Rainy River District, OntarioPAUL DALSEG A native of Rainy River, ON, Paul joined the Royal Canadian Air Force in September 1942 and graduated as an air gunner in July 1943.Sent overseas he was posted to the RAF, receiving further operational training in Yorkshire, Lincolnshire England before being posted to #57 Sqd. RAF in March "44
On May 22, 1944, Paul was the mid-upper gunner on a new Lancaster that exploded in the skies over Dorkwerd, Germany. A remarkable story - referred to as "the Dorkwerd Miracle" - emerged from the ensuing circumstances.
The Lancaster had been on a bombing mission to Germany when it was attacked by an enemy night fighter. Fire broke out in the rear of the fuselage between the mid-upper gunner and the tail gunner, and dangerously close to flares and ammunition boxes. The tail gunner, Norman Wharf, tried to leave his turret to assess things and, if necessary, bail out. The hydraulically controlled door refused to open. Dropping from his position in the mid-upper turret, Paul tried unsuccessfully to open the door manually but it refused to give. Meanwhile, the possibility of an explosion grew by the second. The tail gunner urged Paul to open the side-hatch and jump to save himself. But reluctant to leave his friend trapped in the turret without a parachute and aware that opening the side-hatch would fan the blaze, Dalseg attempted to extinguish the fire but the flames were beyond control.
With breathing becoming more difficult and close to losing consciousness himself, Dalseg finally opened the side-hatch and jumped. The plane exploded shortly after, splitting the Lancaster in two with the break coming immediately in front of the tail of the plane. Incredibly, the gun-turret became the tail-gunner's parachute and landed in a water-filled ditch. The tail gunner received serious injuries but recovered in a German hospital. Meanwhile, Dalseg had made a safe parachute landing in a meadow close to Dorkwerd but sadly the remaining crew members were killed.
Captured by the Germans, Dalseg was sent to a POW camp "Luft 7' until the great march of war prisoners to Luckenwalde Stalag 111A in the winter of "45. Liberation would come soon after and he returned to Canada.
In post war years Paul Dalseg operated a Canadian Tire franchise. "Article courtesy of Roy Eaton, District H PRO reported by Royal Canadian Legion, Branch 25, Sault Ste. Marie.
