Russell Bannock
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Russell William Bannock (born Bahnuk; November 1, 1919 – January 4, 2020) was a Canadian
fighter ace A flying ace, fighter ace or air ace is a military aviator credited with shooting down five or more enemy aircraft during aerial combat. The exact number of aerial victories required to officially qualify as an ace is varied, but is usually co ...
during the Second World War and a chief test pilot for
de Havilland Canada De Havilland Aircraft of Canada Limited is an aircraft manufacturer with facilities formerly based in the Downsview area of Toronto, Ontario, Canada. The original home of de Havilland Canada was the home of the Canadian Air and Space Museum loca ...
.


Early years

Bannock was born in
Edmonton Edmonton ( ) is the capital city of the Canadian province of Alberta. Edmonton is situated on the North Saskatchewan River and is the centre of the Edmonton Metropolitan Region, which is surrounded by Alberta's central region. The city ancho ...
in 1919, and worked as a commercial pilot before the Second World War, obtaining his private pilot's license in 1938 and his commercial pilot's license in 1939.


World War II

After entering the
Royal Canadian Air Force The Royal Canadian Air Force (RCAF; french: Aviation royale canadienne, ARC) is the air and space force of Canada. Its role is to "provide the Canadian Forces with relevant, responsive and effective airpower". The RCAF is one of three environm ...
(RCAF), Bannock received his pilot's wings in 1940 and was appointed as an instructor at Trenton, Ontario. Later he was posted to Royal Air Force Ferry Command from June to August 1942. In September 1942, Bannock became chief instructor with the Flying Instructor School at
Arnprior Arnprior is a town in Renfrew County, in the eastern portion of Southern Ontario, Canada. It is located west of Downtown Ottawa, at the confluence of the Madawaska River and the Ottawa River in the Ottawa Valley. Arnprior has experienced sign ...
in Ontario. Bannock's request for overseas service was granted in 1944 and he joined 60
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based in
RAF High Ercall Royal Air Force High Ercall or more simply RAF High Ercall is a former Royal Air Force sector station situated near the village of High Ercall, northeast of Shrewsbury, Shropshire, England. History Construction of the airfield began in 1938 ...
, England. In June 1944, Bannock was then transferred to
No. 418 Squadron RCAF 418 Search and Rescue Operational Training Squadron is a unit of the Royal Canadian Air Force, formed during World War II. History 418 Squadron RCAF was Canada's highest-scoring squadron in World War II, in terms of both air-to-air and air-to-gr ...
, flying intruder missions over Europe with the
de Havilland Mosquito The de Havilland DH.98 Mosquito is a British twin-engined, shoulder-winged, multirole combat aircraft, introduced during the Second World War. Unusual in that its frame was constructed mostly of wood, it was nicknamed the "Wooden Wonder", or ...
Mk. VI fighter-bomber. He quickly proved adept at this type of operation and achieved his first victories. In October 1944, he was promoted to Wing Commander and took command of the squadron. Bannock also flew 'Diver' operations against the German V-1 "flying bombs" launched against London and southern England. On one mission he shot down four V-1s in one hour. A
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to his Distinguished Flying Cross (DFC) was added for his missions against the V-1s. Bannock was transferred to No. 406 Squadron RCAF in November 1944 as commanding officer, and was awarded the
Distinguished Service Order The Distinguished Service Order (DSO) is a military decoration of the United Kingdom, as well as formerly of other parts of the Commonwealth, awarded for meritorious or distinguished service by officers of the armed forces during wartime, typ ...
(DSO). By April 1945, Bannock had destroyed 11 enemy aircraft (including 2 on the ground), 4 damaged in the air and 19 V-1's destroyed. Bannock became Director of Operations,
RCAF Overseas Headquarters The Royal Canadian Air Force Overseas Headquarters, often abbreviated to RCAF Overseas, was responsible for Canadian airmen serving outside Canada during and just after World War II. The headquarters was established on 1 January 1940 and it was ba ...
, in London in May 1945 until September 1945 when he attended the Royal Air Force Staff College.


Post-Second World War

Retiring from the RCAF in 1946, Bannock joined the de Havilland Canada Aircraft Company as chief test pilot, flying prototypes like the
Beaver Beavers are large, semiaquatic rodents in the genus ''Castor'' native to the temperate Northern Hemisphere. There are two extant species: the North American beaver (''Castor canadensis'') and the Eurasian beaver (''C. fiber''). Beavers ar ...
and various short take-off and landing aircraft. In 1950, Bannock became Director of Military Sales and later Vice President and President from 1976 to 1978. In 1968, he formed his own consulting business, Bannock Aerospace Ltd. In 1956, Bannock was appointed an associate fellow of the Canadian Aeronautical Institute. He was also chairman of the Canadian Aerospace Industries Association's Export Committee 1964–1968, and was a director from 1976 to 1977. Bannock was also President of the Canadian Fighter Pilots Association, Director of the Canadian Industrial Preparedness Association, and the Canadian Exporters Association. In the late 1990s, his wartime navigator,
Robert Bruce Robert I (11 July 1274 – 7 June 1329), popularly known as Robert the Bruce (Scottish Gaelic: ''Raibeart an Bruis''), was King of Scots from 1306 to his death in 1329. One of the most renowned warriors of his generation, Robert eventuall ...
, recorded his Symphony in B flat, dedicated to Bannock and in part inspired by the night sorties they flew together. In 2011, he was made a member of the
Order of Ontario The Order of Ontario () is the most prestigious official honour in the Canadian province of Ontario. Instituted in 1986 by Lieutenant Governor Lincoln Alexander, on the advice of the Cabinet under Premier David Peterson, the civilian order is adm ...
"for his contributions to the aerospace industry". Bannock died at a hospital in Toronto in January 2020 at the age of
100 100 or one hundred (Roman numeral: C) is the natural number following 99 and preceding 101. In medieval contexts, it may be described as the short hundred or five score in order to differentiate the English and Germanic use of "hundred" to de ...
.


References


Bibliography

* Oswald, Mary: ''They Led the Way'', Wetaskiwin: Canada's Aviation Hall of Fame, 1999.


External links


Russ Bannock at acesofww2.com

Hall of Fame site
{{DEFAULTSORT:Bannock, Russell 1919 births 2020 deaths Aviation history of Canada Canadian centenarians Canadian World War II flying aces Commercial aviators Companions of the Distinguished Service Order Members of the Order of Ontario Men centenarians Recipients of the Distinguished Flying Cross (United Kingdom)