Canadian Virtual War Memorial

Newspaper clipping – Submitted for the project Operation Picture Me

Flying OfficerJohn McLaren – Flying Officer McLaren (always called "Ian" by his family, and sometimes called "Red" by his squadron mates) was flying a CF-100 (tail number 18499) over the Strait of Georgia on the night of December 16, 1958, when both jet engines flamed out in a rainstorm and could not be re-started. Ian, the navigator, and his pilot, Flying Officer John Callahan, bailed out at 17,000 feet about 12 miles from Comox. Callahan was rescued from the rough waters of the Strait two hours later, but Ian's body has never been found. The CF-100, designed and built by Avro Canada and inaptly called an all-weather interceptor, was recognized by its aircrews as being undependable in inclement weather.