The Friday, July 4, 1941 issue of the Moose Jaw Times Herald ran the following story.
Headline: Hall Brothers Got Their Pilot Licenses Here
“The grief of having two sons in the R.C.A.F., reported as killed within the past two weeks fell to the lot of Mrs. M. C. Hall, formerly of Moose Jaw, and now of Edmonton, Alberta. Sergeant Douglas Hall, R61645 was killed in a flying accident at Prince Albert on June 21, 1941, and William Isaac Hall appears on the overseas casualty list as having been shot down and missing. There is another brother, Andrew, with Canadian Engineers in England.
“The three Hall brothers attended King George School, Moose Jaw and later, after the death of their father, William Hall, who was killed in an asbestos mine in Quebec, they returned to Moose Jaw, and William Hall attended the Collegiate here (Central). Last July both William and Douglas secured their commercial pilot licenses at the Prairie Airways School (Moose Jaw Flying Club). Douglas went to Trenton, Ontario and received his instructor’s license and was then posted to Prince Albert as an instructor. William went to northern Alberta and flew for the ‘Mackenzie Air Service’ and then after taking training at Trenton he was sent overseas with the Eagle Squadron (RAF 71).
“Mrs. Hall, who was living in Prince Albert with Douglas, is now in eastern Canada having accompanied the remains of her son there for burial. Mrs. Hall is a sister of Erwin Mountain of this city (Moose Jaw).”
Additional Information
Special Note: Erwin David Mountain died in Moose Jaw Feb. 10. 1955. He was pre-deceased by his wife Mary who died in Moose Jaw October 12, 1946. They are buried in the Rosedale Cemetery in Moose Jaw. (Moose Jaw Genealogy Society)
Sergeant Douglas Hall, R/61645, RCAF: Based on information from the Saskatchewan Virtual War Memorial: Sergeant Douglas Hall “… was an instructor at #6 Elementary Flying Training School and perished in a crash 16 miles northwest of Prince Albert.
“He received a teaching certificate from MacDonald College, Montréal and enlisted in 1940.”
Pilot Officer William Isaac Hall: Based on information from the “Canadian Bush Plane Heritage” website, MacKenzie Air Service began service in Northern Alberta and the NWT in 1932. In 1941 it was amalgamated with the Canadian Pacific Airlines.
In 1940, when William Isaac Hall was a pilot for MacKenzie Air Service. One of their jobs was flying out uranium concentrate from the Eldorado Mine on Great Bear lake. He may have flown Air-cruiser CF-BTW in 1940 or their Noorduyn Mark-III Norseman (CF-AZA).
Reference: Canadian Bush Plane Heritage information can be found at https://www.bushplane.com/operators/histories-mackenzie/
This is Bellanca 66-70 Aircruiser CF-AWR (called Eldorado Radium Silver Express). Submitted photo by Richard Dowson, via WikipediaRoyal Air Force Eagle Squadron
The Moose Jaw Times Herald story says that after working for MacKenzie Air Service he joined the RCAF in 1940 and trained at RCAF Station, Trenton, Ontario. Upon completion, and because he had been born in the United States, he was posted overseas to the RAF Eagle Squadron #71. His RAF Service Number is listed as 61921 — but it was probably J/61921, RCAF.
RAF Squadron #71 was the first of three Eagle Squadrons, all manned by volunteer American pilots. United States was not in the war in July 1941.
William Isaac Hall was part of RAF Squadron 71.
A Time magazine article printed Monday July 14, 1941 with the title, ‘World War: Eagles Swoop’ reports on the action of the Squadron and the fate of Pilot Officer William Isaac Hall, listed as from of Springfield, Vt. U.S.A.
The article is mainly about 20-year-old Great Falls, Montana pilot Gregory Augustus Daymond American. The story tells of RAF Eagle Squadron’s second offensive operation into France and explains how William Isaac Hall became a prisoner of war.
“Four days later in a similar action Eagle Daymond shot down his second Nazi plane. But in drawing blood, the Eagles shed it. They lost Pilot Officer William Isaac Hall of Springfield, Vt. But they hoped he was all right; the last they saw of his damaged machine, it was gliding toward open country, wheels down.”
RAF records show Pilot Officer William Isaac Hall, Service Number 61921, Prison of War Number 39321, was the pilot of Hurricane IIb, serial number Z3094, RAF #71 Eagle Squadron, that failed to return after operations over enemy territory. He crash landed in France and was made a Prisoner of War. He spent the duration of the war — four years in Stalag Luft L3 at Sagan and Belaria.
William’s life-experiences after the war are unknown.
American Pilot Gregory Augustus Daymond went on to become an Ace and had an illustrious career after the war.
RAF Eagle Squadron 71 – Hurricane fighter in background. P/O W. I. Hall was probably part of this group. By Submitted by Richard Dowson, via WikimediaReference: The Time Magazine article can be found at: http://content.time.com/time/subscriber/article/0,33009,849380,00.html
