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BATEMAN, William Maxwell Flight Lieutenant, No.76 Squadron, J26116 Distinguished Flying Cross RCAF Personnel Awards 1939-1949
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BATEMAN, F/L William Maxwell (J26116) - Distinguished Flying Cross - No.76 Squadron - Award effective 10 May 1945 as per London Gazette dated 22 May 1945 and AFRO 1147/45 dated 13 July 1945. Born May 1920 in Winnipeg; home in Nashville, Tennessee (city desk guide, RROTC); enlisted Ottawa, 26 February 1942 and posted to No.1 Manning Depot. To No.14 SFTS (guard), 24 April 1942. To No.5 ITS, date uncertain; graduated and promoted LAC, 29 August 1942 although posting to No.10 EFTS is dated 26 August 1942; may have graduated 20 November 1942 but not posted to No.1 SFTS until 5 December 1942; graduated and commissioned 30 April 1943. To No.1 GRS, 14 May 1943; to \"Y\" Depot, 31 July 1943. To United Kingdom, 12 September 1943. Promoted Flying Officer, 30 October 1943. Promoted Flight Lieutenant, 30 April 1945. Repatriated by air, 13 June 1945. Retired 27 September 1945. Medal presented in Toronto, 30 November 1949. Attended University of Toronto, graduating with a degree in Aeronautical Engineering in 1949. Long employed in construction - “Retirement was not in his DNA.” Died in Edmonton, 2 May 2014. No citation other than \"completed...numerous operations against the enemy in the course of which [he has] invariably displayed the utmost fortitude, courage and devotion to duty\". Public Records Office Air 2/9069 (Part 1) has recommendation dated 16 February 1945 when he had flown 37 sorties (190 hours 45 minutes), 25 July 1944 to 14 February 1945. Deputy Flight Commander at the time. 12 July 1944 - Diversion Raid (4.50) 18 July 1944 - Foret de Nieppe (3.40) 25 July 1944 - Foret du Croq (3.40) 30 July 1944 - Villers Bocage (4.00); returned as ordered. 3 August 1944 - Bois de Casson (4.05) 5 August 1944 - Foret de Nieppe (3.20) 17 August 1944 - Brest (5.10) 18 August 1944 - Sterkrade (5.20) 25 August 1944 - Pons Corff (5.45) 27 August 1944 - Hamburg (2.20), stbd inner unserviceable 1 September 1944 - La Pourchante (3.15) 3 September 1944 - Soesterburg (3.30) 10 September 1944 - Le Havre (3.50) 20 September 1944 - Calais (3.40) 23 September 1944 - Neuss (4.50) 6 October 1944 - Scholven (5.50) 9 October 1944 - Bochum (5.25) 14 October 1944 - Duisburg (4.50) 14 October 1944 - Duisburg (5.25) 15 October 1944 - Wilhelmshaven (4.25) 25 October 1944 - Essen (5.00) 29 October 1944 - Walcheren (3.00) 31 October 1944 - Cologne (5.10) 6 November 1944 - Gelsenkirchen (4.40) 29 November 1944 - Essen (5.40) 2 December 1944 - Hagen (6.40) 12 December 1944 - Essen (6.05) 18 December 1944 - Duisburg (6.10) 26 December 1944 - St.Vith (5.50) 29 December 1944 - Coblenz (6.00) 1 January 1945 - Dortmund (5.30) 5 January 1945 - Hanover (6.15) 28 January 1945 - Stuttgart (8.00) 1 February 1945 - Mainz (7.05) 9 February 1945 - Wanne Eickel (5.50) 13 February 1945 - Bohlem (6.35) 14 February 1945 - Chemnitz (8.05) Since joining the squadron Flight Lieutenant Bateman has successfully completed thirty-seven operational sorties and has proved himself to be a very gallant and resourceful captain of aircraft. Undaunted by the heaviest enemy opposition he has always pressed him his attacks with the greatest determination, never satisfied unless he can make a good run up to the target. On the 17th of August 1944, during an attack on Brest, he returned to drop his bombs successfully on the target twenty minutes late, having discovered that his bombs had hung up on the first attack. It is considered that his excellent conduct on operations merits the award of the Distinguished Flying Cross. RCAF press release 5823 of 6 April 1945 states that just after bombing Mainz he had his most hair-raising experience: \"A direct enemy hit smashed one of the cylinders and set one of the engines on fire. The automatic extinguisher wouldn\'t halt the blaze and Bateman dived his big aircraft 5,000 feet before the flames blew out. Bateman made the three-and-a-half hour trip back to base on the remaining three engines. None of the crew were injured.\" RCAF photo PL-42063 circa 20 February 1945 has following caption: \"With Canadians flying in the RAF. F/L W.M. Bateman of Nashville, Tennessee, above, was snapped by an RCAF cameraman just after he returned from the bombing of Mainz when one of the engines of his Halifax bomber was rendered useless by flak. Bateman was just turning his aircraft after bombing when a jagged fragment of flak knocked out one of the cylinders of his port inner engine and set it on fire. A series of dives blew out the blaze and he flew his heavy aircraft for three and a half hours on three engines to bring it safely back to base.\"