George Beurling

George Beurling was born on December 6, 1921, in Verdun, a small Canadian town near Montreal, Quebec. His parents were respectable citizens with conventional hopes for their son; his father envisioned him in commerce, while his mother saw him as a doctor. However, George, like many boys, was drawn to the sky from an early age.

At nine years old, he first flew as a passenger and thereafter spent all his free time at the La Salle airfield. George sometimes skipped school to watch airplanes take off. His reading was exclusively aviation-related, with a particular interest in the combat use of aircraft during World War I.

After obtaining his pilot’s license, George traveled west to Vancouver, hoping to get a commercial license. His goal was to join the American Volunteer Corps in China, which was fighting against the Japanese forces.

While attempting to join the American Volunteer Corps, Beurling illegally crossed the border, was apprehended, and spent time in jail before being deported back to Canada. By then, World War II had broken out, and he was among the first to report to a recruitment center but was rejected. George then decided to join the Finnish Air Force, which was fighting against the Red Army, submitting a request to the Finnish embassy. Because Beurling was only 18, the Finns sought parental consent, which was naturally denied, ending this Finnish adventure abruptly. However, these setbacks did not deter his ambition to become a military pilot.

Ascent in the RAF

Gathering all his documents, George crossed the Atlantic, and this time he was promptly accepted into the Royal Air Force (RAF). Initially, Beurling was enrolled in a standard flying school, but after testing revealed his piloting skills, he was sent to a specialized school to master the Spitfire fighter. His instructor was Ginger Lacey, a renowned ace with 30 victories, famous for shooting down the He 111 that bombed Buckingham Palace.

Ginger Lacey offered him a position as an instructor at the school, which would have automatically granted him an officer’s rank. However, George, dreaming of future battles, indignantly refused, after which he was assigned as a regular pilot to the 403rd Fighter Squadron.

Soon, Beurling was transferred to the 41st Squadron, where command issues quickly resurfaced. Even his first victory, achieved on May 1st, did not improve his relationship with his superiors. The rebellious Canadian was ultimately sent “out of sight” to the Mediterranean fortress of Malta.

The “Falcon of Malta”

On June 9, 1942, 32 Spitfire Vs took off from the deck of the British aircraft carrier HMS Eagle, one of which was piloted by Sergeant Beurling. The pre-flight briefing was far from comprehensive; pilots were only given an approximate course and distance to the island.

George arrived in Malta at the height of the battle for the island. Day and night, the Luftwaffe and Regia Aeronautica attempted to suppress the island’s aerial defenses and break the resistance of its defenders. On June 12, 1942, Beurling flew his first sortie as part of a four-Spitfire section to intercept five Bf 109s. He returned from combat with one “probable” victory, as no one saw the German aircraft he shot down actually crash.

Beurling’s last battle over Malta was his most thrilling. He led eight Spitfires to intercept an equal number of Ju 88s, which were protected by about 50 fighters. Ordering five of his aircraft to engage the enemy fighters, he and two wingmen attacked the bomber formation, immediately shooting down one Ju 88. However, the Junkers’ crew retaliated, and a bullet from German gunners struck his arm. Exiting the attack, George fired upon a Bf 109 that appeared before him, sending it down, but a pair of “Messers” approaching from below riddled the tail and wings of his Spitfire.

Diving almost to the water, George managed to shake off the Germans pursuing him. As he pulled out of the dive, he spotted another Bf 109 below him and shot it down. Now, however, several German fighters began raking his aircraft with lead. Shrapnel from a shell that exploded in the cockpit wounded his leg, while other 20mm “gifts” destroyed his controls and set the engine on fire.

Turning towards Malta, George decided to press on as long as possible, but the “Messers” were not about to let such prey escape. Moments later, at about 1,000 feet (300 m), Beurling bailed out of his disintegrating fighter. He still had enough strength and time to deploy his parachute and discard his boots in the air. Fortunately, his survival gear remained intact; the life vest and dinghy inflated without issue. The last thing George remembered was managing to climb into his boat.

He was found some time after the battle, floating in a pool of blood in his inflatable dinghy, muttering about the Bible his mother had given him, which he always took on flights. Following the battle on October 14, the Canadian’s tally rose to 29 victories, with an additional nine damaged aircraft.

Post-War Struggles and Tragic End

After his full recovery, Beurling was sent home. As a national hero, he was expected to tour cities and encourage the public to buy war bonds. He proved to be a poor orator and, moreover, longed to fly, growing quietly furious with this assignment. He famously told one ubiquitous reporter:

“If they make me do this again, I’ll tell them all to go to hell, or I’ll take a commission on every bond sold.” After the bond drive saga, George was sent back to England and assigned as an air combat instructor at No. 61 Operational Training Unit (61 OTU). Unfortunately, as brilliant as Beurling was as a combat pilot, he proved to be an inept teacher. He constantly yearned for the front lines, incessantly submitting requests for transfer to an active unit. Command finally relented, and on September 1, 1943, George was transferred back to the 403rd Squadron, where he had begun his combat career in spring 1942. Ultimately, George was honorably discharged and sent home at the very end of 1944. He attempted to join the American Air Force, but without success.

Back home, things were even worse. Commercial airlines universally refused to hire him, and for several years, the recipient of the British Empire’s highest military honor, the Victoria Cross, was forced to earn a living as a street vendor in Montreal.

However, the end of World War II did not bring peace to the planet, and soon a new flashpoint emerged in the Middle East. On one side, the independent state of Israel was formed, and on the other, Egypt, whose leaders immediately vowed to “throw the Jews into the sea.” News of the conflict prompted George to abandon his “business.” He had little money for travel, but the Jewish community of Montreal fully equipped him. In May 1948, he was in Rome, where a semi-legal group of pilots from various countries – including several former Luftwaffe aces – had gathered, intent on joining the nascent Israeli Air Force.

On May 21, George took off from a Roman airfield in an Israeli transport aircraft, a Noorduyn Norseman. During the climb, the engine caught fire, and the plane, having not gained sufficient speed or altitude, crashed onto railroad tracks. No one survived in the burning wreckage, engulfed in a huge pool of gasoline. The circumstances of the crash were rather unclear, and many researchers do not rule out Arab sabotage. However, due to the passage of time, this theory has not received irrefutable proof, though it cannot be disproven either.

Another theory suggests that orthodox Jews staged the accident. This stems from a statement the Canadian made just before departing for Israel: “If the Arabs paid me $1600 (recall that Beurling’s contract with the Israeli government was for $600 a month), I would fight for them.”

George Beurling was buried in Rome the next day with full military honors, attended by a huge crowd who came to pay their last respects to the Canadian pilot.

In his youth and at the beginning of his flying career, he dreamed of fame and public attention, wishing to gain and then solidify his reputation as an ace. Beurling was not an ordinary man. In their memoirs, contemporaries often described him with epithets such as rebellious, irresponsible ace, bloodthirsty, unfriendly, inattentive, impolite…

In many ways, they were right, but George Beurling was, first and foremost, a natural-born pilot, deeply in love with the sky. His 32 victories attest to his significant contribution to the defeat of the Axis air forces in World War II.