Halliday, Francis

Killed in Action 1943-11-21

Birth Date: 1919

Born:

Son of John Hamilton Halliday and Janet Paxton Halliday, of Toronto, Ontario, Canada.

Home: North Bay, Ontario

Enlistment:

Enlistment Date: Unknown

Decorations: MiD

Mentioned in Dispatches

Service

RCAF

Unit

53 Sqn- Squadron

Base

Rank

Flight Lieutenant

Position

Flight Lieutenant

Service Numbers

J/10696

Home
Google MapNorth Bay, Ontario
First Burial
Google MapRunnymede Memorial Surrey, Uk
Addendum: Flight Lieutenant Halliday was from North Bay, Ontario, not Toronto, Ontario.Home in North Bay, Ontario. Enlisted in Hamilton, 20 May 1941. Trained at No.4 AOS (graduated 5 January 1942), No.4 BGS (graduated 14 February 1942) and No.2 ANS (graduated 16 March 1942). Killed in action 21 November 1943 (Liberator BZ 819); name on Runnymede Memorial. 53 Squadron Liberator GR.V BZ 819 "A" failed to return from an anti-sub patrol over the Bay of Biscay. It was apparently damaged while attacking U-648 and had to ditch off the Scilly Islands after 3 engines failed, Flight Lieutenant F. Halliday MiD, Flying Officer A. Davis (RAF), Flying Officer B. Hamilton (RAF), Sergeant S.C. Johnson (RAF), Flight Sergeant W.N. Owen (RAF), Flight Sergeant G.E. Shield (RAF) and Sergeant L.E. Terry (RAF) missing, believed killed. W/C H.R.A. Edwards AFC (RAF) was the sole survivor. (Rob Philips www.rafcommands.com). HALLIDAY, Flight Lieutenant Francis (J10696) - Mention in Despatches - No.53 Squadron (deceased) - Award effective 14 January 1944 as per London Gazette of that date and AFRO 874144 dated 21 April 1944. Detail provided by H. Halliday, Orleans, Ontario.

Canadian Virtual War Memorial

Library and Archives Canada Service Files (may not exist)

Liberator BZ819

Flight Lieutenant Halliday, Francis (RCAF)
Observer
Killed in Action
1943-November-21
Runnymede Memorial Surrey, UK

Consolidated Liberator B-24 / F-7

(DND Photos via James Craik) (Source Harold A Skaarup Web Page)
Consolidated Liberator G.R. Mk. VIII, RCAF (Serial No. 11130) ex-USAAF Consolidated (Vultee) B-24L Liberator USAAF (44-50154)
ex-RAF (Serial No. 5009), ex-Indian Air Force (Serial No. HE773).
Currently preserved in the Canada Aviation and Space Museum Ottawa Ontario.
60f987eeff518ec6f9866f66_Consolidated-B-24-Liberator--RCAF--1968--James-Craik.jpeg image not found

The Consolidated B-24 Liberator was an American heavy bomber flown by the RCAF during the Second Word War. It was designed with a shoulder-mounted, high aspect ratio Davis wing which gave the Liberator a high cruise speed, long range and the ability to carry a heavy bomb load. Early RAF Liberators were the first aircraft to cross the Atlantic Ocean as a matter of routine. In comparison with its contemporaries the B-24 was relatively difficult to fly and had poor low speed performance; it also had a lower ceiling compared with the Boeing B-17 Flying Fortress. Of the roughly 18,500 B-24s built in the USA during the war, 148 were flown by the RCAF on long range anti-submarine patrols, with the B-24 serving an instrumental role in closing the Mid-Atlantic gap in the Battle of the Atlantic. The RCAF also flew a few B-24s post war as transports.

Roughly half of all (RAF) Liberator crews in the China-Burma-India (CBI) Theatre were Canadian by the end of the war. John Muir of Vancouver flew the longest mission of the war: 24hrs, 10mins from Ceylon to Burma and back. (Kyle Hood) Harold Skaarup web page


YouTube Liberator bomber

Wikipedia Wikipedia Liberator bomber

General Harold A Skaarup Web Page