Marie DESMARAIS,
RCAF Pilot OfficerJoseph Edward Lawrence DUBOIS,
RCAF Pilot Officer Raymond Charles GAUTHIER,
RCAF Joseph Rosaire Jean Charles LABRECQUE,
RCAF Flight Sergeant Joseph LARIVIÈRE and
RCAF Flight Sergeant Joseph Maurice PARADIS.
Military Service-
Rank: Pilot Officer
Trade: Air Gunner
Service Number: J/90899
Age: 20
Force: Air Force
Unit: Royal Canadian Air Force
Division: 425 RCAF Squadron (MOTTO: 'Je te plumerai' ['I shall pluck you'])
A shipping clerk by trade, residing on Morand Street in Tecumseh, Ontario, Canada, he enlisted in the RCAF on 27 April 1943 in Windsor, Ontario.
Son of Neldo B. Gauthier and Denise (née Dejardins) Gauthier of Tecumseh.
Pilot Officer Raymond Charles Gauthier is commemorated on Page 313 of Canada's Second World War Book of Remembrance.
He is also commemorated by the Commonwealth War Graves Commission.
Inscription
(Epitaph...)
HE GAVE ALL
FOR KING AND COUNTRY
MAY HE REST IN PEACE
IN THE KINGDOM OF HEAVEN
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