Kenneth Oliver Doerksen Rank: Leading Aircraftman Status: Killed in Flying Accident 1957-03-01

North American Mitchell B-25 B-25D B-25J

North American B-25J Mitchell Mk. III
Canadian Warplane Heritage Museum

The North American B-25 Mitchell is an American medium bomber that was introduced in 1941 and named in honor of Major General William "Billy" Mitchell, a pioneer of U.S. military aviation. Used by many Allied air forces, the B-25 served in every theater of World War II, and after the war ended, many remained in service, operating across four decades. Produced in numerous variants, nearly 10,000 B-25s were built.

The North American B-25 Mitchell was flown by the RCAF during and after the Second World War. The RCAF flew the B-25 Mitchell for training during the war and continued flying operations after the war, in Canada with most of 162 Mitchells received. The first B-25s had originally been diverted to Canada from RAF orders. These included one Mitchell Mk. I, 42 Mitchell Mk. IIs, and 19 Mitchell Mk. IIIs. No 13 (P) Squadron was formed unofficially at RCAF Station Rockcliffe in May 1944 and flew Mitchell Mk. IIs on high-altitude aerial photography sorties. No. 5 OTU (Operational Training Unit) at Boundary Bay, British Columbia and Abbotsford, British Columbia, operated the B-25D Mitchell in a training role together with B-24 Liberators for Heavy Conversion as part of the BCATP. The RCAF retained the Mitchell until October 1963.

No. 418 (Auxiliary) Squadron received its first Mitchell Mk. IIs in January 1947. It was followed by No. 406 (Auxiliary), which flew Mitchell Mk. IIs and Mk. IIIs from April 1947 to June 1958. No. 418 Operated a mix of Mk. IIs and Mk. IIIs until March 1958. No. 12 Squadron of Air Transport Command also flew Mitchell Mk. IIIs along with other types from September 1956 to November 1960. In 1951, the RCAF received an additional 75 B-25Js from USAF stocks to make up for attrition and to equip various second-line units.. Wikipedia and Harold Skaarup web page

YouTube Mitchell Bomber

Wkikpedia Wikipedia Mitchell Bomber

General Harold A Skaarup Web Page

CASPIR Aircraft Groups:

RCAF Owned (164) RCAF 400 Squadrons (3) Canadian Crewed (71) Canadian Museum (2)

last update: 2021-09-23 15:53:49

Mitchell Mk. 3PT 5215

Ex USAF B-25J-25/27-NC serial number 44-30485. Received from USAF at Mobile, Alabama. To storage with Training Command at RCAF Station Saskatoon, Saskatchewan on 1 December 1951. To Advanced Flying School at Saskatoon on 7 January 1952. To North West Industries in Edmonton, Alberta for modifications and major inspection, 10 November 1952 to 27 January 1953. To storage at No. 25 Air Material Base when completed. Assigned to Central Experimental and Proving Establishment on 18 April 1953, for use at CARDE (Canadian Armament Research and Development Centre) at Valcartier, Quebec. Delivered to Valcartier on 5 May 1953, by No. 129 (A&F) Flight. To No. 6 Repair Depot on 15 July 1955, for various modifications, including installation of MN53 marker beacon system and replacement of 8 channel VHF with ARC502, and insulation of bomb bay and crew space. To CEPE at RCAF Station Rockcliffe, Ontario when completed. Struck off by this unit, possibly following an accident on 2 March 1957.

1951-11-26 Taken on Strength No. 6 Repair Depot 2019-08-20
1957-03-20 Struck off Strength 2019-08-20

CEPE Exporto Crede (Central Experimental and Proving Establishment)

Museum Archives Association of Ontario

From the formation of the Air Board and the Canadian Air Force, test and development work was carried on at Ottawa Air Station (at Rockcliffe and Shirley's Bay). By 1930, a special Test Flight was established at Rockcliffe. Its purpose was to carry out investigations pertaining to flight testing, electronics, gunnery, navigation, and any aeronautical work that affected training. Due to the war, the demands for test flying for research and experiment increased and, as a result, the Test Flight was reorganized into the RCAF Test and Development Establishment in November 1940 and in 1946, its changed name to Experimental and Proving Establishment. Other experimental units such has the Winter Experimental Establishment were formed during and after the war. It was decided to centralize the control of their activities in one organization. On 1 September 1951 the Central Experimental and Proving Establishment was formed by the amalgamation of the E&PE at Rockciffe, the Winter Experimental Establishment at Edmonton, and the RCAF (National Research Council) Unit at Arnprior. Headquarters of CE&PE were at Rockcliffe, with detachments at several sites across Canada. In 1957 CE&PE was moved to RCAF Station Uplands, a move necessitated by the longer runways required for testing new jet aircraft.

Marshal
Air Chief Marshal	A/C/M
Air Marshal	A/M
Air Vice Marshal	A/V/M
Air Commodore	A/C
Group Captain	G/C
Wing Commander	W/C
Squadron Leader	S/L
Flight Lieutenant	F/L
Flying Officer	F/O
Pilot Officer	P/O
Warrant Officer 1st Class	WO1
Warrant Officer 2nd Class	WO2
Flight Sergeant	FS
Sergeant	SGT
Corporal	CPL
Senior Aircraftman	SAC
Leading Aircraftman	LAC
Aircraftman 1st Class	AC1
Aircraftman 2nd Class	AC2

Doerksen, Kenneth Oliver (Leading Aircraftman)

Killed in Flying Accident 1957-March-01

Mitchell 5215

North American Mitchell B-25 B-25D B-25J

CASPIR Aircraft Groups:

Mitchell Mk. 3PT 5215

CEPE Exporto Crede (Central Experimental and Proving Establishment)

Griffin Library, 17 Wing Winnipeg

Lancaster FM213

Andrew Mynarski, VC

Doerksen, Kenneth Oliver (Leading Aircraftman)

Killed in Flying Accident 1957-March-01

Mitchell 5215

North American Mitchell B-25 B-25D B-25J

CASPIR Aircraft Groups:

Mitchell Mk. 3PT 5215

CEPE Exporto Crede (Central Experimental and Proving Establishment)

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