Lives Given
The Fallen From RCAF Station Patricia Bay
1939 – 1945
On 1 June 2017 the Victoria Airport Authority dedicated the memorial Lost Airmen of the Empire, by the noted artist, Illarion Gallant. It sits on Hospital Hill, the highest point on the airfield, which offers commanding views of the airport, Mount Baker to the east, and Patricia Bay with Malahat Mountain to the west. Inscribed on the individual Cooper Hawk feathers comprising the memorial are the names of all persons who perished during World War II while working at or posted to RCAF Station Patricia Bay, or who were aboard aircraft from that base.
Information about this memorial, prepared by the Victoria Airport Authority, can be found here. Additional detail prepared by BCAM can be found here and here.
The Library at the BC Aviation Museum, located on the grounds of what is today Victoria International Airport, researched and provided the names for the memorial. Since that time the library has worked actively to develop biographies of all individuals listed on this memorial. In November of 2018 these biographies were posted to the museum website with the hope that missing or incomplete information can be obtained from families, friends and comrades of these persons. A printed copy of these biographies will be dedicated and displayed in our Memorial Room effective 11 November 2019. It is our wish to personalize and honour the sacrifice made by these men and women in the service of their country.
If you have questions about these names, or if you have information or photographs to supplement our information, please contact us at: [email protected]
This is intended to be a living document; comment and information is welcome at any time and we will continually update our biographies to provide the most current information available.
The Fallen
* Abell RJH is listed on the feathers but a detailed record search found he died in 1946.