Halifax 57 Rescue (Canada)
RCAF HALIFAX LW170 Recovery
(424 Squadron)
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Halifax 57 Rescue (Canada)
RCAF HALIFAX LW170 Recovery (424 Squadron)
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LW170 Recovery Phase I
Progress Reports
Halifax 57 Rescue
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Progress Report No.17 February 19, 2007 Registered Charity 84586 5740 RR0001
As Halifax 57 Rescue (Canada) directors, members, and supporters proceed in the specific and exciting quest to locate and recover RCAF Halifax LW170 from the deep, we are aware of a special responsibility to honour the effort and sacrifice of our bombers crews who gave us our Freedom. We must be caretakers of this knowledge of their sacrifice for Freedom and we must pass this on to our children, our families, and our whole country.
Remember that only 1 out of 4 bomber crews finished their combat tours. The remaining 3 bomber crews were either killed-in-action, prisoner of war, or killed/injured in training. That is a loss rate of 75%. The more our historic group studies these men and the crews of the RCAF and RAF the more we are in awe of their efforts for all of us in the face of such adversity. We must remember them.
We have started to pay tribute to our RCAF Americans who came to Canada in the thousands to join our RCAF in World War Two. This year we will do more to give them the credit they deserve.
It has now come to light, after excellent research by our directors, that there is another group which has just now been discovered and must be recognized for flying and fighting for Canadian Freedom. We have found the names of at least 11 previously unknown Irish Nationals who flew on the Halifaxes and Lancs of the RCAF and were killed-in-action flying with their Canadian comrades.
Most, but not all, were flying as Flight Engineers on RCAF Halifaxes. The directors of Halifax 57 Rescue (Canada) have now highlighted them on a special page of tribute on our website with all their names and hometowns. We know the list will continue to grow.
In a symbolic first tribute to the “RCAF Irish” we have decided to include a shamrock beside the RCAF flag and the Canada-USA badge to show that we appreciate and will, from now on, include in all our memorial efforts these young men of Ireland who flew and fought in the Royal Canadian Air Force.
“Press on regardless…”
On to Business, these are the Halifacts:
As Project manager I am very pleased to let all of our members and supporters know we are making good progress on raising support for the Halifax Project.
As you are aware we have had several articles in the Irish newspapers about the proposed recovery of LW170. This has not gone unnoticed with the Irish public and on the world internet. Last month I was contacted by David Joyce of Tyrone Productions in Dublin and invited on their variety talk show on Feb.22. I will be traveling over on business and will be popping over to Dublin for a television interview on RTE TV on the “Seoige and O’Shea” show to tell all about the Halifax Project. The discovery of our “RCAF Irish” and the development of this historic connection between Ireland and Canada is a wonderful addition to this opportunity to raise support on the international scene for the locating and recovery of our Halifax LW170.
Other positive things have been happening as well. As you know I have been in contact with deep sea exploration groups to gather technical data on the location of LW170. I have had sincere interest in the past few weeks from certain officials of a group to help with locating the Halifax on sonar which could be done as an add-on survey or “piggybacked” on a scientific survey. The timing and opportunity to do the Halifax sonar survey during the next few months of the 2007 season will be looked at and evaluated to maximize all possibilities . If the survey can be done in this way we could minimize our costs to actually locate and inspect LW170 for future recovery.
I am very hopeful for these developments for our Halifax sonar survey and will have more important information on this for you in the next progress report after I meet with these officials in the very near future. It is best if I keep details to a minimum until we have reached an agreement with these certain officials who really do want to help find our Halifax.
With regard to our website we now have on our official promotion of the exciting new book on the RCAF written by playwright Sandra Dempsey titled “Flying to Glory”. Sandra was so taken with the Halifax painting “INVINCIBLE ITEM” when she was ready to publish she asked and received permission from the artist Michael McCabe and our group to use the image of LW170 superimposed on the RCAF roundel on the front cover of “Flying to Glory”.
Sandra has received great reviews on “Flying to Glory” and has been invited to do a reading from her new book at an event in New York City in the near future. I did pass on to her that she could make a real connection with her American audience as there as 128 American lads killed-in-action in the RCAF who were from the state of New York (the majority were flying the Halifax ! ).
I must point out a great new event has just been announced by our partners at the Nanton Lancaster Society Air Museum. Nanton is very pleased to announce that this year at their annual celebration on Aug.25, 2007 they will be honouring the “RCAF Americans” as their dedicated group. There are literally hundreds of unknown Americans’ names on the Memorial Wall, which has become the centerpiece and national memorial to the RCAF airmen of Bomber Command.
Please visit the Nanton Lancaster Society Air Museum website to get all the information on this great event which you should not miss. (see www.lancastermuseum.ca - under “Special Events” ) I invite all our members and supporters to come to this special ceremony (on August 25, 2007) as THE WALL at Nanton is truly THE Bomber Command Memorial of Canada.
This Halifax Project, from its inception some 3 years ago, has been a wonderful journey of people joining together in a great cause that will require much effort and determination. This is our own battle campaign that requires, just like our heroes of the Halifax and Bomber Command, we must not give up no matter what the odds or difficulties. This mighty symbol of Freedom and symbol of RCAF excellence and honour, RCAF Halifax LW170, must be recovered. Let us keep our eyes on the target and press on to success in our mission.
Let me close with the quote of Robert Goddard, whose pioneering spaceflight efforts helped put a man on the moon.
“…the dreams of yesterday are the hopes of today and the realities of tomorrow .”
Sincerely, Karl Kjarsgaard Project Manager Halifax 57 Rescue (Canada)
www.57rescuecanada.com Phone - Eastern Canada 613 835 1748 email: 57rescuecanada@rogers.com Western Canada 403 603 8592
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