Biography

The son of Catherine and Arthur Leman, he came from a ranching family in the Alberta foothills west of Nanton. Robert attended a one room schoolhouse in Muirhead district for his elementary schooling and then later went on to attend High School in Nanton. He joined the RCAF in 1942 but prior to that had worked in the area at various ranches. He aspired to become a pilot but his hopes were thwarted due to colour blindness.

His family originally came to the area in 1909 when his father Arthur came to help out his brother who owned a livery. Initially, Arthur worked for the CP Railway as a telegrapher in High River before deciding to move out to the foothills. He volunteered for service with the Army's 131st battalion during World War 1.

After the war, he returned to the Alberta foothills and bought a farm of his own. A few years later he married Catherine Campbell and had a family consisting of 6 boys and two girls. Two of the sons, Robert and Edward joined the service.

There is currently an exhibit in Robert's honour at the Nanton Lancaster museum in Nanton, Alberta. A special thank-you to Bob Evans, curator of the museum for graciously supplying the above information and photographs.

Robert was trained as a Mid-Upper gunner and as such would have joined the Collver crew at #22 Operational Training Unit at Wellesbourne. Although the Collver crew flew only 18 operations, Robert actually flew 19 operations as he served as the Mid Under Gunner with the W.D Chisholm crew on July 4, 1944, the target being Biennais. For the first 5 months of his trip overseas Robert kept journal entries in his logbook, although brief, they typify what airmen went through. Although the journal stops just shortly before Robert and his crew go operational, they answer many questions about the crew and what they experienced overseas.

A special note of thanks to Robert Leman's sister, Dorothy Anderson, who graciously provided the information below from Robert's logbook.

Date	Comments

Dec-26,1943	All's well.Saw 2 shows.Packing for posting to O.T.U
	O.T.U stands for operational training unit

Dec-27,1943	All ready to leave

Dec-28,1943	7:15 and we are on our way to O.T.U

Dec-29,1943	Arrived safely #22 O.T.U.,nearly froze but happy!
	22nd Operational Training Unit is in Wellesbourne, Yorkshire
	aircraft used is the Vickers Wellington

Dec-30,1943	Wrote exams for ground school.

Dec-31,1943	Had a big party and dance in sergeants mess.

Jan-1,1944	Well we are hard at it now. 8 to 12:30 and 1:30 to 6

Jan-2,1944	Same old routine

Jan-3,1944	Nothing much today

Jan-4,1944	Lectures and classes

Jan-5,1944	Went to a show

Jan-6,1944	Went to a show. Same old, lectures and classes

Jan-7,1944	Lectures.Wrote letters

Jan-8,1944	Dance in mess.Left, went to bed early.

Jan-9,1944	Informal social at mess

Jan-10,1944	Started exams

Jan-11,1944	Examination results 77%

Jan-12,1944	Been crewed up! Pilot P/O Collver, Bombadier P/O White, Navigator P/O Bailey, W.A.G. Sgt.Sorel, Tail Air Gunner Jermey

Jan-13,1944	Going on leave.

Jan-14,1944	Slept in this morning arrived at Cropredy.
	Father's sisters lived in Cropredy

Jan-15,1944	Weather very foggy, stayed by the fire all day

Jan-16,1944	Back at camp, had a good time.

Jan-17,1944	Down at flights, doing very little.

Jan-18,1944	Down at flights, some of crew flying.

Jan-19,1944	Some of crew flying, sitting around.

Jan-20,1944	Supposed to do air firing, washed out. Mail from home.

Jan-21,1944	Payday. Flying circuits and bumps. One letter.

Jan-22,1944	Went to a dance. Raining cats and dogs. We couldn't get into mess.

Jan-23,1944	Skipper in hospital. Went to church. RAIN.

Jan-24,1944	Gun camera exercise. Still raining and blowing. Writing letters.

Jan-25,1944	Wet and miserable.

Jan-26,1944	Up on C.C.G. Wet.

Jan-27,1944	Solo C and B.

Jan-28,1944	Flying washed out.

Jan-29,1944	Flying washed out.

Jan-30,1944	Up on C.C.G.

Jan-31,1944	Sample bombing scrubbed.

Feb-1&2,1944	Flying scrubbed both days.

Feb-3,1944	Arrived in hospital on light diet.

Feb-4,1944	Ate pills,drank medicine,slept, good flying

Feb-5,1944	Temperature 102.50.Pills and medicine,Good flying.Boys visited

Feb-6,1944	Eat, sleep,be happy

Feb-7,1944	Crew flying cross country,still in hospital

Feb-8,1944	Weather fine. Missing cross country with crew

Feb-9,1944	Flying night C and B

Feb-10,1944	Able to get up today

Feb-11,1944	Discharged. 7 days leave

Feb-12,1944	Slept in barracks,stayed in mess

Feb-13,1944	Slept in. Sat in mess.

Feb-14,1944	Went to Stratford and London.Staying K of C
	K of C - Knights of Columbus

Feb-15,1944	Out looking around this morning.Slept in afternoon

Feb-16,1944	Raining!

Feb-17,1944	Still in London.Met W.O.Watson from Calgary.Smoke cloud like night at 4 P.M.

Feb-18,1944	Went to Beaver club.Saw King and Queen at Buckingham Palace.Caught train back to Leamington.

Feb-19,1944	Back on night flying.Circuits and bumps.Good weather.

Feb-20,1944	Night flying.A bit cold but okay.

Feb-21-23,1944	Just circuits and bumps

Feb-24,1944	Weather very cloudy and hazy

Feb-25-27,1944	No flying weather very poor

Feb-28,1944	First night cross country.A bit cold.Not bad.

Feb-29,1944	Bulls eye just off northern tip of Denmark.Back to Hull. 6 and 1half hours

Mar-1,1944	Cross country over Bristol and channel

Mar-2,1944	Cross country out over north sea.Temperature -34F.Very cold trip.In turret 5 and 1 half hours

Mar-3,1944	Night bombing.Temperature-30 at 18,000 feet. Very cold trip. Froze fingers and toes.

Mar-4-6,1944	No flying very bad weather

Mar-7,1944	First trip over enemy territory.Picture of St.Malo. Saw one ME 210.Lots of flak. Home safely

Mar-8,1944	Day bombing,getting clearance signed.

Mar-9,1944	Getting clearance signed.Crew gone.

Mar-10,1944	Waited all day for warrant.Ready to go

Mar-11,1944	Away to London with Lindblom

Mar-12,1944	Got room at K of C Saw Madame Tusseaud's wax works.

Mar-24,1944	Arrived at Dalton for battle school

Mar-25,1944	Day off Writing letters

Mar-26,1944	Church parade. Saw airborne lifeboat.

Mar-27,1944	First day of battle school.Running climbing walls.Through barb wire,crawling though tunnels.

Mar-28,1944	3 mile run, started ground school

Mar-29,1944	Ground school, very little running.Weather very nice

Mar-30,1944	Ground school.Lectures on escape

Mar-31,1944	Started exams.

April-1,1944	Finished exams.Half day off.Went into Thrisk

April-2,1944	Moved from Dalton to 1666 Heavy Conversion Unit, Wombleton

April-3,1944	Day off, raining cats and dogs.No place to go.

April-4,1944	Started 10 days ground school. Went through Halifax M41.OP,s

April-5,1944	Ground school. Mud all over the place.

April-6,1944	Night vision traning. Sweeping up for P.O's inspection

April-7,1944	Went to Sutton Bank range. Fine weather.

April-8,1944	Ground school.Night vision check 20\20.

April-9,1944	Ground school. Fog, sleet and rain

April-10,1944	Ground school.Low clouds,misty.

April-11,1944	Ground school.Wrote three exams.Went to Sutton Bank range

April-12,1944	Ground school very foggy.Writing letters

April-13,1944	Ground school in morning. Moved to cross country flights

April-14,1944	Went to PFF lecture. Drew electrically heated clothing. Weather warm

April-15,1944	One half day off. Went into Nawton. Weather very warm

April-16,1944	Dingy drill. Flying in the afternoon. Blew a tire

April-17,1944	Flew 4 hours circuits and crashes. Weather fine. Got 300 cigarettes from DOT

April-18,1944	Did dingy drill and parachute drill. Bit foggy. Fine this afternoon. Letters.

April-19,1944	New member of crew, Sgt.Desborough, flight engineer. Sat around flights all day

April-20,1944	Flew 4 hours. Blew a tire. 2 engine flying. Circuits and landings. Local flying.

April-21,1944	Air to air bombing. Homing 5.05 hours. Weather fine.

April-23,1944	Bombing and homing 3.10. Fine weather

April-24,1944	Bombing and homing. Night circuits and landings. Weather good.

April-25,1944	Check circuit. Circuit and landings. Weather okay.

April-26,1944	Night cross country. Weather fine 6.30

April-27,1944	Weather fine. Flying accident. No flying for us.

April-28,1944	Flashlight bulls eye. Hull, London, Bristol, Manchester. 5.25. Icing pretty bad

April-29,1944	Started getting cleared. Weather fine.

April-30,1944	Still getting cleared. Posting to 431 squadron.

May-1,1944	Arrived at Croft ,Yorkshire. RAIN.

May-2,1944	Doing very little. A few D<I's

May-7,1944	Went to Middleton St.George

May-8,1944	Going on leave to Blackpool

May-9,1944	Arrived at 199 Promenade.Private hotel.Good beds.Lots to eat

May-10,1944	Went to pleasure beach and tower

May-11,1944	Went to winter garden

Sadly, the journal ends abruptly without closure, similar to the abrupt ending to Robert and his crew's lives. It also raises many questions just as the crew's disappearance does, but there are still some answers buried in the short passages from the log.

For example we now know that the crew was together right from the beginning of their training overseas and from the tone used by Robert in his notes, that a bond had formed between them. Robert mentions in his entries that the "skipper was hospitalized" and that "the boys" visited him while he was in hospital. There are also several entries where Robert assumes an almost lamenting tone as his crew is flying while he is in hospital or finishing up his exams. More than a few references of going to dances and other activities all imply that this crew was as cohesive as any crew.

Another telling fact from his log is the many references to poor weather. Yorkshire winters wreaked havoc on Canadian airmen as the winters there tended be very damp and the poor living conditions the crews experienced often led to habitual illnesses that didn't subside until the summer months, if they subsided at all.

The log also seems to catch the awe of a young man from the west that is seeing the world for the first time. At various points the journal appears to be more of a travelogue than the experiences of a young man gone off to war, but the wonder that Robert expresses at seeing the King and Queen at Buckingham Palace typifies the excitement the war offered to young men from rural Canada.

Service Number:	J/92614
Age:	21