Search Party

Heroes Remember

Search Party

Transcript

Well, we landed there and the first thing we had to do was go out and search, a search party. There was two airmen got lost, ran out of gas or whatever. We had to go and search for them. We landed in there, say, six o’clock. And at eight o’clock, we was in a damned aircraft, looking, seeing if you could see any signs of anybody. And they were... this was one of the things that went on an awful lot. A lot of downed aircraft. Because they found out, later years... there was a lady that was up there that told me that after the war, they found this here damned German sub way in an alcove. And they was getting them on radar and directing... giving them wrong directions. And they were silly enough to take it. Then you’d, for days, up searching and looking to see if you could see any sign of life. So that’s one of the things. And after, after the war - and I’d like to remember that lady’s name - but she said that they found this damned old sub and it was, the tables was set, for goodness sake, and they were right there all the time, eh. Can you imagine? So it was quite a ... yeah. Interviewer: Were you helping look for these downed air planes? (Oh yes.) You were up in the air? They’d just, oh yeah. They’d say “You, you and you.” That was it. There was no ... you had nothing to say in it. They’d say, “You, you and you.” Yeah. But the first, when we landed there, I believe, I am a little ahead of my story, there was a Harvard, a Harvard and they got lost and this was a search. Look out the windows and see if you could see any sign of life. I think it was nine days and they were going to give up the search and they got a weak, weak radio message. And they went to it. They found them but they were just skeletons. They were just skeletons. They had been out there nine or ten days without anything to eat. They survived. They lived. They got them back to the hospital, I was told.

Description

Mr. Ramsay talks about a couple of instances where he was involved in search parties looking for downed air craft.

Roy Henry Ramsay

Roy Henry Ramsay was born on a small farm in Springhill, Prince Edward Island in 1921. His father died in 1937, leaving him to fend for his mother and three sisters. Prior to enlisting, he was working as a labourer on the highways. He enlisted in 1941 and joined the air force, as he had fondness for air craft. Initially Mr. Ramsay wanted to be an air gunner, but due to a lack of education and experience, he ended up training as an aero engine mechanic. After spending a few days in Toronto at Manning Depot #10, Mr. Ramsay was off to Jarvis, Ontario to receive his basic training. Then he was posted in Goose Bay, Labrador and was later posted in Dartmouth, Nova Scotia with 145 Squadron. Mr. Ramsay was in Halifax when the war ended and was witness to the Halifax riots at the end of the war. He returned to PEI when the war ended, moving back into the house he had lived in prior to enlisting. He purchased a few more acres of land to add to the 20 acres he already had and farmed for a little while. He eventually went on to do carpentry work until his retirement.

Meta Data

Medium:: Video
Owner:: Veterans Affairs Canada
Duration:: 3:28
Person Interviewed:: Roy Henry Ramsay
War, Conflict or Mission:: Second World War
Location/Theatre:: Labrador
Branch:: Air Force
Units/Ship:: 145 Squadron
Occupation:: Mechanic

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Search Party

Heroes Remember

Search Party

Roy Henry Ramsay

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Search Party

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