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History of the Royal Canadian Air Force
Canadian Aviation Corps
1914 - 1915
Canada found itself at war with Germany on August 4, 1914. Several European nations were employing the airplane as a military weapon. Canada, however, had neither aircraft or aircrew in her armed forces. Colonel Sam Hughes, Minister of Militia and Defence, was responsible for assembling the Canadian Expeditionary Force for overseas service. Colonel Hughes inquired to the British Secretary of War about the about the need for aviators and was advised that Britain could accept 6 experienced aviators immediately, with more positions to follow. Colonel Hughes was unable to find any aviators to meet the British needs, but did approved the formation of a small aviation unit to accompany the Canadian Expeditionary Force to England.
The Canadian Aviation Corps was formed on September 16, 1914 and consisted of two officers and one mechanic. E.L. Janney was appointed the "Provisional Commander" of the CAC with the rank of Captain and was authorized to spend not more than five thousand dollars for the purchase of an airplane. Captain Janney arranged to purchase a biplane from the Burgess-Dunne Company in Massachusetts and the aircraft was delivered to Quebec City.
The airplane arrived on October 1 and was immediately loaded aboard one of the thirty ships of the Canadian Expeditionary Force bound for England. On arrival in England the aircraft was unloaded and trucked to Salisbury Plan where the Canadian Troops were training. The aircraft never flew in England as not one of the three members of the CAC was a qualified pilot. Parked out in the damp English climate, the Burgess-Dunne quickly deteriorated and was eventually written off.
By May 7, 1915 the Canadian Aviation Corps had ceased to exist and this ended the short life of Canada's first military aviation force.
Canadian Air Force
1918 - 1920
In 1915 the British Army Council suggested that the Dominions would raise there own air units for service within the Royal Flying Corps. Canada did not act on this suggestion until the spring of 1918. The Canadian government made a proposal to form a wing of eight squadrons for service with the Canadian Corps in France. The RAF and the British Air Ministry thought that the disruption in reallocating Canadians from RAF squadrons and transferring RAF personnel to fill the voids would unduly disrupt the war effort. There was also a severe shortage of trained CAF ground crew and it was decided to train Canadian ground crew first and establish the squadron when enough ground crew had been trained.
On August 5, 1918 the Air Ministry decided to form two Canadian Squadrons, one a fighter and the other a day bomber squadron. The Canadian Government approved the formation of the Canadian Air Force on September 19, 1918 comprising these two squadrons. Lieutenant-Colonel W.A. Bishop, Canada first airman to be awarded the Victoria Cross and the British Empires leading ace was the CAF's first commander.
Further proposals were made to form the additional 6 squadrons but the signing of the Armistice on November 11, 1918 precluded the formation of any additional squadrons.
On November 20, 1918, nine days after the Armistice, No. 1 (F) Squadron was formed at Upper Heyford with Sopwith Dolphins, later converted to the S.E. 5a, and on November 25, 1918 No. 2 (B) Squadron was formed with deHavilland DH 9 bombers.
On June 19, 1919 the Canadian Government decided not to form a permanent peacetime air force and orders were sent to cease all flying operations and all equipment belonging to Canada was to dismantled and shipped to Canada. No. 1 Squadron was disbanded on January 29, 1920 and No. 2 on February 5, 1920. So ended Canada's first air force, composed for a time of many of not only Canada's top airmen, but many of the top airmen of the British Empire.
A Civil Air Force
1925 - 1932
On May 19, 1925 the Government authorized an establishment for the RCAF that provided for service squadrons to fulfill operational requirements of various government departments and agencies.
RCAF Headquarters - Ottawa, Ontario
- No. 1 Flying Training Station - Camp Borden, Ontario
- No. 1 (Operations) Wing - Winnipeg, Manitoba
- No. 1 (Operations) Squadron - Vancouver, British Columbia
- No. 2 (Operations) Squadron - High River, Alberta
- No. 3 (Operations) Squadron - Ottawa, Ontario
- No. 4 (Operations) Squadron - Dartmouth, Nova Scotia
In 1927 there was strong opposition to the performance of civil operations by a military organization. This resulted in the formation of the Directorate of Civil Government Air Operations (DCGAO) to control all government air operations (other than military) and all RCAF operational flying units were transferred to this new organization. The RCAF establishment was reduced to a headquarters and two training stations and five training squadrons.
Unfortunately with most of the RCAF personnel posted to DCGAO and lacking sufficient funds, the RCAF was only a paper force and never functioned in a military sense.
A Military Air Force
1932 - 1938
Since it inception in 1924 the RCAF had been heavily involved in civil air operations. Forestry patrols, anti-smuggling, forest spraying, and surveying. In 1936 it was decided that the RCAF should be a purely military organization
and the Department of Transport was formed to establish and implement a civil aviation policy. Thereafter the RCAF's only involvement in civil aviation was aerial photography, a task that would increase in importance as time passed.
Freed of its civil responsibilities, the RCAF was reorganized along service lines and developed into a military air force. The first service squadrons began to appear in 1933 with the formation of No. 4 (Flying Boat) Squadron at Vancouver and No. 5 (Flying Boat) Squadron at Dartmouth. Two more squadrons were formed No. 7 (General Purpose) at Ottawa and No. 8 (General Purpose) at Winnipeg.
With the creation of the Department of Transport to handle civil aviation the RCAF was authorized to form three purely military squadrons. No. 2 (Army-Cooperation) Squadron and No. 6 (Torpedo Bomber) Squadron which consisted of two flights each. No. 3 (Bomber) Squadron with a two flights one bomber and one fighter. In May 1937 No. 3 (Bomber) Squadron was reorganized as a purely bomber unit with the fighter flight becoming No. 1 (Fighter) Squadron - the last squadron to be formed before World War II.
RCAF Headquarters - Ottawa, Ontario
RCAF Station Camp Borden (landplane training)
- No. 1 (Ab Initio Training) Squadron
- No. 2 (Advanced Training) Squadron
- No. 3 (Service) Squadron
- "A" Flight - Fighter - Siskins
- "B" Flight - A/C - Atlas's
- "C" Flight - Communications - Fairchild 71s and Bellanca
RCAF Station Vancouver, British Columbia (seaplane training)
- No. 4 (Training) Squadron
- No. 5 (Service) Squadron
»» The War Years »»
RCAF Squadron Histories and Aircraft 1924-1968 - Samuel Kostenuk and John Griffon
Sixty Years - Larry Milberry - CANAV Books
