Flying Skill Level of Squadron

Some, I would think that when I was on 601 Squadron I had probably more flying hours than the average guy, not as many operational hours as the squadron commander or the flight commander until I got my time in. But, and on the fighter squadron it’s rather difficult to judge what the skill level of the other pilot is because only he is in the aircraft. Did he live? I think was the best, was the best, was the best barometer of that. We lived in tents, the desert air force was mobile and we moved, for instance we were on the Adriatic side of Italy near a place called Turmoli and we used to do sweeps over the Adriatic into Yugoslavia come back and we’d be in tents, usually two fellows to a tent. The mess tent was an, was an, also. Now when we moved across to the Naples side to provide cover for the Anzio invasion near Rome, we again were in tents again with our own little roll up beds. We took care of ourselves. It sure wasn’t Royal York Hotel and the cooks provided food for all ranks. There was an officer’s mess or a pilot’s tent where we could be a little quieter and have our own drink and then the troops had their own tent where they could relax. In North Africa it was pretty hot, oh yeah. And in Italy it was warm until the winter came and then it could get pretty mean at night, yeah.

Mr. Yarnell describes the skill level of the Squadron and their living conditions in North Africa and Italy.

Cyrill St. Clair (Cy) Yarnell

Mr. Yarnell was born August 9, 1920 in Carlow, Ireland. He moved to Canada when he was 8 years old. He enlisted in the Royal Canadian Air Force in 1940 at the age of 20. Mr Yarnell received his initial pilot training in Victoriaville, Quebec where he learned to fly the Fleet Finch, he then graduated on to the Harvard. He received flying instructor training in Trenton and trained pilots from many countries. After instructing for a year, Mr. Yarnell was sent overseas. He flew missions over North Africa, Italy and Germany and was involved in the battles at Liri Valley and Monte Cassino. Following the war, Mr. Yarnell continued with the RCAF, retiring in 1975 as a colonel. He is a member of the Air Force Association of Canada and is very active with the Air Force Museum in Trenton, Ontario. Mr. Yarnell and his wife, Phyllis, have three children, seven grandchildren and one great-grandchild.