Couch, John Patrick
Killed in Flying Accident 1991-10-30
Birth Date: 1959-October-13
Born: Ontario
Home: St Albert, Alberta
Enlistment: Edmonton, Alberta
Enlistment Date: 1983-04-06
Service
CAF70
Unit
435 (T) Sqn- Squadron
Certi Provehendi Detemined on delivery
Base
Edmonton, Alberta, Canada
Rank
Captain
Position
Captain
Service Numbers
A22489825
Home
St Albert, Alberta
First Burial
Memory Gardens Cemetery, Breslau, Ontario, Canada
Took off from CFB Edmonton Albertaon an 'Operation Boxtop' semi-annual supply airlift to the station at Alert, NMT.
Aircraft was on landing approach to Alert when it struck high ground and crashed.
Killed:Captain John Couch, pilot, 435 Transport Squadron, Edmonton, Alberta.Captain Judy Trepanier, logistics officer, Canadian Forces Communication Command Headquarters, Ottawa, Ontario.Master Warrant Officer Tom Jardine, regional services manager CANEX, Canadian Forces Base Trenton, Ontario.Warrant Officer Robert Grimsley, supply technician, Canadian Forces Communication Command Headquarters, Ottawa.Master Corporal Roland Pitre, traffic technician, 435 Squadron.
There was also a very long list of survivors, but too many to include here.
Canadian Virtual War Memorial
Commonwealth War Graves Commission
www.findagrave.comHercules C-130E-LM 10322
Ferry Flight 1991-October-30 to 1991-October-30
435 (T) Sqn (RCAF) CFB Edmonton
435 Transport and Rescue Squadron (Certe Provehendi) CFB Edmonton. Hercules C-130E-LM aircraft 10322 struck high ground and crashed on approach to Canadian Forces Station Alert, Ellesmere Island NWT during the semi-annual "Operation Boxtop" supply airlift to the station. At 508 miles from the geographic North Pole, CFS Alert is the furthest north permanent human settlement on our planet
Boxtop 22 was the 22nd flight of the second airlift of 1991. Crewed by Aircraft Commander Capt JP Couch, First Officer Lt J Bales, Lt M Moore, Navigator; Sergeant Paul West, Flight Engineer and MCpl Roland Pitre, Loadmaster/Traffic Technician
There were thirteen passengers aboard the aircraft, a mix of military and civilian personnel flying in for duty or to attend to various services for the staff at Alert
For the first time on one of these flights, the Hercules was also carrying an internal bulk fuel tank containing 3,400 litres of diesel fuel for use at CFS Alert. When the aircraft crashed, it broke into three pieces, causing the internal fuel tank to burst open and catch fire
The remote location and weather made any rescue response extremely difficult and hazardous but a massive rescue operation was undertaken involving 24 Canadian and US military aircraft as well as 2 Canadian civilian aircraft
Hundreds of dedicated air and ground search and rescue personnel, persevering despite the most extreme weather conditions and rugged landscape were involved in the recovery
The rescue involved aircraft and personnel from Canadian Military: 103 RU, Gander, 405 Squadron, Greenwood, 408 Squadron, Edmonton, 412 Squadron, Ottawa, 413 Squadron, Greenwood, 415 Squadron, Greenwood, 424 Squadron, Trenton, 429 Squadron, Trenton, 435 Squadron, Edmonton, 436 Squadron, Trenton, 440 Squadron, Edmonton, 442 Squadron, Comox.Canadian Civilian: Greenland Charter Air Services and Bradley Air ServicesUS Military: 11th Air Force, Elemendorf, 22nd Air Force, Travis AFB, 56th Air Rescue, Kleflavik, IcelandMCpl R Pitre CD (CAF), Captain JA Trepanier CD (CAF), MWO T Jardine CD SSM (CAF) andWarrant Officer R Grimsley CD (CAF) were killed in this accident
Capt JP Couch (CAF) survived initially and helped other survivors after the crash but died of hypothermia before rescuers arrived
There were thirteen survivors among those aboard: Civilian R Thomson, Civilian S Hillier, Lt J Bales (CAF), Sergeant P West (CAF), Lt M Moore (CAF), Capt R Dumoulin (CAF), Capt W de Groot (CAF), MWO M Tremblay (CAF), MCpl T Cobden (CAF), MCpl D Meace (CAF), MCpl M Ellefsen (CAF), MS D Montgomery (CAF) and Pvt B Vance (CAF)
Death and Deliverance by Robert Mason Lee
The Royal Canadian Air Force Journal, Vol. 8, No. 4, Fall 2019
Hercules 10322
Lockheed C-130 Hercules CC-130
(Source RCAF Web Page)
Hercules
Wikipedia Hercules 
CC-130 Hercules - Kestrel Publications
435 (T) Sqn Certi Provehendi ("Chinthe")
History of the Squadron during World War II (Aircraft: Dakota III, IV)
No. 435 was the 34th RCAF squadron formed overseas in WWII. It was the 3rd transport squadron and the second formed in India. It was inaugurated on November 1 1944 at Gujrat, Punjab, India . Based in Tulihal, Manipur, India from 18 December 1944, it flew Dakota aircraft in support of the British 14th Army in northern Burma. After cessation of hostilities in the Far East, the squadron relocated to Down Ampney, Gloucestershire, UK , where it provided transport services in Britain and Europe for Canadian units. It was finally disbanded at Down Ampney on April 1, 1946.
Overall, in Burma the squadron flew 15,681 sorties, airlifted 27,460 tons of freight, 14,000 passengers and 851 casualties. An additional 1018 sorties were flown in England. Casualties were 3 aircraft, 9 aircrew and 6 passengers killed, 2 aircrew and 13 passengers injured. Awards gained by the squadron were 1 MBE, 1 DFC, 1 AFCs and 1 MiD. Battle Honour was Burma 1944-45Wikipedia, Kostenuk and Griffin
Maps for Movements of 435 Squadron 1944-46
435 Squadron History Summary 1944-46
History of the Squadron Post-WWII (Aircraft: Dakota, Boxcar, Hercules)
No. 164 (Transport) Squadron was created on 23 January 1943 at Moncton, New Brunswick . The squadron flew Lodestar and Dakota aircraft on East Coast transport duty. It was the RCAF’s premier transport squadron and the cornerstone of the peacetime Air Transport Command. It provided trained aircrew as the nuclei of other transport units. On 1 August 1946 it was divided into two units, one at Dartmouth, Nova Scotia and one at Edmonton, Alberta . The Dartmouth squadron become No. 426 (T) Squadron and the Edmonton detachment was re-designated 435 (Transport) Squadron. It flew Douglas Dakota IV aircraft until 1952, then re-equipped with the Fairchild C-119G Flying Boxcar. The squadron relocated a few miles north to RCAF Station Namao in 1955. From 1960, it flew Lockheed Hercules C-130B, and from 1966 the Hercules C-130-E. Due to the Chrétien government's budget cuts and the resultant closure of the airfield at CFB Edmonton, the squadron was moved to 17 Wing Winnipeg in 1994. It was re-designated '435 Transport and Rescue Squadron' on 1 May 1995. The squadron is now based at 19 Wing, Comox, British Columbia . 435 Squadron is the only Air Force squadron equipped and trained to conduct air-to-air refuelling of fighter aircraft in support of operational and training activities at home and abroad. The CC-130 Hercules tanker is a key asset for the Canadian NORAD Region in its mission to defend Canada and the United States against aerial threats that originate outside or within North American airspace. The Squadron has been operating the tankers in support of fighter operations since 1992.
For additional details see
.Hercules 10322 C-130E-LM - Ferry Flight - 1991-10-30 to 1991-10-30
6 Group Unavailable
435 Transport and Rescue Squadron (Certe Provehendi) CFB Edmonton. Hercules C-130E-LM aircraft 10322 struck high ground and crashed on approach to Canadian Forces Station Alert, Ellesmere Island NWT during the semi-annual "Operation Boxtop" supply airlift to the station. At 508 miles from the geographic North Pole, CFS Alert is the furthest north permanent human settlement on our planet
Boxtop 22 was the 22nd flight of the second airlift of 1991. Crewed by Aircraft Commander Capt JP Couch, First Officer Lt J Bales, Lt M Moore, Navigator; Sergeant Paul West, Flight Engineer and MCpl Roland Pitre, Loadmaster/Traffic Technician
There were thirteen passengers aboard the aircraft, a mix of military and civilian personnel flying in for duty or to attend to various services for the staff at Alert
For the first time on one of these flights, the Hercules was also carrying an internal bulk fuel tank containing 3,400 litres of diesel fuel for use at CFS Alert. When the aircraft crashed, it broke into three pieces, causing the internal fuel tank to burst open and catch fire
The remote location and weather made any rescue response extremely difficult and hazardous but a massive rescue operation was undertaken involving 24 Canadian and US military aircraft as well as 2 Canadian civilian aircraft
Hundreds of dedicated air and ground search and rescue personnel, persevering despite the most extreme weather conditions and rugged landscape were involved in the recovery
The rescue involved aircraft and personnel from Canadian Military: 103 RU, Gander, 405 Squadron, Greenwood, 408 Squadron, Edmonton, 412 Squadron, Ottawa, 413 Squadron, Greenwood, 415 Squadron, Greenwood, 424 Squadron, Trenton, 429 Squadron, Trenton, 435 Squadron, Edmonton, 436 Squadron, Trenton, 440 Squadron, Edmonton, 442 Squadron, Comox.Canadian Civilian: Greenland Charter Air Services and Bradley Air ServicesUS Military: 11th Air Force, Elemendorf, 22nd Air Force, Travis AFB, 56th Air Rescue, Kleflavik, IcelandMCpl R Pitre CD (CAF), Captain JA Trepanier CD (CAF), MWO T Jardine CD SSM (CAF) andWarrant Officer R Grimsley CD (CAF) were killed in this accident
Capt JP Couch (CAF) survived initially and helped other survivors after the crash but died of hypothermia before rescuers arrived
There were thirteen survivors among those aboard: Civilian R Thomson, Civilian S Hillier, Lt J Bales (CAF), Sergeant P West (CAF), Lt M Moore (CAF), Capt R Dumoulin (CAF), Capt W de Groot (CAF), MWO M Tremblay (CAF), MCpl T Cobden (CAF), MCpl D Meace (CAF), MCpl M Ellefsen (CAF), MS D Montgomery (CAF) and Pvt B Vance (CAF)
Death and Deliverance by Robert Mason Lee The Royal Canadian Air Force Journal, Vol. 8, No. 4, Fall 2019