D-Day Profile of Courage: Flying Officer Leonard Ralph Allman
News Article / May 23, 2019
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By Major (retired) William March
June 6, 2019, marks the 75th anniversary of D-Day—the Allied invasion of Normandy. The successful invasion marked the turning point in the Second World War.
Leonard Ralph Allman was born in Toronto on March 10, 1919, one of six children of Ephraim and Annie Allman. The family moved to the United States and eventually settled in Schenectady, New York. However, shortly after Canada entered the war in September 1939, he enlisted in the Royal Canadian Air Force (RCAF) and was trained as an airframe mechanic.
In August 1940 he was stationed at Dunnsville, Ontario, working on Harvard and Yale aircraft belonging to No. 6 Service Flying Training School (SFTS). He and a good friend, almost on a lark, decided to obtain their private pilots licenses. Over the course of the next several months, he spent a fair chunk of his salary as a leading aircraftman (LAC) at nearby Mount Hope, learning to fly on Tiger Moths. It was during flight school that he learned that his brother, Franklin, had been killed while serving with the Royal Canadian Armoured Corps.
Freshly minted private pilot’s license in hand, Allman presented himself to the station commander and requested to be re-mustered to aircrew. After a stint at the Initial Training School in Toronto, he completed his basic flight instruction at No. 10 Elementary Flying Training School at Hamilton and obtained his wings at No. 13 SFTS, St. Hubert, Quebec, on August 28, 1942. After a short stint at No. 31 General Reconnaissance School in Charlottetown, Prince Edward Island, the new pilot was sent to join No. 133 (Fighter) Squadron on the west coast on Hawker Hurricanes.
Less than six months later he transferred to No. 111 (Fighter) Squadron at Patricia Bay, British Columbia—this time on Curtiss P-40 Kittyhawks. While he was with this unit, his squadron commander noted that Allman was “keen to fly and get overseas”. Early in 1944, Allman got his wish as No. 111 Squadron was transferred to England and re-numbered as 440 (Fighter Bomber) Squadron and equipped with Hawker Typhoons.
Although an experienced pilot by this point, Allman had a spot of trouble adjusting to the Typhoon and managed to “prang” one during a move from the airfield at Ayr, Scotland, to the squadron’s new base at Hurn, Dorset. Fortunately, he walked away from the accident with only a few bumps and bruises.
During the spring of 1944, squadrons belonging to 2 Tactical Air Force (2TAF) were preparing to support the D-Day invasion. Allman, with the rest of 440 Squadron, he flew his first combat sortie on March 30; over the next few months they took every opportunity to practice their tactics, engage the enemy and gain experience with their aircraft. Then the long wait was over and, at 6:45 a.m. on Tuesday, June 6, 1944, Typhoons from 440 Squadron took to the air in the first of three combat missions that day.
Operating as “Bombphoons,” equipped with either 225 kilogram (500 pound) or 450 kilogram (1,000 pound) bombs, the Typhoons served as “aerial artillery”, providing accurate air-to-ground support for the amphibious assault. The Allied air forces ruled the air but, while the Luftwaffe threat was negligible, the danger from anti-aircraft fire, or flak, was constant. On the third “op” of the day at approximately 8 p.m., eight 440 Squadron aircraft were tasked to strike motor transport south of Caen, France. Although the attack was successful, two of the aircraft were hit by flak with one damaged severely enough to head straight for home. Allman volunteered to escort the damaged Typhoon and was last seen heading back to England over the invasion beaches. Although the stricken Typhoon successfully returned to an alternate aerodrome, Allman was not heard from again and was officially listed as missing.
Frantic for news of her husband, Allman’s wife, Regina (Reggie) wrote to the squadron on June 10: “I received a wire the 8th that Len is missing. I can’t begin to tell you how I feel regarding Len’s safety . . . I’m hoping he’s alright and he maybe a prisoner of war. I have a strong feeling that he is alright. But any help you could offer I would be so thankful. Len is a good pilot and said he would always take care of himself. Maybe you are not allowed to give out such information but any little bit would be appreciated.”
Squadron Leader W.H. Pentland, 440 Squadron’s commanding officer, wrote back and offered what solace he could noting that “. . . we all share deeply in your hope and faith that he is alive and well. Your husband was an excellent pilot, and if it were at all possible for him to force land his aircraft I know he would have done so safely. There is also the possibility that he may have bailed out. If either of these circumstances did occur, Len is either endeavouring to make his way back, or else he is in enemy hands.”
Pentland, who would be killed in action on October 7, assured her that “Len was admired and respected by both his fellow pilots and by our groundcrew and his eternal cheerfulness and ready smile could be counted on in difficult times.”
Although he would eventually be listed as “presumed dead”, the mystery of Allman’s disappearance was not solved until March 30, 1946. A report from No. 1 Missing Research and Enquiry Unit, one of several such units tasked with locating the missing after the war, reported that “Whilst sweeping the area of Norrey en Bessin [near Caen] saw the wreckage of Typhoon MN428. The pilot had tried to bail out but most unfortunately his parachute caught on a damaged wing of the plane and he was dragged down with it. The plane fell in the enemy lines and the pilot was originally buried beside the wreckage of his plane.”
Flying Officer Allman was re-buried at the Beny-Sur-Mer Canadian Cemetery. He was 25.