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Jack Duggan: Distinguished Flying Canadian

When John 鈥楯ack鈥� Duggan enlisted in the Royal Canadian Air Force in 1941, his father was less than pleased. Duggan senior feared everything and was no risk-taker. But Jack, born 1918 in Petrolia, Ontario, was different; unknown to his father and most of his family he had already been taking private flying lessons in London, Ontario.[1]

Father鈥檚 concerns aside, Jack went on to obtain his RCAF Wings in 1942 and was being taught to train pilots - and was training pilots - in Vulcan, Alberta and Yorkton, Saskatchewan that same year.[2] One of his instructors the following year reported, 鈥楬e has a great desire to go overseas and should become a good operational pilot.鈥橻3] A 1942 instructor鈥檚 assessment offered fainter praise: 鈥楾rainee is of average ability, general flying is satisfactory鈥acks confidence in himself...instrument flying average鈥︹�橻4] Apparently the Flight Trainee had been misjudged: two years later, aged 25, Jack was a Captain, First Pilot and Flight Lieutenant in the 431 Iroquois Squadron commanding a 7-man crew flying Avro Lancaster bombers out of Croft airfield, England.

Jack鈥檚 Air Operations baptism of fire was in the colossal October 14, 1944 air-attack on Duisburg.[5] This, his first bombing mission and the only raid in which he piloted a Halifax, was the opening raid of Operation Hurricane which would, according to Sir Arthur Harris鈥� Bomber Command directive, 鈥榙emonstrate to the enemy in Germany the overwhelming superiority of the allied forces in this theatre.鈥橻6] Over one and a half thousand aircraft were involved - the highest number of sorties flown by Bomber Command aircraft in a single day.[7] From that October until March, 1945 Jack and his seven-member crew flew Canadian built Lancaster MK Xs on a number of historically and strategically important bombing raids. They struck a U-boat plant in Hagen, synthetic oil refineries in Merseberg and Zeitz, the Bosch aero-engine factory in Stuttgart, railway yards in Soest and Opladen and an aerodrome and steelworks in D眉sseldorf.[8] During the same period Jack and crew bombed Duisberg another two times, Chemnitz twice and Cologne three times. They also flew in the first of the two controversial Allied bombings of Dresden, Feb 13th, 1945.[9]

If Jack鈥檚 father had misgivings about his son being a bomber pilot, they were well-placed - fewer than 40% of RAF and Commonwealth bomber aircraft servicemen survived the minimum required 30 sorties.[10] Jack flew thirty-four. Returning from a raid on Bochum (November 4th, 1944) he was 鈥榰nable to feather鈥� his starboard inner engine, which then caught fire.[11] He struggled back to a forced landing at Station Coningsby. Jack and crew then survived their second attack on Chemnitz (March 5th, 1945) when 12 Lancasters and Halifaxes on the same harrowing raid crashed in freezing conditions during take off and a further 22 were shot down.[12] Just two days later over Dessau on his 29th sortie as an Operations Pilot, Jack鈥檚 plane was hit by 'cannon fire' on its port undercarriage from an attacking Fucke Wulf 109.[13] Once again he managed to pilot his Lancaster back to Croft airbase.[14]

On Operations against Hildesheim, March 22nd, Jack鈥檚 luck ran out. Bomber Command鈥檚 specific target in Hildesheim was a railway yard, but the ensuing bombardment destroyed two thirds of the city, including an 11th century cathedral.[15.16.] Ivan Moscovich, a survivor of nearby Bergen-Belsen, witnessed the attack: "I heard this strange noise ... mmmmmmmmmmmm ... that filled the air, and we suddenly realised that the sky was filled with planes. The next second everything was on fire. It was the Allied carpet bombing of Hildesheim. I saw German soldiers burning, running, and everything became chaos. I ran. After a while I stopped and looked back at the city, which was one big torch.鈥漑17] Jack and crew were unable to contribute to the conflagration: they were downed just as they neared Hildesheim at around midday when the single HC 鈥楥ookie鈥� bomb they carried was detonated by anti-aircraft flak.[18]

Flight Lieutenant Jack Duggan鈥檚 Lancaster was one of only four allied planes lost in the March 22nd attack on Hildesheim, which involved 235 RAF/Commonwealth bombers.[19] Bomber Command鈥檚 rationale in ordering Jack and crew out in daylight to deliver one bomb to an already bomber-saturated target is difficult to determine.[20] Uncertain also is why Jack was being sent out on bombing operations when he had already completed the requisite thirty sorties.[21]

Jack was awarded a Distinguished Flying Cross, March 21st, 1945, for 鈥榥umerous operations against the enemy鈥� in which he 鈥榙isplayed the utmost fortitude and devotion to duty鈥�.[22] Jack - John Philip - Duggan is buried at the Commonwealth War Cemetery in Hanover, Germany, where the Commonwealth War Graves Commission lists his age as 鈥榰nknown鈥�.[23] He was 26.

Below is the RCAF list of Jack鈥檚 fellow crew members, lost at Hildesheim in Lancaster KB808, verbatim (circa) March 23rd, 1945:

J.91026 P/O F.K. Trent (second pilot), Pathlow, Saskatchewan
J.39003 F/O G.A. Zuback (navigator), Kamloops, British Columbia
J.38407 F/O G.D. McLean (bomb aimer), wife in Ottawa
J.89833 P/O J.W. Dorrell (wireless operator), wife in Willoughby, Ohio
R.261128 Flight Sergeant C.E. Root (air gunner), wife in London, Ontario
R.139321 Flight Sergeant J.B. Ketchen (air gunner), wife in St. Catharines, Ontario
3005762 Sergeant J.H. Bentley (RAF, flight engineer), father in Oceana Close Poplar, London [24]

End Notes-Sources Consulted and Used

1. This, and a wealth of important background detail about Jack Duggan, was obtained from discussions and correspondence with two of his siblings: Dennis Duggan and Clare MacLean, November, 2004-April, 2005. Thank you so much, Aunt Clare and Dad.
NB 鈥楯ack鈥� is also referred to as 鈥楯ohnny鈥� and 鈥楯ohnnie鈥� by some of his relatives, and in some RCAF documents.

2. RCAF file, John Philip Duggan, Government of Canada Archives, Ottawa, Canada

3. RCAF file, John Philip Duggan, Government of Canada Archives, Ottawa, Canada

4. RCAF file, John Philip Duggan, Government of Canada Archives, Ottawa, Canada

5. Jack Duggan鈥檚 flight Log, Sept 24th, 1944- March 22nd, 1945

6. Bomber Command Campaign Diary ^{About links} accessed, Jan-March, 2005

7. Bomber Command Campaign Diary ^{About links} accessed, Jan-March, 2005

8. - Jack Duggan鈥檚 flight Log, Sept 24th, 1944- March 22nd, 1945.
- Bomber Command Campaign Diary ^{About links} accessed, Jan-March, 2005

9. -Jack Duggan鈥檚 flight Log, Sept 24th, 1944- March 22nd, 1945
- Bomber Command Campaign Diary ^{About links} accessed, Jan-March, 2005

10. www.bbc.co.uk/ww2 accessed January-March, 2005 - Site helper/researcher Peter

11. -RCAF file, John Philip Duggan, Government of Canada Archives, Ottawa, Canada
-Jack Duggan鈥檚 flight Log, Sept 24th, 1944- March 22nd, 1945

12. Jack Duggan鈥檚 flight Log, Sept 24th, 1944- March 22nd, 1945

13. Jack Duggan鈥檚 flight Log, Sept 24th, 1944- March 22nd, 1945

14. Jack Duggan鈥檚 flight Log, Sept 24th, 1944- March 22nd, 1945

15. - Bomber Command Campaign Diary ^{About links} accessed, Jan-March, 2005
- WW 2 Axis Military History Day by Day ^{About links} accessed February, 2005
- www.worldwar-2.net/timelines/war-in-europe/european-air-war/index-1945.htm accessed February, 2005

16. - Bomber Command Campaign Diary ^{About links} accessed, Jan-March, 2005
- WW 2 Axis Military History Day by Day ^{About links} accessed February, 2005
- www.worldwar-2.net/timelines/war-in-europe/european-air-war/index-1945.htm accessed February, 2005
- ^{About links} accessed Feb-April, 2005
- ^{About links}

Rebuilt Hildesheim Cathedral is a UNESCO World Heritage Site.

17. 鈥榃ired Magazine鈥�, Issue no. 209, September, 1996

18. -RCAF file, John Philip Duggan, Government of Canada Archives, Ottawa, Canada
-Jack Duggan鈥檚 flight Log, Sept 24th, 1944- March 22nd, 1945

19. - Bomber Command Campaign Diary ^{About links} accessed, Jan-March, 2005
- Jacobs, Peter The Lancaster Story Silverdale Books, London, 2002, pg 190

20. A Lancaster could carry 7 tons of bombs. A typical Lancaster payload at this point in the war might be one 4000 lb HC (High Capacity) 鈥楥ookie鈥� Blast Bomb along with six 1000 lb GP bombs as well as two 500 lb GP bombs. Jacobs, Peter The Lancaster Story Silverdale Books, London, 2002, pp 75-76

21. www.bbc.co.uk/ww2 accessed January-March, 2005 - Site helper/researcher Peter
A first tour was 30 鈥榦ps鈥� - some flew 70(!). Early returns, aborted missions did not count toward the 30 total, and only half-credits were given for some ops; this might explain why Jack was still flying Operations on March 22nd, 1945

22. Award effective 21 March 1945 as per London Gazette dated 1 March 1946. ^{About links}

23. Commonwealth War Graves Commission ^{About links} accessed January, 2005

24. RCAF file, John Philip Duggan, Government of Canada Archives, Ottawa, Canada. In the same document Jack is listed as: J.35871 F/L J.P. Duggan (pilot and captain), London, Ontario

I am greatly indebted to Ann Sadler and Hugh Halliday for their help in obtaining several crucial primary sources. Ann Sadler provided me with information on Jack鈥檚 DFC and she introduced me to Hugh Halliday who accessed Jack Duggan鈥檚 RCAF file in Ottawa and spent a considerable amount of time carefully transcribing the documents he found there. Thank you, thank you!

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