I want to end my series of Remembrance Day related posts with one dedicated to Len Birchall, a Canadian airman who came to be known as the Saviour of Ceylon.
 |
| Birchall (CFpilots.com) |
On 4 April 1942, only two days after arriving in Ceylon (now Sri Lanka) Squadron Leader Leonard Birchall, a native of St. Catharines, Ontario, was flying a PBY Catalina flying boat, patrolling over the Indian ocean off the south of Ceylon. Eight hours into the mission, as he and his crew were about to return to base, ships were spotted on the horizon. Investigation revealed a large Japanese fleet, including five aircraft carriers, heading for Ceylon, which at that time was the base for the Royal Navy’s Eastern Fleet. Birchall’s crew managed to send out a radio message to Ceylon, but the Catalina was soon shot down by six Japanese Zero fighters from the carrier Hiryu. In spite of the warning, the Easter Sunday Raid went ahead, but the British fleet had largely withdrawn to a secret base in Addu Atoll. Three of his crewmen were killed in the action and the others, including Birchall, spent the rest of the war as prisoners of war. Birchall was awarded the Distinguished Flying Cross (DFC) for his part in warning Ceylon of the impending Japanese raid. He was also appointed an Officer of the Order of the British Empire (OBE) for the role he played as a senior officer in the POW camp, standing up to the brutality of the Japanese guards.
For more details about Birchall, please visit the following sites:
Birchall’s medals are on display at the RCAF Museum in Trenton, Ontario.
No comments:
Post a Comment