Gomm, Charles Willard
Died 1942-07-08
Birth Date: 1915
Born:
Son of Edward and Mary Gomm, of Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada.
Home: Vancouver, British Columbia
Enlistment:
Enlistment Date: Unknown
Service
RCAF
Unit
32 (F) Sqn- Squadron (RAF)
Base
West Malling
Rank
Pilot Officer
Position
Pilot Officer
Service Numbers
J/9279
First Burial
New Cemetery, Folkestone, Kent, Uk
32 Squadron (Adeste Comites). July 7, 1942 Pilot Officer Gomm was flying Hurricane IIb aircraft Z 5256 when he crashed in the English Channel off Dungeness. He was picked up by a trawler but died shortly after of shock and exposure.
Quoted in rafcommands website: "......Pilot Officer Charles Willard Gomm was a Canadian who died during operations with No. 32 (Fighter) RAF flying out of Friston or West Malling. The telegram received by my grandmother said that he died of shock and exposure following injuries sustained in air operations on July 8th, 1942. His RAF logbook shows he flew Hurricane 5256 (or S256) with the Duty entered as "G.C.I with Havoc". I know Havocs flew out of West Malling with 1452 Flight ........ Charles flew mostly night fighters including Boulton Paul Defiants, Blenheims and then the Hurricane. His story is rather interesting as he travelled from Singapore to Cairo, Paris then New York and then Home to New Westminster to volunteer. ...."
Canadian Virtual War MemorialHawker Hurricane
Source BBMF
The Hawker Hurricane is a single-seat fighter aircraft of the 1930s"“1940s that was designed and predominantly built by Hawker Aircraft Ltd. for service with the Royal Air Force (RAF). The Hurricane developed through several versions, as bomber-interceptors, fighter-bombers, and ground support aircraft in addition to fighters. Versions designed for the Navy were popularly known as the Sea Hurricane, with modifications enabling their operation from ships. Some were converted to be used as catapult-launched convoy escorts. By the end of production in July 1944, 14,487 Hurricanes had been completed in Britain and Canada.
A major manufacturer of the Hurricane was Canadian Car and Foundry at their factory in Fort William (now Thunder Bay), Ontario. The facility's chief engineer, Elsie MacGill, became known as the "Queen of the Hurricanes". The initiative was commercially led rather than governmentally, but was endorsed by the British government; Hawker, having recognized that a major conflict was all but inevitable after the Munich Crisis of 1938, drew up preliminary plans to expand Hurricane production via a new factory in Canada. Under this plan, samples, pattern aircraft, and a complete set of design documents stored on microfilm, were shipped to Canada; the RCAF ordered 20 Hurricanes to equip one fighter squadron and two more were supplied to Canadian Car and Foundry as pattern aircraft but one probably did not arrive. The first Hurricane built at Canadian Car and Foundry was officially produced in February 1940. As a result, Canadian-built Hurricanes were shipped to Britain to participate in events such as the Battle of Britain. Canadian Car and Foundry (CCF) was responsible for the production of 1,451 Hurricanes. Wikipedia and Harold A Skaarup Web Page
Hurricane
Wikipedia Hurricane 
Harold A Skaarup Web Page 
Hurricane - Kestrel Publications