Tribute to Bill Black - A Remarkable Tale

Early in 2010 an enquiry was received by the Association from St.Rigomer des Bois, a French village close to the provincial town of Alencon.  The correspondent asked if it was possible to confirm the code and serial number of a Mustang which had crashed close to the village during June 1944.  The village knew that the pilot who had died in the crash was one Flt Lt William Black and the village was in the process of building a memorial to him and others who had died during World War II.  Bill Black, a Canadian, had been a II (AC) Sqn pilot and the village was keen to ensure that as much relevant detail about the man and his machine was included in the engraving on the proposed plinth.

In the course of the investigation and provision of the requested information a rapport was established between the village and II(AC) Sqn as they moved toward the commemoration of the memorial; an event that was celebrated in the following May.  What follows is an account of the events of leading up to that fateful day in 1944 that caused St.Rigomer and II(AC) Sqn to come together once again after 65 years to make that celebration.

The village clearly have never forgotten the sacrifice that Bill Black and others like him made in the pursuit of their freedom.  For the sake of posterity, neither should we.

Part One

William Anderson Black was born 22nd September 1919 in Halifax, Nova Scotia.

Family Black with Will in the centre

Will, as he was known during his schooldays, excelled at most sports but his school reports reflected that whilst he was the consumate sportsman he was not a natural scholar.  Nevertheless, Trinity College provided a firm grounding and gave him an education that saw him on graduation in 1937 gain employment in the Royal Bank of Halifax.  However, Will had higher aims than being a Bank Clerk and harboured the dream of joining the Air Force and becoming a pilot.  Whether he shared this aspiration with his family is not recorded but what is known is that 5 months after he started, his Banking career was cut short and he left to take up another position at an old and established company, also located in Halifax, Pickford and Black; a shipping company owned by his Father.

It was in 1939, that Will began to follow his dream and he presented himself to the local RCAF recruitment centre.  Doubtless, his 4 years of previous "service" in the Cadet Corps stood him in good stead and the recruiters after a favourable assessment sent him a movement order commanding him to join with four other aspiring recruits and report to the Cape Breton Flying Club for elementary pilot training.  Unfortunately, whilst the others arrived as ordered, Will was considered by his father to be in a reserved occupation and would not initially allow him to report for duty!  Eventually the conflicts of familial duty were resolved and William's Father bowed to the inevitable and Will's true vocation was allowed to take flight.

That Bill, as he was now known, succeeded in qualifying as a pilot after this first phase of flying instruction there can be no doubt for such was his competence that he was posted as a Sergeant Pilot to No. 4 SFTS, RCAF Saskatoon to develop his newly found skills.  Doubtless this was more exciting than it sounds for he was involved in incidents such as having to force land in his Fleet Finch due to lack of fuel.

Fleet Finch

With the situation in Europe growing ever more beligerent and the urgent need for pilots to serve with the RAF Bill found himself posted to the Central Flying School at RCAF Trenton for an instructor’s course and in due course was commissioned a Pilot Officer in 1942.  After instructing for over a year and a half, mostly at Moncton, NB, he was posted to Bagotville for a course on Hurricanes.  Will wrote to the Headmaster from Bagotville to say how keen he was to get overseas and fly Mosquitoes.

Flying officer Bill Black

It was later in the year that he got his wish - not Mosquitoes but Mustangs - for he was posted overseas to join II(AC) Squadron to become a reconnaissance pilot.  (Whether this choice of speciality came about because of Bill's known interest in film-making - he was an amateur film-maker- is a matter of speculation but it is our fortune that he managed between sorties to record all manner of events).  So it was that whilst all this was going on, Bill didn't ignore the important things for he found the love of his life and courted and, just after D-Day, married Helen Ogilvie.  It is quite remarkable that some 65 years later we are able to share the movie record that Bill produced during that time.   Click on the link below.

Play "When Helen met Bill"

His reputation preceeded his arrival in the UK for on the 29th June 1943 he was summonsed to Buckingham Palace to be awarded the Air Force Cross for his efficient and devoted service to the RCAF.  The citation read: Flying Officer Black has been an outstanding instructor, as an NCO Warrant Officer and Commissioned Officer for the past eighteen months during which time he has completed 1,450 flying hours. His personality, his steadfastness and his conscientiousness have produced many excellent pilots and assisted in the maintenance of harmony among his fellow instructors.

Soon after arrival on II(AC) Sqn he was promoted to Flight Lieutenant and flew many operational reconnaissance sorties along the coast of Occupied Europe.  The squadron was part of No.35 (Recce) Wing which, in addition to Shiny Two, consisted of 4 Sqn and 268 Sqn together with 130 Airfield Construction Sqn.  Following D-Day the Wing moved to RAF Odiham where they would be closer to the advancing Allied forces who had secured the Beach-head in Normandy and were beginning the advance into German-held territory.  Once again Bill's interest in capturing events on film has allowed us to share the moment.   Click on the link below.

Play "Waiting for a Mission - "Somewhere" in Southern England"

It was from Odiham on 27th June 1944 that Bill was to fly his last sortie.   At 06:15 that morning, together with Flying Officer Ronny Kemp as his No.2, he took off in NA Mustang FR902 for a low-level reconnaissance sortie that planned to examine the area in the Alencon area for enemy activity.  There was a suspicion the Germans were using the forest to conceal Fuel, other supplies, tanks and even V-1 bombs and their launching equipment under the cover of the trees.  The early morning take-off and the low-altitude were all planned in order to provide the element of surprise but it was not to be.  Flying at an 200 ft altitude their flight path took them the woodland close by to the village of St, Rigomer des Bois.  Bill's aircraft was hit by gunfire from an unseen Anti-Aircraft unit which struck the wing causing it to burst into flames and crash in a nearby wood.  Bill had no chance to escape from his stricken aircraft and died in the crash.  He was 24 years old.

The Operations Record Book recorded the event in less emotional terms.

Entry in Operations Record Book

  It said:

‘Flight Lieutenant W.A. Black AFC (FR902), Flying Officer R.S.W. Kemp (FR920) Tac/R/T/1/27 time up 0616, time down 0805.  Nonant le Pin/Alençon /Mamers/ Belleme/Essay/St. Scollaisses.  NMS in area Alençon Z3583.  Sortie abandoned due to loss of No.1 who was shot down in this area by meagre accurate light flask at Q4604. No.1 seen to crash in flames.’

Flying Officer Ronald Kemp returned to Odiham and made a so-called ‘Circumstantial Report’ of the loss.  He filed a report that stated:

‘On June 27th 1944, I was flying as escort to Flight Lieutenant Black AFC on an operational sortie in the Alençon area.  The weather was poor and cloud base was never more than 1,500’.  On reaching some woods East of Alençon Flight Lieutenant Black called for a 90 turn to starboard.  At the time I was 100 yards apart on his starboard side, and accordingly crossed over to his port side in the turn.  No sooner was the turn completed than light tracer flak came up from the right of Flight Lieutenant Black.  We were then at no more than 200’ and I saw Flight Lieutenant Black hit in his starboard wing causing the petrol tank to burst into flames.  He attempted to gain height, but his wing fell off and I saw Flight Lieutenant Black’s aircraft flick and dive in flames nose first.  I did not see Flight Lieutenant Black get out and on looking back I saw a large column of smoke coming from the point in the woods where the aircraft had crashed’.

Kemp signed his statement and that was it: the sad routine of the price for war.

Meanwhile in France the burning wreck was left smouldering.  The Germans saw no reason to invest time and effort in a proper removal of the remains of the aircraft and its pilot until a few days later.  Three local 10 year-old boys, brothers Victor and Daniel Poirier and Bernard Burin, who had been eye-witnesses of the crash of FR902 and the death of Flight Lieutenant Black saw the plane and the body of the pilot two days after the crash on 29th June early in the morning, when, strictly against the orders of their mothers, they sneaked through the forest.  His discs were removed as proof of his identity and, with the confusion of war raging around, it took some five months before the final confirmation of Bill's death reached Canada and the United Kingdom through the International Red Cross in Geneva.  Bill's remains were removed from the wreckage and eventually found their final resting place in the War Cemetary at Le Mans West.

Bill's Headstone

There, one would think, that the story of one young man's sacrifice would come to a graceful end; another statistic within the horror of war to be remembered by a few and then gradually, as is the manner of these things, to slowly fade in the memory of those of us left behind.  To their credit, the village of St. Rigomer des Bois were not prepared to let this tragedy go unmarked and what was to come to pass was quite remarkable.

Read Part Two for, "What Happened Next".