The Royal Flying Corps Canada (RFC Canada) was a training organization of the British
Royal Flying Corps located in Canada during the
First World War
World War I (28 July 1914 11 November 1918), often abbreviated as WWI, was one of the deadliest global conflicts in history. Belligerents included much of Europe, the Russian Empire, the United States, and the Ottoman Empire, with fightin ...
. It began operating in 1917.
Background
![William Faulkner in Toronto, Canada (1918)](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/1/12/William_Faulkner_in_Toronto%2C_Canada_%281918%29.jpg)
As the war progressed, Great Britain found that it needed more trained aircrew and more training facilities. Training was provided both by the ''Curtiss Aviation School'' at
Long Branch near Toronto (land plane training) and Hanlan's Point on
Toronto Island
The Toronto Islands are a chain of 15 small islands in Lake Ontario, south of mainland Toronto, Ontario, Canada.
Comprising the only group of islands in the western part of Lake Ontario, the Toronto Islands are located just offshore from the ...
(for
flying boat training), and in the
United States
The United States of America (U.S.A. or USA), commonly known as the United States (U.S. or US) or America, is a country primarily located in North America. It consists of 50 states, a federal district, five major unincorporated territori ...
.
The British realized that thousands of Canadians and Americans had joined British flying operations and more wanted to join, so it made sense to open British air training stations in Canada. Canada also had space for such facilities. After much negotiation with the Canadian government, the RFC, commanded in Canada by Lieutenant-Colonel (later Brigadier-General)
Cuthbert Hoare, began operating several training stations in southern
Ontario
Ontario ( ; ) is one of the thirteen provinces and territories of Canada.Ontario is located in the geographic eastern half of Canada, but it has historically and politically been considered to be part of Central Canada. Located in Central C ...
. Stations were opened at
Camp Borden
Canadian Forces Base Borden (also CFB Borden, French: Base des Forces canadiennes Borden or BFC Borden), formerly RCAF Station Borden, is a large Canadian Forces base located in Ontario. The historic birthplace of the Royal Canadian Air Force, C ...
(main training site),
Beamsville
Beamsville ( 2021 Urban area estimated population 13,323) is a community that is part of the town of Lincoln, Ontario, Canada. It is located along the southern shore of Lake Ontario and lies within the fruit belt of the Niagara Peninsula. It co ...
,
Hamilton Hamilton may refer to:
People
* Hamilton (name), a common British surname and occasional given name, usually of Scottish origin, including a list of persons with the surname
** The Duke of Hamilton, the premier peer of Scotland
** Lord Hamilt ...
(armament school), North Toronto (
Armour Heights,
Leaside
Leaside (/'liːˌsaɪd/) is a neighbourhood in Toronto, Ontario, Canada. It is located northeast of Downtown Toronto, in the vicinity of Eglinton Avenue East and Bayview Avenue. The area takes its name from William Lea and the Lea family, who set ...
and
Long Branch), and
Deseronto
Deseronto is a town in the Canadian province of Ontario, in Hastings County, located at the mouth of the Napanee River on the shore of the Bay of Quinte, on the northern side of Lake Ontario.
The town was named for Captain John Deseronto, a n ...
(Mohawk and Rathburn). The
JN-4 (Canadian) ''(Canuck)'' was used for training; 500
Avro 504K
The Avro 504 was a First World War biplane aircraft made by the Avro aircraft company and under licence by others. Production during the war totalled 8,970 and continued for almost 20 years, making it the most-produced aircraft of any kind tha ...
s had been ordered but only one had been completed in Canada before the war ended in November 1918 and it was not used.
Hoare made several agreements with U.S. Brigadier-General
George O. Squier
Major General George Owen Squier (March 21, 1865 – March 24, 1934) was born in Dryden, Michigan, United States. He graduated from the United States Military Academy in the Class of 1887 and received a Ph.D. from Johns Hopkins University in 18 ...
(
US Army Signal Corps
)
, colors = Orange and white
, colors_label = Corps colors
, march =
, mascot =
, equipment =
, equipment_label =
...
) and the US Aircraft Production Board. Squier had overall responsibility for the US Army’s air service, which was short of flight instructors. The RFC released five experienced American pilots to the US Army, where they became squadron commanders. The US Air Board acquiesced in the British opening a recruiting office in New York City, ostensibly to recruit British citizens, but it also solicited US citizens, of whom about 300 were successfully signed up. The RFC would also train many US Army flight personnel: 400 pilots; 2,000 ground-crew members; and 20 equipment officers. These Americans would then collect aircraft and equipment from the UK, before coming under RFC control in France. Ten American squadrons would train in Canada during the summer of 1917, while RFC squadrons were allowed to train during the winter in
Fort Worth,
Texas
Texas (, ; Spanish: ''Texas'', ''Tejas'') is a state in the South Central region of the United States. At 268,596 square miles (695,662 km2), and with more than 29.1 million residents in 2020, it is the second-largest U.S. state by ...
.
When the Royal Flying Corps became the
Royal Air Force
The Royal Air Force (RAF) is the United Kingdom's air and space force. It was formed towards the end of the First World War on 1 April 1918, becoming the first independent air force in the world, by regrouping the Royal Flying Corps (RFC) an ...
in April 1918, the unit became known as Royal Air Force Canada.
During the last two years of the war 3,135 pilots and 137 observers trained in Canada and Texas for both the RFC and the new Royal Air Force (RAF). Of these trainees, 2,624 went to Europe for operational duty.
[Roberts (1959), p. 9.]
Notes
References
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External links
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{{Evolution of the Military of Canada
Military units and formations established in 1917