RCAF Station Boundary Bay Cenotaph

Delta, British Columbia

Type

Other

The RCAF Station Boundary Bay Cenotaph was dedicated on May 7, 2005, by the 828 Hurricane Royal Canadian Air Cadet Squadron, to the memory of all who served at the Royal Canadian Air Force Station Boundary Bay. The cenotaph is beside a large hangar which is the sole remaining Second World War building on the airport grounds.

In 2005, Captain Jason White, 828 Hurricane Squadron, coordinated the construction of the original Boundary Bay Airport cenotaph to celebrate the Year of the Veteran and honour all of those who served at the RCAF Station Boundary Bay during the Second World War. It was located on the northwest side of the Heritage Hanger (formerly Maintenance Hangar #3), but was not easily accessed for much of the year. The City of Delta and the Air Cadet League of Canada proposed to move the cenotaph to the front of the terminal building to commemorate the 75th Anniversary of the Boundary Bay Airport and Air Cadet League of Canada. Major restorative work was required, so a new cenotaph was constructed instead.

A large slab of granite was sourced from northern British Columbia and a stone mason was hired to form, install and engrave the new cenotaph. It stands eight feet tall and is accessible year round. The plaque from the 2005 cenotaph was transferred to the new cenotaph and it was rededicated on September 18, 2016. The City of Delta installed a plaque on the backside of the cenotaph to remember the 28 airmen who died while serving at RCAF Station Boundary Bay. It was designed by Linda Nielsen, Parks Planner, City of Delta (retired) and fabricated by Ves Vukovic, Stonemarks Engraving / Friends of Old Canada.

A pathway runs along both sides of the new cenotaph and includes interpretive signs featuring photos and historical anecdotes that commemorate the history of Boundary Bay Airport and the Air Cadet League of Canada. Viewing from the air, the entire project resembles the eagle in the Air Cadet League of Canada and Royal Canadian Air Force logos – cenotaph in the middle, representing the eagle’s head and body, and the pathways extending east and west, representing the eagle’s extended wings. The word “pathway” echoes the motto of the Royal Canadian Air Force, “Sic Itur Ad Astra”, which translates as “such is the pathway to the stars”.

Funding was provided by the City of Delta, Air Cadet League of Canada, Alpha Aviation Inc., Veterans Affairs Canada Cenotaph Restoration Program grant and Humphrey Construction Ltd. The Friends of Old Canada provided engraved stones for the pathway.

Inscription

[front/devant]
ROYAL CANADIAN AIR FORCE
STATION BOUNDARY BAY

DEDICATED TO THE MEMORY OF ALL WHO SERVED
AT ROYAL CANADIAN AIR FORCE STATION
BOUNDARY BAY FROM 1941 - 1945

THIS STATION WAS HOME TO TWO UNITS OF THE
BRITISH COMMONWEALTH AIR TRAINING PLAN

#18 ELEMENTARY FLYING TRAINING SCHOOL
#5 OPERATIONAL TRAINING UNIT

AND THREE SQUADRONS OF WESTERN AIR COMMAND

#133 (FIGHTER) SQUADRON
#132 (FIGHTER) SQUADRON
#14 (FIGHTER) SQUADRON

"PER ARDUA AD ASTRA"
DEDICATED MAY 7, 2005

REDEDICATED SEPTEMBER 18, 2016

[back/arrière]
IN MEMORY OF THE
AIRMEN WHO DIED WHILE SERVING AT
RCAF STATION BOUNDARY BAY

[plaque]
IN MEMORY OF THE
AIRMEN WHO DIED WHILE SERVING AT
RCAF STATION BOUNDARY BAY

No. 18 Elementary Flying Training School
Sergeant Joseph DAWSON
Leading Aircraftman Denis Percival FROUD
Sergeant Stuart James MUCKLE
Leading Aircraftman Reginald James OSBORNE
Leading Aircraftman Gordon Duncan WALTHAM
Leading Aircraftman John Henry Reginald WILLETT
No. 133 Fighter Squadron
Sergeant Ervin Earl GRISSOM
Flight Sergeant Eric Burke MONYPENNY
Flying Officer Grover Stewart SARGENT
No. 132 Fighter Squadron
Pilot Officer Keith Baines CALLAGHAN
Pilot Officer Milton Arnold FOSTER
No. 5 Operational Training Unit
Leading Aircraftman Norman McCallum CAMPBELL
Corporal Robert Edward DUTTON
Flying Officer Lionel Richard HANNAH
Sergeant Pilot Frederick JACKSON
Sergeant Clarence Arthur JOHNSTON
Pilot Officer Douglas JOHNSTON
Sergeant John Arthur JONES
Pilot Officer Derek Ronald Lonsdale KITSON
Sergeant Harald Magnus MANSON
Sergeant Bruce Walter McGREGOR
Pilot Officer John William Christopher REEVE
Pilot Officer Leonard Francis SCHELL
Sergeant Don Palmer SCRATCH
Flying Officer George Raymond SPENCER
Flying Officer John Edgar THOMSON
Flying Officer Thomas Leslie WALMSLEY
Sergeant Edward George WATERS
Flying Officer Harold Brand WHITLOCK

WE WILL REMEMBER THEM

[interpretive panel]
The Boundary Bay Airport Cenotaph and
Air Cadet Commemorative Pathway Project

In October 2015, the Air Cadet League of Canada’s British Columbia Provincial Committee (BCPC) approached the Corporation of Delta and Alpha Aviation Inc. with a proposal to develop a garden at Boundary Bay Airport to commemorate the 75th anniversary of the Air Cadet League of Canada’s establishment in Canada. Coincidently, Boundary Bay Airport was also celebrating its 75th anniversary and the municipality also wanted to commemorate the milestone. Mayor Lois E. Jackson and Delta Council gave their support for the project and requested that the Boundary Bay Airport Cenotaph be included to recognize the airport’s military past.

Boundary Bay Airport Cenotaph
In 2005, Captain Jason White, 828 Hurricane Squadron, coordinated the construction of an airport cenotaph to celebrate the Year of the Veteran and honour all of those who served at RCAF Station Boundary Bay during WWII. The monument was located on the northwest side of the Heritage Hanger (formerly Maintenance Hangar #3), but was not easily accessed for much of the year due to drainage issues. In an effort to make the cenotaph more accessible, the project team planned to move the cenotaph to the front of the terminal building where the Air Cadet plaza would be located. However, in order to move the cenotaph to its new location, major restorative work was required and the decision was made to construct a new cenotaph instead. A large slab of granite was sourced from northern British Columbia and a stone mason was hired to form, install and engrave the new cenotaph. The new monument stands eight feet tall and is accessible by all members of the public, year round. The plaque from the 2005 cenotaph has been transferred to the new cenotaph and was rededicated on September 18, 2016.

Air Cadet Commemorative Pathway
A pathway runs along both sides of the new cenotaph and includes interpretive signs featuring photos and historical anecdotes that commemorate the history of Boundary Bay Airport and the Air Cadet League of Canada. Viewing from the air, the entire project resembles the eagle in the Air Cadet League of Canada and Royal Canadian Air Force logos — cenotaph in the middle, representing the eagle’s head and body, and the pathways extending east and west, representing the eagle’s extended wings. The word “pathway” echoes the motto of the Royal Canadian Air Force, “Sic Itur Ad Astra”— “such is the pathway to the stars”.

Funding Partners
This project would not have been possible without the funding partnership between The Corporation of Delta, the Air Cadet League of Canada, and Alpha Aviation Inc. We wish to thank Veterans Affairs Canada for the $25,000 Cenotaph Restoration Program grant, Humphrey Construction Ltd. for generously constructing this project at cost, and Friends of Old Canada, a non-profit organization that seeks out individuals who have contributed to Canada, but have not received recognition, for providing engraved stones for the pathway.