RCAF Aviation History: Flight Sergeant George. F. Beurling, DSO, DFC, DFM and Bar
Flight Sergeant George. F. Beurling, DSO, DFC, DFM and Bar
(Library and Archives Canada Photo, PL-22196)
“The Falcon of Malta”, Flight-Sergeant George. F. Beurling, DSO, DFC,DFM and Bar, of No. 249 Squadron RAF. “There’sa lot of room there for a lot more,” quipped Beurling as he painted crosses onthe fuselage of his Supermarine Spitfire fighter on 15 October 1943.
George Beurling joined the RAF in September 1940 andwas posted to No. 41 Squadron RAF a year later. On 9 June 1942, he flewinto Malta from HMS Eagle and joined No. 249 Squadron RAF, with whomhe became the top-scoring Allied fighter pilot on the island, achieving 26victories between 12 June and 14 October 1942. He was sent home to Canadafor publicity purposes in November 1942, but returned to the United Kingdom tojoin No. 61 Operational Training Unit as a flying instructor in July 1943. He transferred to the RCAF on 1 September 1943 and achieved the last ofhis 32 confirmed victories with Nos. 403 and 412 Squadrons before returning toCanada in April 1944 and retiring from the Air Force the following October. He died in a flying accident, (possibly due to sabotage), on 20 May 1948, whileferrying an aircraft to Israel after having volunteered for service with thenascent Israeli Air Force.
(IWM Photo)
Flight-Sergeant George. F. Beurling, DSO, DFC, DFM and Bar, of No. 249 Squadron RAF, standing by a sandbag revetment at Ta Kali, Malta, with the rudder and unit emblem cut from a crash-landed Macchi MC.202 of378ª Squadriglia/51º Stormo CT, Regia Aeronautica, one of four enemy aircraft which he shot down over Gozo on 27 July 1942.
(DND Photo)
George Beurling shows Jean Johnson of the American Red Cross his DSO after his Investiture.
[1] Internet: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/David_Ernest_Hornell.
[2] Internet: http://www.geocities.com/bgmcansh/hornell/davidhornell.html.
[3] The London Gazette, 11 October 1946. Internet: http://www.vac-acc.gc.ca/remembers/sub.cfm?source=history/secondwar/citations/mynarski.
[4] Internet: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Andrew_Charles_Mynarski.
[5] The London Gazette, 17 August 1945.
