Cal Taylor
The War Years
by Calvin James Taylor,
edited by Patricia Taylor
Born in Timmins, Cal attended school and grew up in Cobalt. After applying for Enlistment in 1940 at age 23, he was called up by the RCAF and served overseas 1941-1945. Trained as a fighter pilot, he flew mainly with RAF squadrons. Cal flew Spitfires in the Defense of Malta, at El Alamein in North Africa, and he provided air cover and carried out ground attacks against targets before, during and after the D-Day landings in Normandy.
He met and married his bride, Vi, in England while his squadron was stationed there. Back in Canada with Vi and their growing family, Cal's passion for flying landed him employment with mining exploration companies in the Arctic, Northern Ontario and Quebec. Well into his eighties, Cal sat down at his computer and wrote about his life. His main sources were his own keen memory, family papers, his military log books and his diaries. The project took him several years. When the writing was done, he scanned a wealth of photographs and other documents to illustrate his story.
He then handed off the document to his daughter to "do with it what you think best."
This book represents the chapters he wrote about his military service as a fighter pilot during the Second World War, and his return to civilian life in his hometown of Cobalt, Ontario, with his English bride, Vi, and their son Jim. This book spans the period from 1941 up to the point when in 1951 he re-enlisted in the RCAF. In 2014, the 70th anniversary of D-Day, Cal was one of 650 Canadian veterans a grateful Republic of France decorated with the title, Knight of the Legion of Honour.
ISBN: 978-1-989615-13-3 | WMPub#1165 | 5½" x 8½"
136 pages; trade paperback | $14.95
Available In EBook Formats Here: $4.95 CDN | |
EPub format |
Kindle Format |
Table of Contents
3 Dedication
6 High Flight
7 Prologue
7 Victoria Lake and the Hamiltons
8 Cal's Folks
9 Cal's First Flight
11 Enlistment
12 My Short Stint in the Army
13 RCAF Induction in Toronto
14 Victoriaville Initial Traning School
15 Cap-de-la-Madeleine, Elementary Flying School
17 Camp Borden
18 First Leave in Cobalt
20 Cobalt to Halifax by Train for Embarcation
20 Crossing the Atlantic
21 To Bournemouth
21 Training at Aston Down
23 My First Spitfire
27 To Northern Ireland
31 Enter George Beurling
32 To Sea
34 Gibraltar
44 Take Off From The Carrier HMS Eagle
46 Arrival at Malta
48 RAF 601 Squadron Engage the Enemy
53 In Egypt
58 A Short Visit to Palestine
58 Back to Egypt
59 RAF 127 Squadron
64 The Battle of El Alamein
83 Back to the UK
88 Operations over France
90 D-Day
92 Drama in the Air
103 Leave in Canada
111 United Kingdom 1945
114 Back in Canada
115 July 1946 Vi and Jimmy Arrive
116 Working for McNamara
118 Our Own Place
118 Bass Lake Cottage
120 Working at The Colonial Mill
122 Building The Cottage at Bass Lake
125 Back with McNamara Construction
128 Re-enlistment 1951
129 Epilogue
131 Knight of the Legion of Honour
133 Obituary
134 Endnotes
135 Bibliography