Age:	28
	Hometown:	Montreal, Quebec.
	Occupation:	Insurance Inspector
	Marital Status:	Married
	Dependants:	One son named John, age 3.
	Hobbies\Interests:	Football, Tennis and Golf
	RCAF Trade:	Navigator
Flying Officer Norman Bailey	Notes:	The oldest member of the Collver crew. Parents were from England.

Date of Enlistment: June 22, 1942

Place of Enlistment: #9 RCAF Recruiting Centre London, Ontario                      

Notes about enlistment application:

Norman Bailey's Air Force enlistment form specifically noted that he was eligible for ITS (Initial Training School), this essentially meant that he would become an officer and while attending the Initial Training School would be steered towards becoming either a pilot, bomb aimer or navigator based on various testing. Being a high school graduate and having ten years experience as an Insurance Inspector made Norman Bailey  easily recognizable as officer material.

Other interesting notes on his application include his personal activities being listed as football, tennis and golf.

Basic Training:

• Training commenced July 30, 1942
• Sent to #5 Manning Depot, Lachine, Quebec.
• SOS (struck off strength) September 19, 1942 

Notes about basic training:

Training involved drill, military protocol, exhaustive physical training and basic soldiering.

Following completion of basic training, Norman Bailey was sent to Camp Borden for ten days for an indeterminate activity. This may have been to wait for a class to begin at Initial Training School, frequently when this happened trainees would be sent to various bases to perform guard duty until a spot opened up.

#6 Initial Training School Toronto, Ontario

• TOS  ( taken on strength) #6 Initial Training School Toronto, Ontario, October 1, 1942.
• Promoted in rank from Aircraftsman  2nd Class to Leading Aircraftsman March 19,1943
• SOS (struck off strength) March 20,1943

The Link Trainer.

Notes about ITS training:

The purpose of Initial Training School was to determine the students aptitude for becoming either a pilot, navigator or bomb aimer or if the candidate should be sent to yet another trade. Most students were there with the intention of becoming pilots, those that struggled in the Link trainer, one of the earliest aircraft simulators, were sent to other trades. However, not all Navigators were pilot wash outs, it was well known that if you showed too much skill in mathematics that you risked being selected as a Navigator or Bomb Aimer. Areas of study at the school included navigation, flight techniques, mechanical engineering, mathematics, telegraphy, and aircraft identification.

The school was located at the current site of Ryerson University. 

Navigator Training

• TOS  ( taken on strength) #4 Air Observers School London, Ontario March 21, 1943.
• Awarded Navigator Wings, August 6,1943
• Commissioned an officer and promoted in rank to Pilot Officer, August 6,1943
• Granted 14 days Embarkation  leave August 6,1943
• SOS (struck off strength) August 20,1943 

	The Avro Anson, a twin engine training aircraft.
	The Navigator's Wing worn on the front left of the uniform.

Notes about Navigator training:

Training involved intensive classroom and air work. Ground courses were heavily focused on mathematical principles and various navigation practices and the equipment that would be used such as charts, compasses, sextants and radio navigational aids.

What was taught in ground school would then be be applied in the air, cross country flights would provide the navigator-in-training with the task of verifying the course that was plotted and dealing with diversions. Training was conducted during the day, night and during all types of weather activity in preparation for the real life conditions that would be encountered overseas, the aircraft used was the Avro Anson.

Norman Bailey's test scores indicate that he performed well with all aspects of navigational training, his scores were noticeably higher on practical testing which is the most preferable of the two scenarios. Instructor comments were that he was a good student that was very detail oriented and organized and would be very well suited towards advanced training, promotion and becoming an instructor.

It should also be noted that the Embarkation Leave that was granted upon the completion of the Navigation course was likely the last time Norman Bailey's wife and son ever saw him.

Embarkation

• TOS  ( taken on strength) 1Y Depot, Halifax, August 25,1943 
• Embarked on transport August 26,1943
• SOS (struck off strength) August 25,1943
• Disembarked, September 1,1943
• TOS  ( taken on strength)   3rd Personnel Receiving Centre, RAF Station Bournemouth, September 2,1943
• Took privileged leave from September 11, 1943 to September 17, 1943 .
• SOS  (struck off strength)   3rd Personnel Receiving Centre, RAF Station Bournemouth, October 19,1943

Notes about Embarkation:

Just about every Canadian airmen that embarked overseas went through RAF Station Bournemouth, it was a huge processing centre where incoming troops reported and were kept until they were allotted postings where they would continue their training. Bournemouth was something of a coastal resort town but troops quickly became bored waiting there for their next assignments. The often took the opportunity to show mundane films on personal hygiene and venereal diseases.

Overseas Training

Advanced Flight Training:

• TOS  ( taken on strength) #9(Observer) AFU (Advanced Flying Unit), R.A.F LLandwrog (Wales)   October 19,1943
• Took privileged leave from December 15, 1943 to December 21, 1943.
• SOS (struck off strength) December 28, 1943.

Notes about AFU:

The purpose of Advanced Observer Flying Units was to primarily train Wireless Operators and Navigators to work with one another in the air. The Wireless Operator would obtain radio navigation information from beacons and then pass that information along to the Navigator who would use it to plot or confirm their course while in flight. The aircraft used for training was again the Avro Anson. 

It should be pointed out that P/O W. Gerald Sorel was on strength at #9 AFU at the same time as Norman Bailey.

Operational Training Unit

• TOS  (taken on strength) 22 Operational Training Unit (OTU) Wellesbourne,  December 28, 1943.
• Awarded the Canadian Volunteer Service Medal with Ribbon and Leaf Emblem, January 16, 1944.
• Promoted to the rank of Flying Officer, February 6, 1944.
• Took privileged leave from March 10, 1944 to March 23, 1944.
• SOS (struck off strength) March 23,1944

The Canadian Volunteer Service Medal with Ribbon and Leaf Emblem. It was awarded for a minimum of six months overseas service.

Notes about 22 OTU:

The Operational Training Unit is where airmen of separate trades converged to be formed into crews. Generally speaking, the crews were gathered in a common area and instructed to form up amongst themselves, it was felt that giving the crews the opportunity to do so would help them function better as a unit. Sometimes crews were formed because of common interests other times simply because someone asked them to join the crew. In any event, the concept worked well and most crews became very close knit.

 This likely also would have been where the crew of Halifax MZ-589 first met one another. At this stage the crew would have consisted of the Pilot (Joseph Collver), Navigator (Norman Bailey), Bomb Aimer (Ray White),  Wireless Operator (Gerald Sorel),   and the Tail Gunner (Norman Jermey) and Mid Upper Gunner Robert Leman. Pilot Joseph Collver was from Fort William, Ontario, a fellow Northern Ontarian like Gerald Sorel it is quite possible that having small things in common such as the latter played a part in the decision to form up as a crew. It is also entirely possible that Norman Bailey and Gerald Sorel had flown together or recognized one another from their time at LLandwrog and that also influenced the crew's formation.

The Vickers Wellington

The training  was conducted on the twin engine such as  Wellington bomber, training included circuits, cross country navigation, bombing, gunnery, night flying, formation flying and defensive manoeuvres. Also the crew would fly what were known as leaflet raids, these were trips to safer areas of occupied territories such as France where propaganda leaflets would be dropped. According to Norman Bailey's log book, the crew completed a leaflet or "Nickel Raid" to St. Malo France towards the end of their training. (See Norman Bailey's log book entries for 22 OTU below)

According to Norman Bailey's logbook the first flight of the Collver crew was likely on February 5, 1944.

61 Base  1666 Heavy Conversion Unit

• TOS  (taken on strength)  61 Base (Wombleton),  March 24,1944
• Attended Battle School at Dalton, March 24,1944 to April 2,1944
• TOS  (taken on strength) 1666 Heavy Conversion Unit  at 61 Base (Wombleton),  April 2,1944
• SOS (struck off strength) April 30,1944

Notes about 1666 HCU:

1666 HCU (Heavy Conversion Unit) was where the crew learned to operate four engine bombers that they would fly with their operational squadrons. It was at this point that an RAF Flight Engineer (William Desborough) would join the crew.   The activities at the HCU were similar to those at the OTU only with larger more powerful aircraft. The crew would also learn survival and escape and evade tactics.  Aircraft used at the HCU were older discarded Halifaxes such as the MkII.

It should be noted that training at OTU's and HCU's was in itself quite hazaardous. There were a multitude of accidents, ranging from mid air collisions to crashes on take off. The aircraft used by training units had survived operational tours and were deemed to rickety to use operationally. 

Norman Bailey's Log Book Entries from 1666 Heavy Conversion Unit.

431 Iroquois Squadron RCAF Station Croft, Yorkshire

• TOS  (taken on strength)  431 Squadron (Croft),  May 1,1944
• Took privileged leave from  May 9, 1944 to May 15, 1944
• Assigned to "A" Flight
• Took privileged leave from June 26, 1944 to July 2, 1944
• Flew on 17 Operations, 16 were counted towards his tour.
• Missing from operations July 28/29 1944 (18th operation)
• Presumed Dead July 29, 1944
• Declared dead June 6, 1945
• Posthumously received the following service awards: The 39-45 Star, France and Germany Star, The Defence Medal, General Service Medal

Notes about 431 Squadron:

According to his service file, Norman Bailey was awarded the Distinguished Flying Cross on April 5, 1945. For some reason his name does not appear in any London newspapers as a recipient as was customary with most winners, it is possibly an oversight on behalf of the military or the national archives, time will tell. 

For complete operation details, see the Operations section.

Norman Bailey's Log Book Entries from 431 Squadron.

Return to the Crew section