Leonard George Hill was born in 1914. He was from Hamilton, Ontario, son of Herbert Leonard Hill and Ella Nora Hill Metcalf. He attended Saltfleet High school and the Hamilton Technical Institute. After graduating he worked for the National Steel Car Corporation.

He joined the Royal Canadian Air Force and became an air gunner with 426 (RCAF) Squadron, operating out of Linton-on-Ouse. The squadron first flew with the Lancaster II, but in April 1944 transferred to the Halifax III and IV. 

F/O Hill's crew consisted of;

F/O John Tabor
F/O Francis McQueen
F/O George Shannon
P/O Robert Niles
P/O Harry Doggett
F/O William Carson

426 Squadron
 

On 17 June 1944 this crew participated in a mission bomb the oil plant at Sterkrade. 321 bombers were to take part in the raid.

Poor weather prevented accurate bombing. Also the markers that were dropped by the pathfinders disappeared quickly due to the bad weather.  To add to all this, the bomber stream passed very close by a German night fighter beacon near Bocholt. Many night fighters were positioned close to the bomber stream and over 30 bomber were shot down by flak and night fighters.

F/O Hill's Halifax also failed to return. It crashed into the North Sea and the bodies of several of the crew were found along a long stretch of the Dutch coast. F/O McQueen's body washed ashore near Castricum, where he is buried. F/O Shannon, F/O Hill and F/O Carson are all three buried at Amsterdam.  F/O Doggett at Terschelling and P/O Niles at Pietersbierum.

This article appeared in the Hamilton Spectator
on 22 February 1945

F/O Leonard Hill is buried at Amsterdam New Eastern Cemetery, Plot 69. Row A. Coll. grave 1.
 

Amsterdam, The Netherlands

See also:
P/O Francis McQueen
F/O George Shannon
P/O R. Niles
P/O H. Doggett
F/O John Tabor
F/O William Carson

Sources:
www.rcaf.com
www.cwgc.org
www.vac-acc.gc.ca
www.warmuseum.ca

Acknowledgements:

Directions to Amsterdam New Eastern Cemetery

posted 7 may 2006

If you have any suggestions, comments or additional information, please contact me.

This website is dedicated to the men and women who died and/or are buried in The Netherlands during World War II.

 

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