Ernest Wood was born on 7th February 1914 in Kelwood, Manitoba, Canada. He enlisted into the RCAF in September 1941 and trained as a navigator. He flew his first operational flight with 408 Squadron on 11th June 1943 to Dusseldorf, the incident on the North Yorkshire Moors occurred on his seventh operational flight and he did not sustain any injuries in baling out of Halifax JD174. Shortly after this incident he appears to have been posted to 405 Squadron (probably on 24th July 1943) but then returned to 408 Squadron on 30th September 1943. He received a commission in Autumn 1943 but the exact date is not yet known. For service with 408 Squadron P/O Wood RCAF (J/19016) was recommended for the Distinguished Flying Cross on 23rd February 1944 after he had completed twenty nine operational flight, the recommendation for his DFC reads..
"Pilot Officer Wood has nearly completed his first operational tour which has included numerous attacks against Berlin and other distant targets. As a navigator, he has performed his duties with great skill and has at all times set an excellent example by his keenness and devotion to duty. On several occasions their aircraft has been subjected to harrowing experiences, but Pilot Officer Wood by his coolness and skilful directions to his
captain, on each occasion permitted the aircraft to return safely to this country."
Notification of his DFC was published in the London Gazette on 24th May 1944. It is therefore assumed that he completed the Tour with 408 Squadron but where he was posted to after this is not yet known. He survived the War and returned home being de-mobbed in 1945 but re-joined the RCAF in 1946 and served until 1959 when he finally retired from the RCAF. He then worked for the Bank of Montreal until finally retiring. Ernie Wood died in Vernon, British Columbia on 22nd November 1997. I thank both his daughter and nephew for kindly supplying information to this webpage and for the photograph of Ernie Wood shown above.
