On the night of 12–13 June 1944, a four-engine Halifax bomber from 434 “Bluenose” Squadron of the Royal Canadian Air Force (RCAF) was on a mission heading to Arras when the aircraft was intercepted by a LUFWAFFE night fighter. After a brief dogfight, the Canadian plane was damaged and caught fire. Flight Lieutenant Dorcas “Dorc” H. Crawford, wireless operator / air gunner, managed to extricate himself from the plane before it blew up. The wreckage was strewn over several properties at the corner of Jean-Jaurès and Marcel-Sembat streets, in Givenchy-en-Gohelle.

Six Canadian aviators died : Wing Commander Christopher “Chris” S. Bartlett, Royal Air Force pilot and squadron commander ; Pilot Officer Charles “Charlie” H. Kyle, Flight Engineer ; Flying Officer Roger G. Kelso, RCAF navigator ; Flying Officer James “Jim” R. Alexander, RCAF bombardier ; Flying Officer Robert “Bob” B. Learn, RCAF air gunner ; and Pilot Officer Richard “Dick” E. J. Campbell, RCAF air gunner. Learn and Campbell remain buried in the Givenchy-en-Gohelle cemetery. In the post-war, Bartlett, Kyle, Kelso and Alexander were laid to rest at the Calais Canadian War Cemetery, Leubringhen.

The crash destroyed and damaged neighbouring homes, and the payload of 18 bombs continued to explode hours after the plane came down. Marius Ablin’s family lost their home. A nightmarish scene awaited them as they emerged from their nearby shelter.

Although today evidence of the impact is buried, in the past, families living in the area often found airplane parts in their gardens. In the 1960s, rotting leather gloves were found, bearing witness to the aviators who perished here. The impact on Givenchy-en-Gohelle residents remains undeniable.

The people living in Nord-Pas-de-Calais may have had to endure Allied bombing, but the operations were essential to ensure the success of the Battle of Normandy and the liberation of France. Indeed, the region suffered the worst bombings in all of France. From March to September 1944, 2,369 people perished from bombings in Nord-Pas-de-Calais.

The Second World War is not forgotten, nor are the people who lived through the conflict. France and Canada are bound by their shared values and, especially, by the hardship their people suffered and the friendships they forged. They will not be forgotten.