atlantic guardian

while, but moved to the Canadian
West in 1909, where Thomas
(Tommy) was born on January
16, 1915, at Taber, Alberta. The
Head's returned to Glace Bay in
1935.
Tommy enlisted in the Canadian
Army Signal Corps in 1939 when
World War II started and later
transferred to the Royal Canadian
Air Force. He took his basic
training at Toronto and went overseas
in 1942 as a Pilot Officer
Navigator. Completing his preoperational
training in England,
he joined number 427 Canadian
Heavy Bomber Squadron on May
25, 1943.
It was while serving with this
Squadron that he was recommended
for the Distinguished Flying
Cross.
After leaving England for Berlin
on August 17, 1943 with a cargo
of bombs, and flying at an altitude
of twenty-four thousand feet, another
Canadian aircraft accidently
unloaded its bombs while about
one thousand feet above Head's
craft. The result was the Canadian
bombs went through one of
their own ships making several
holes in the aircraft, one of which
was about two feet wide and seven
feet long, and knocking about
three feet off the starboard wing
tip and half the tail. They dived
from 24,000 feet to about 8,000 feet
before the crew were able to bring
the plane under control. After
dropping their load by the miraculous
efforts of the crew, they
20
were able to navigate their ship
safely back to England, two hours
late, having been given up for lost.
It was the first aircraft ever to return
after such a mishap.
Tommy Head, whose father was
born in Little Bay, was the navigator
of this ship, and it was for
this incident that he was awarded
the decoration.
Completing thirty-one operational
flights over enemy territory,
Flight Lieutenant Head was posted
to the Dalton Airport in England
in 1944 as Chief Navigator Officer,
and remained there until May,
1945, when he returned to Canada
as Navigation Instructor at Dartmouth,
N. S.
Two uncles and aunts of James
Thomas Head, D.F.C., still reside
at Little Bay-Mr. and Mrs. John
Warren, and Mr. and Mrs. M. R.
Kennedy.
Tommy has one desire that he
hopes to fulfill some day, and that
is to visit Little Bay, the birthplace
of his father.
He is thirty-four years old now,
and married to a charming Canadian
girl, Eulalia Currie, and they
have four children, three boys­
Ronnie, Peter and Kevin-and a
girl-Charmaine.
His chief hobby is ralsmg
chickens and he has several very
high grade game birds in his flock.
He also owns a pedigreed bull
terrier of which he is very proud.
He holds a Civil Service position
with the Unemployment Insurance
Commission at Sydney, N. S.
Newfoundland, often the centre of various types of disasters,
contributed to the relief of distressed inhabitants of San Francisco
when disaster in the form of an earthquake hit that American
city on April 18, 1906. The Newfoundland government of the day
voted the sum of $5,000 for relief of the victims.
ATLANTIC GUARDIAN