Story of a bag

The contributor brought along a bag which belonged to her uncle, Bill Collier (her father's brother). The bag came back to his mother, Helen's grandma, after they got news that he was missing, presumed dead. It was returned by the RAF/RCAF. Her grandma kept it and it has been passed on down the family. It was filled with his medals, discharge papers and photographs. There were also negatives which a cousin had developed after 70 years. They were of Bill Collier, some RCAF friends and members of Canadian families who befriended them during their training in Canada in 1942. There were letters from a female friend of Bill's in the UK whose letters to Bill and, after his death, his mother, were also in the bag. She later became a primary school teacher, got married and just maybe is still alive (aged 100) down in Surrey.

Bill was training down in Margate, but was somehow connected to the Canadian Airforce and had done training in Canada. He wanted to be a pilot but didn't pass the test so Helen and family think he became a navigator.

He had taken part in about 14 flights and they were taking off from an airfield in North Yorkshire. She thinks he was in Wellingtons and they were laying mines. He went on 14 missions and didn't come back from the 14th mission. 50% of aircrews didn't come back. She thinks he came down somewhere near the Friesan Islands and his body was never found, although the bodies of the rest of the crew were washed up. Only Bill's body was never found. It was rumoured that often the navigator would take over the controls while the rest of the crew bailed out, which was maybe why his body wasn't found with the rest. He was 20 when he died. He had been a trainee journalist for the local newspaper in Swinton (?) Lancashire before he signed up.

Helen said they had only just inherited the bag and needed to research it more. Bill's mum at one point had two sons and one son in law serving in the war. The son in law was in Burma. There are letters from them in the bag.