The RAF personnel originally posted to the school travelled from Greenock, Scotland to Reykjavik, Iceland aboard an Irish cattle boat and then sailed to Halifax aboard the S.S. California, a British ocean-liner that had been requisitioned by the military in 1939 and turned into a troopship. It was later sunk by enemy aircraft in 1943. A five day train trip brought them to Calgary.

RCAF De Winton

Like most EFTS's, De Winton began its operations with the Canadian-built Tiger Moth aircraft but during the summer of 1942, the Boeing Stearmans from No. 36 EFTS arrived from Pearce where they had been used at 36 EFTS prior to it being closed.

No. 31 Elementary Flying Training School began operations on June 18th 1941. The airfield had the usual BCATP triangular runways arrangement, two hangars, and the usual barracks, mess halls, and other BCATP base support buildings. Grass runways at Gladys and asphalt runways at Shepard were used as auxiliary landing facilities.

"Watty," as S/L Watts was known, had been a senior instructor at 36 EFTS at Pearce and was appointed the commanding officer. He obviously knew how to run a training establishment. Not only was he responsible for the Commonwealth pupils at No. 31, he apparently was adroit at working with pupils from much farther afield. De Winton became a receiving school for a great number of potential pilots who had managed to escape from their homelands in Nazi-held Europe. As the school's Daily Diary of July 22nd 1942 noted, "This unit now appears to be a veritable international brigade. The different nationalities are Belgian, Dutch, Danish, French, Czechoslovakian and Polish, to say nothing of British and Canadian."

Boeing Stearman at 31 EFTS De Winton.

Training continued at every possible moment of the day and night with the commanding officer exhorting pupils and ground crew alike to do their utmost to pack in all the flying hours possible and as safely as possible. In his letter to base personnel in the Christmas 1942 issue of "The Gremlin," the school's paper, S/L Watts touched on these topics amongst others, writing, "During the past year, pupils from nearly twenty free nations have carried out their training here and today many of them are carrying to Hitler, not a Christmas message, but one which unfortunately he is best able to understand.

"Ground engineers must understand that they will continue to be badgered for aircraft during 1943, exactly as they have been hitherto (by this time I expect they are used to it). For my part, I shall be content with 99 percent serviceability. I expect no department to be perfect.

"The past year has been marred by far too many flying accidents, the vast majority of which were due to deliberate breaches of flying regulations. Even the most dim-witted pupil will realize the orders laid down are for his own safety and he would be the first to complain if a ground engineer carried out an inspection on an aircraft in the same damn fool way in which he, the pupil, attempts to fly it.

"To everybody on the Station, I wish a Happy Christmas and the best of luck for 1943. May it prove to be the best year yet for De Winton."

As winter approached, the agreed upon cold weather modifications for the Stearmans had not arrived. The most critical of these was a canopy for the instructor and student. At No. 32 EFTS (Penhold), Archie Pennies' course #64 was the last to train in the open cockpit Stearmans there. To do so, the airmen were issued with leather face masks to prevent freezing their skin.

With the full onset of winter, the lack of a canopy on the Stearmans became a problem that could not be solved and during November, these "Lend-Lease" aircraft were returned to the United States. In early 1943, the Stearmans at 31 EFTS were replaced by Fairchild Cornells.

The school closed on 25 September 1944, as did RCAF Detachments Gladys and Shepard.

Following the closure of the station, one or perhaps both of the former 31 EFTS De Winton hangars were taken down and re-assembled in downtown Calgary, serving as the transit system's 'bus-barns' until 1988.

RAF De Winton was part of a vast Allied undertaking known as the British Commonwealth Air Training Plan (BCATP). Canada acted as host nation for the training of young men who came from the partner nations of Great Britain, Australia, New Zealand and, of course, Canada. The Plan was the most expensive project ever undertaken by the Canadian Government to that time and served as one of Canada's major contributions to victory over the Axis nations.

Across Canada, approximately 110 schools were established for the training of pilots, navigators, bomb aimers, radio operators, gunners and flight engineers, in addition to schools for ground crew trades, cooking and administration. Included in this tally were 30 elementary flying training schools, six of which were transferred directly from England complete with administrative staff, flying instructors and a first draft of pupils. RAF De Winton was one of these six schools.

Lots of programs were in place to ensure high morale. Messes for officers, sergeants and other ranks were active. The YMCA worked on nearly all BCATP bases running sports programs, operating canteens and organizing dances and other social events. Serious efforts were made to ensure that feminine company was included at base dances. In the case of De Winton, young ladies from Calgary were brought to the base by bus and returned home directly afterward. But women also served on the bases as members of ground crew and in administrative support roles. An entry in the Ed Winton's Daily Diary of July 17, 1942 spoke of certain concerns about having such folk involved in the operations of a military airbase. "Although so far there have been no complications through the presence of female employees on the unit, an order has been issued to the effect that service personnel are not to fraternize with them or speak to them other than in the normal course of duty within the bounds of the camp. This seems to be a fairly obvious precaution."

The administrative staff, instructors and the commanding officer in particular, were key players in seeing that success was achieved. For most of its three and a half years of existence, Squadron Leader Ron Watts, who learned to fly with the RAF in Egypt in 1928, commanded De Winton. For several years prior to the war, Watts flew for a charter company in London but rejoined the RAF shortly after war was declared. Beyond the age of active aircrew, he was assigned to aircrew training, coming to Canada as chief flying instructor with the original RAF EFTS that had formed at Pearce, Alberta.

"Watty" obviously knew how to run a training establishment. Not only was he responsible for the Commonwealth pupils on base, he apparently was adroit at working with pupils from much farther afield. De Winton became a receiving school for a great number of young airmen-to-be who had managed to escape from their homelands in Nazi-held Europe. As the Daily Diary of July 22, 1942 noted, "This unit now appears to be a veritable international brigade. The different nationalities are Belgium, Dutch, Danish, French, Czechoslovakian and Polish, to say nothing of British and Canadian." An entry on August 24 commented on a flying accident but also on the roots of a certain pilot cadet. "LAC Lohar, on an authorized flight, attempted to make a landing downwind on a ploughed field. The aircraft was a virtual write-off and LAC Lohar received injuries that proved to be more serious than was at first thought. He is now sitting up, however, encased in some form of plaster of Paris and can even walk quite well. It is believed the accident was contributed to by his inexperience. The pupil comes from Mauritius and visitors to Colonel Belcher Hospital in Calgary seem to be quite amazed that a colored boy can talk so intelligently and with an educated accent. This unit is certainly a veritable foreign legion and life is never dull." Another entry on September 13, 1942 commented on the arrival of a certain lieutenant of the Free French forces. "Lt Maurice Jaquelin, Free French untrained pilot, has reported for training. He has been in the French diplomatic service in Honolulu and is possessed not only of the diplomat's well-known charm but also of the typical diplomat's wardrobe, fully stocked and supremely immaculate. It is the despair of every poverty stricken Canadian and Englishman in the mess by who it has been fingered with awe not unmixed with envy."

Despite the pressures of training, there were times when the base appeared nearly deserted. The July 5, 1943 daily diary entry explains one such occasion. "Peace descended upon De Winton. No roaring motors rent the air today with their full-throated song. No panoply of war disturbed the drowsy summer air. Has De Winton made a separate peace with the swastika-ed villains beyond the sea? Nay, indeed. Today is the wild west's big day and warriors from all around, from aerodromes and Indian reserves, from barracks and camps, assemble in the friendly foothills city (for the Calgary Stampede)." The station entered a float in the Stampede parade bearing the motto "We teach the world to fly" and displaying names of twenty countries represented at De Winton.

The month of August 1944 saw the school winding down. Night flying ended on the evening of August 4. "There will be no night flying after tonight and it will indeed be strange to experience a night free from the murmur of the Cornell (training aircraft) speeding through the night though one wonders whether our cadets would entirely approve of the application of the words 'murmur' and 'speed' to the Cornell." The officers held their farewell dance on August 12. Most would be repatriated to Great Britain by way of No 31 Personnel Depot at Moncton, New Brunswick. "The mess had been ingeniously camouflaged to resemble an underground station in London. The good old London Transport red circle with destinations such as Knightsbridge, Lester Square and slogans such as 'Bass Builds Better Men' and 'What We Want is Wattney's,' all familiar to anyone who has known London's maze of underground railways, were much in evidence and everyone had a very good time."