Donald Bowes left his Winnipeg home to enlist in the RCAF. While at Initial Training School he received the following assessment: “This airman is quiet and retiring but is an efficient worker and is apt to be overlooked as one of the good members of the Flight due to his reticence. He quit school to join the Air Force and is somewhat immature. His hobby was firearms and he has done a lot of hunting which may be helpful as he proceeds in Aircrew. This airman should be satisfactory Pilot material.” Bowes received his pilot training at Centralia where he was assessed as: “Inclined to be lazy – no outstanding faults.”
After receiving his wings at Centralia, Bowes was posted to Britain for advanced bomber pilot training. While at No. 1664 Conversion Unit, Bowes was assessed as: “An average pilot with no outstanding faults. Should be checked on captaincy. Landings no hell. Landings a little rough but safe.”
After completion of heavy conversion training, Bowes was posted to 419 Squadron. On March 31, 1945 Lancaster KB869 departed for operations to Hamburg U-boat shipyards with F/O Bowes at the controls. Cloud cover over the target hindered accuracy of the operation. Along with this, Luftwaffe day fighters launched an attack on the bomber stream, including the Lancaster F/O Bowes was piloting. F/Sgt. Milne, the Mid-Upper Gunner, stated in a POW report: “Intercom dead, but saw pilot motioning Engineer (Rea) and Bomb Aimer (Gladish) out. Saw Engineer take off his helmet and clamp on his chute. Saw Bomb Aimer trying to open front hatch. Then explosion and when I got out there was no nose forward of the skippers seat. Rear Gunner (Rowlands) and Navigator (Berry) are here (POW’s).
“The German Intelligence Officer wanted us to identify bodies and he read off a list of what he said were identified bodies. This included two names which I took to be my Pilot and Bomb Aimer.”
M.E Ferguson W/C Officer Commanding No. 419 Squadron wrote the following letter to F/O Bowes’ mother: “Dear Mrs Bowes: “I greatly regret having to confirm the telegram which you have no doubt already received, notifying you that your son, Flying Officer Donald Stuart Bowes is missing from operations. He took off the morning of March 31st 1945, to attack a very important industrial centre in Northern Germany. The attack has since proved to have been very successful, but unfortunately, nothing has been heard of your son or his crew since take-off, and their loss can only be attributed to enemy action.
“Donald was with the Squadron for more than three months, and in this time he became a very popular Squadron member and one of our most experienced pilots. He was a cheerful, quiet, unassuming fellow who was very devoted to his duties. During your son’s stay with us he took part in nineteen attacks on the enemy against the main German industrial targets and in support of our land forces. On one occasion, one engine of your son’s aircraft became unserviceable soon after the take-off, but he skilfully mastered the situation and courageously carried on to the target to drop his bomb load. I can assure you that we all feel the loss of ‘Don’ very deeply.”
