The year is 1925
and a five-year-old boy skates across a frozen pond. His skates are
too big, but that doesn’t deter him from his task at hand. As
the years pass, a hockey stick is added and the young man becomes a
skilled player.
In 1940 Frank
Hanton competes in the Memorial Cup, as a member of the Kenora Thistles.
Skilled at playing the position of centre, Hanton competes for the cup
commemorating the sacrifices and losses of the First World War.
The Memorial Cup
was to serve as a reminder of the men who fought and died in World War
I. It was presented in 1919 by the OHA (Ontario Hockey Association).
Though the Thistles would not win the cup the experience would remain
in Frank’s memories.
An interesting
twist of fate saw the 19-year-old hockey player join the Second World
War as a pilot in the Royal Canadian Air Force. Ironically, much like
in the game of hockey, Frank would now enter a new field that required
strategic thinking and teamwork in order to defeat a common enemy.
Frank would participate
in the raid on Dieppe and in the D-Day operations. His successful missions
would show him as a leader of fellow flyers. Credited with destroying
54 enemy trains, Frank led the Allied Forces towards victory.
His personal record
includes the total destruction of nine enemy aircraft, and is further
speculated to have destroyed an additional two enemy crafts. Partial
destruction of five more enemy craft is also credited to this skilled
flyer.
In 1944, Frank’s
luck appeared to have run out when he was forced to bail out of his
craft over Normandy. His plane had caught on fire and the only hope
to remain alive was to remove himself from his burning plane. Landing
on a field of rocks, Frank smashed his knee and in addition would require
treatment for the burns caused by the flame engulfing his plane.
Retrieved by Allied
Forces, Frank would be treated for his injuries. Offered an opportunity
to retire from the Air Force and return to Canada to act as an instructor,
Frank would ask to return to active service. After 30 days of recovery
time and healing, Frank would return to flying missions for the RCAF.
As a result of
his actions in the Second World War, Frank would be awarded the Distinguished
Flying Cross, in recognition of his valour, courage and dedication to
duty. The end of the war saw Frank return to the skies, flying in the
service of the Governments of Manitoba and Saskatchewan.
In 1978 Frank
would settle in Regina and direct the Executive Air Services and the
air ambulance services. Frank would now be retired right? Not likely!
Frank continues to fly and plays golf. His circle of friends believe
him to be a gentle fellow and find it difficult to imagine what it would
have been like for the once promising young hockey star.
The Royal Canadian
Military extended an invitation to Frank Hanton to attend the 2000 Memorial
Cup. Startled by the invitation, Frank would return to the playoffs,
sixty years after he had participated in the games himself. Hanton was
to be recognised for his superlative aeronautical skills and his highly
developed skills playing hockey as a centre.
Who knows what
might have happened if Frank didn’t have to go to war, maybe he
would have made it to the National Hockey League. This historian is
thankful that Frank answered the call of duty and served in the RCAF.
