Irving Farmer Kennedy

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Irving Farmer Kennedy

DFC & Bar
Nickname(s)'Hap'
Born(1922-02-04)4 February 1922
Cumberland, Ontario
Died6 January 2011(2011-01-06) (aged 88)
Cumberland, Ontario
Allegiance Canada
Service/branchRoyal Canadian Air Force
Years of service1940 – 1945
Battles/warsWorld War II
Awards

Irving Farmer 'Hap' Kennedy

aces of the war, with 10 solo and 5 shared aircraft destroyed, and 1 probably destroyed.[2]

Biography

Born in

Vimy Ridge). The war started when he was 17 in his final year of high school in Ottawa, and he joined the RCAF in October 1940.[citation needed
]

Service career

He did his flight training in Canada at No.2 Initial Training School (ITS) in early 1941, and No.8 Elementary Flying Training School (EFTS) and No.10 Service Flying Training School (SFTS) to July 1941. As a Sergeant Pilot he was posted overseas to the UK in August 1941, flying Hawker Hurricane fighters at No.55 Operational Training Unit (OTU).[citation needed]

In September 1941 he was posted to No. 263 Squadron RAF, flying the Westland Whirlwind, based in the West Country and flying convoy protection and ground attack sorties into France. He was promoted to Flight Sergeant in January 1942 and commissioned as a Flight Lieutenant in March 1942. In June 1942 he was posted to the newly formed No. 421 Squadron RCAF flying the Spitfire Mk.V.[citation needed]

He then shipped out to

JG 77 on 13 October.[3]

In June he was posted to No. 185 Squadron RAF, flying a mixture of Spitfire Vs and IXs. On June 22 he was awarded the Distinguished Flying Cross. Although tour-expired in July 1943, Kennedy stayed on operations, this time with No. 111 Squadron RAF until September 1943. A spell with No. 93 Squadron RAF followed until December 1943.[citation needed]

He then returned to the UK and began another tour on 15 June 1944 as Commanding Officer with

No. 401 Squadron RAF. Kennedy downed two more German fighters for a total of 14 enemy aircraft destroyed, before he was shot down by flak on 26 July 1944. After parachuting into a field in occupied France, he initially hid in a hayloft and was cared for by a French family. With the aid of the French Maquis, Kennedy walked to Allied lines.[4]

He returned to Canada in September 1944, and was released from the RCAF on 13 February 1945. He became a doctor and studied medicine at the University of Toronto, graduating in 1950. He was based in Cumberland, Ontario. Kennedy died on 6 January 2011.[citation needed]

Kennedy's brothers, Robert and Carleton, also served. Carleton died when his Halifax Mk III bomber crashed.[5]

Decorations and Medals

  • DFC and Bar
  • Awarded
    French Legion of Honour
    in 2004

References

  1. ^ "Death Notices". Archived from the original on 2012-02-28. Retrieved 2011-01-12.
  2. ^ Shores, Williams; "Aces High", (grub street 1994) page 372
  3. ^ Shores/Williams, page 372
  4. ^ "Irving Farmer Kennedy". Thememoryproject.com. 1943-10-13. Retrieved 2012-07-05.
  5. ^ "Irving Farmer "Hap" Kennedy Obituary: View Irving Kennedy's Obituary by Ottawa Citizen". Legacy.com. Retrieved 2012-07-05.
  • Ralph, Wayne (2005). Aces, warriors and wingman: the firsthand accounts of Canada's fighter pilots in the Second World War. John Wiley & Sons Canada Ltd..
    ISBN 0-470-83590-7
    .

External links
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