Hudson, Donald Leslie (Pilot Officer)
Killed in Action 1943-January-07
Birth Date: 1913-April-20
Born: Ituna, Saskatchewan
Parents: Son of Joseph Wilson Hudson and Ellen (nee Jackson) Hudson of Saskatoon, Saskatchewan
Spouse: Husband of Vera M Hudson of Innisfail, Alberta.
Home: Saskatoon, Saskatchewan
Enlistment: Vancouver, British Columbia
Enlistment Date: 1941-February-24
Service
RCAF
Unit
167 (BR) Sqn- Squadron
Base
Gander, Newfoundland
Rank
Pilot Officer
Position
Navigator
Service Numbers
J/23800
Prev: R/83684
Saskatoon, Saskatchewan
Canadian Virtual War Memorial
Commonwealth War Graves Commission
Saskatchewan Virtual War Memorial
www.findagrave.comCrew or Other Personnel
Canso 9737
Mission
Canso Canso A 9737
Operational 1943-January-07 to 1943-January-07
5 (AC) Sqn (RCAF) Gander, Newfoundland
5 Army Co-Operation Squadron (Volando Vincimus), Gander, Newfoundland. Canso aircraft 9737 QN-E was outward bound on an anti-submarine patrol, being flown by a crew from 167 Squadron RCAF when it crashed and burned three miles south of Gander Lake, Newfoundland
Investigation showed that the aircraft was loaded with fuel, ammunition and depth charges to within a few pounds of its maximum allowable take-off weight. While crossing Gander Lake the crew experienced the severe turbulence and shortly after passing over the lake, as the aircraft started to turn, it clipped the tops of trees in rising ground and crashed
Squadron Leader NE Small DFC AFC (RCAF), Pilot Officer DL Hudson (RCAF), Flying Officer AM Tingle (RCAF), FS JT Mangan (RCAF), and Sergeant HE White (RCAF) were all killed in action
[Royal Air Force Serial and Image Database]...
Gander Airport Historical Society
The Canso and the Catalina in the RCA F I Canso Investment Counse...
Canso serial: 9737
RCAF Canso A (Serial No. 9754), No. 162 Squadron, F/L David Ernest Hornell aircraft.
The Consolidated Catalina and Canso were close cousins. The Canso was the true amphibious version of the design and therefore included a conventional undercarriage to allow for either water or land use. The Canso provided more than two decades of valuable service to the RCAF. The Catalina variant came first and was produced beginning in 1935 for the United States Navy. The amphibious version, designated PBY-5A, came in service early in 1941 and the RCAF began using the aircraft on anti-submarine patrols that same year. After the Second World War, the RCAF used Cansos for search and rescue, Arctic survey missions and various transport operations. RCAF
Canso PBY
Wikipedia Canso PBYAircraft Images
Canso 9737
Canso Canso A 9737
QN
E
Ordered by RCAF as a Catalina, equivalent to PBY-5. Order converted to amphibian before completion. Renamed Canso on 22 December 1941. Served with No. 5 (BR) Squadron from 16 December 1941, in Nova Scotia, Newfoundland, or Quebec, coded "E". Seen at Mt.-Joli, Quebec, late 1942, with full code "QN-E". With this unit at Gander in January 1943, being flown by a crew of No. 162 Squadron, and famed Hudson pilot Squadron Leader N.E. Small, DFC, on mission to determine maximum useful range of Cansos over the North Atlantic. Small and crew were on loan to 5 Squadron to determine what could be done to extend useful range of the Canso. Took off at 06:30 AM local time on 7 January 1943, at maximum weight, and soon struck turbulence. Struck trees near Gander Lake, then crashed and caught fire. Wreckage not sighted for several days. 4 fatalities, including Squadron Leader Small, 3 survivors.
E1941-12-11 Taken on Strength 2019-08-20
1943-January-07 Accident: 5 BR Squadron Loc: Gander Names: Banning | Hudson | Mangan | Small | Tingle | White | Wilson
1943-05-19 Struck off Strength Struck off by No. 19 Sub-Repair Depot at Torby, Newfoundland after crashing, see comments. 2019-08-20