Lambros Family Commentary inside and for Vol.B

"Dad’s career in the Canadian air force spanned some of the most historic events of the twentieth century. An examination of his career path from early training days until he retired in 1964 shows clearly his aptitude and passion for flying were far above average. Several incidents in his life of flying gave proof to those aptitudes and perhaps the stuff of Hollywood drama. On his first 'solo' cross-country flight in a small Fleet Finch biplane, he was forced by bad weather to force land in a farmers field – no damage to the aircraft whatsoever. Prior to going overseas and barely out of flight school, he was tasked with instructing other students. On one flight their Yale trainer was hit from below and behind in midair by another aircraft. His student, paralyzed with fear, refused to abandon the aircraft. With elevator and aileron cables cut and using only trim controls and throttle adjustments, he was able to get the plane almost onto the ground before a wing dipped and it cartwheeled. Both occupants survived. Subsequent investigation revealed that the propeller of the other aircraft had also sliced into Dads parachute which he was sitting on – and he would certainly have died if he had abandoned the aircraft which he would have done if the student had exited. Overseas he was selected for assignment to low-level recce duties in P-51 Mustangs. Nav and flying skills were extreme as was the danger for the elite pilots selected for this role. On one mission out of England over occupied France his aircraft -at high speed and low level -was flipped upside down by a flak explosion under his wing. His wingman thought he had hit the ground and back at base declared him lost. He recovered however and joined them for a beer at the mess tent where they were toasting their comrade who they thought was dead. On a mission, after D Day he turned his Mustang back into heavy flak curious as to why he was suddenly under such heavy fire. Spotting vehicles he made several low passes taking pictures and avoiding furious a.a. fire. The photos revealed an entire Panzer division, hidden in the trees. A whole squadron of Typhoons was dispatched and the regiment was attacked all afternoon. It was completely wiped out. How many allied soldiers would have lost their lives fighting those Panzers? Postwar on mark six Canadair F-86 Sabres, in cold war Europe- Canada’s air force was NATO’s best. On one trip he lost his engine (oil pump failure) about fifty miles from base in Europe with about twenty thousand feet of cloud below him. He navigated back to Marville base. He maintained electrical power because the engine was windmilling, powering the generator. He was advised to eject due to low cloud over the base. He decided against this as the area below was populated. In the days before ILS and long before GPS assisted navigation, he homed using radio beacons and broke cloud lined up almost over the button, high and hot, now too low to eject, dropped his gear and got his Sabre stopped safely on the runway. Extremely exceptional airmanship in a hair-raising dangerous situation. His devotion to his life as a pilot -and what we now recognise as PTSD - took a toll on our family life in the years of the 1950’s and 1960’s, but he settled down many years later and became a loving husband and father and an exceptional immigration officer –assisting many new Greek immigrants to settle in Canada."

Peter & Zoe Lambros

"A lot has been documented about my father’s military life. I’d like to express a few thoughts about life with my father on another level –a more personal one. My personal memories of our parents and family life are positive ones and illicit much joy. The fact that our parents decided to raise two more children several years after their first two, speaks volumes about their growing love and respect for one another. I have three siblings that I care deeply about, two older siblings –a sister, Zoe, born in 1945 and a brother, Peter, born in 1947. My younger sister, Annette and I were born in 1955 and 1959. My first vivid memories of family life (and of my father) were from the later 1950`s while living with the family on the air force base in Marville, France … but perhaps even earlier. I remember sitting in a high chair and dad was feeding me diced fruit (the kind from a can). There were probably diced peaches and pears but they were really stingy with the cherries. In my bowl, there was one cherry that I was looking forward to. I looked away and when I looked back, it was gone. I asked dad "Where’s cherry?" He said, "Beaver ate it!". (My toy beaver which was sitting with me had a little red circle painted on the inside of his open mouth.) Good try dad! Hope you enjoyed the fruit! After Marville, we moved back to Canada (Ottawa, Ontario, Canada), then to Trenton, Ontario where we all lived on the air force base during dad’s last year in the military. That was 1964, the same year that my older sister Zoe, finished high school and moved to Toronto to attend nursing school. Two years later, my brother Pete, finished high school and left for University. Upon dad’s retirement from the military in 1964, our family lived briefly in Oshawa and then in 1966, we settled in Toronto, Ontario where dad worked for "Man Power and Immigration", assisting new immigrants with their move to Canada. I lived in Toronto with mum and dad and my younger sister until 1976, when I moved to New Orleans, Louisiana to work as an R.N. Our parents finally became ‘empty-nesters’ a few years later, when their youngest child, Annette, finished high school and accepted a position as a ballerina with the National Ballet of Canada. In the early 1980’s, our parents bought a home in Kingston, Ontario, as mum received a job promotion, requiring the move there and dad was close to retirement. Dad had come full circle… Kingston was where he had spent his last year of high school and where he was living when he originally signed up for the military at the start of his career. When I headed back to University at Queen’s in Kingston, mum and dad were no longer ‘empty-nesters’ as they kindly welcomed my young son (Jack) and I back home while I completed the degrees. Mom and dad truly loved their years in Kingston. Dad’s brother Andy and his wife Peg, also living in Kingston, spent much time with mum and dad during their retirement years playing bridge and enjoying dinners together. Growing up, I had so many amazing memories –far too many to list!! Instead, I am going to quote a few lines from the eulogy that I wrote for dad when he passed away in 2004.

"Dad, I will always remember the love you had for your family –siblings, nieces, nephews, parents, your wife, children, their spouses and your grandchildren. I will never forget your warmth, kindness and non-judgemental nature. Thanks, dad, for being the best father I could have asked for. Thanks for so many wonderful memories: for help with math homework, for family trips for Sunday morning eggs and bacon, for hearing your voice in the morning saying "Wakey, wakey, rise and shine", for your GREAT sense of humor, for being a sounding board. And for being someone I could ALWAYS count on. I can’t thank you and mum enough for being such a positive and extremely important part of my son’s life as well! I will cherish forever, the unconditional love that you gave to me and I know that I was extremely fortunate to have had you in my life. You are the best!"

In closing, I’d like to add a few lines from a letter written to dad just a few days before he passed. The letter is written by John Haynes (my son Jack’s father) who resided in the United States. Dad was very ill with lung cancer and was unable to attend Jack’s University graduation. John attended the graduation ceremony and then wrote to dad about it and to give thanks to dad for all that he had done to help Jack over the years.

"I wanted to let you know how much I appreciate all of the love, kindness, and generosity you and Pat have shown Jack, especially in his formative years. Because of the distance that divided us, I was not able to be the father I wanted to be for Jack. You were the surrogate father on whom he could depend and from whom he learned; far beyond the usual role of a grandfather. Your values contributed greatly to molding his character. He too is kind, generous, compassionate, and has a wonderful sense of humor. I could not have picked a better role model if I’d tried. Both Jack and I are fortunate in that regard and for that, I will always be most grateful. Yours very truly, John".

Sadly, dad passed away a few days before the letter arrived by mail. He would have been truly touched."

Kim Haynes Lambros

"Young Ted wanted to fly. The Second World War gave him a chance he likely would not have had in peacetime. It gave him lifelong friends and it took them away. He loved flying so much that he lost the fight within himself to follow the safe career on the ground that might have meant a more secure living for his family when the chance came to re-enlist in the 1950s. I say “might” because in this world no career path leads to a guaranteed secure future. One has to be ready to adapt and Ted gave that ability to his family. The pull of flying was irresistible to Ted. As he himself told me, “I would hate to tell some of these friends of mine that I don’t remember a time that I wasn’t happy flying. I had ground problems, but once I was in the aircraft all that was forgotten. If you are going to fly, fly single engine.” He wanted to fly so badly that even trips in helicopters and four-engine transports were attractive, something few fighter pilots are willing to admit. Yet when the chance to fly came to nothing after his early retirement he pulled himself together and went on with his life. There are many ways to measure the success of a life. One way is to look at the children of a person to see if they have met with success in their lives and assume that the parent had an influence on that success. Another is to look for tangible signs of achievement in a military career. Decorations are some of those signs. Ted knows in his own mind that he did the job he needed to be done while he was in the air force. He could not win medals for shooting down enemy aircraft as the orders were for the reconnaissance pilots to bring home their intelligence and their photographs and not risk their lives and their aircraft. He was no Billy Bishop or Buzz Beurling meeting the enemy fighter pilot on equal terms. He could not defend his fellow pilots as their most frequent threat came, not from enemy aircraft, but anti-aircraft guns firing from the ground. In these circumstances is it difficult to risk your life to take a photograph in the way that a fighter pilot or bomber pilot can risk his to destroy a valuable target as Lieutenant Robert Gray did in the closing days of the war in the Pacific to win the Victoria Cross. It is hard to say after almost 60 years whether a specific event should have won for 'Dan' the Distinguished Flying Cross. 'Dan' certainly does not claim that the events of August 2 and 4, 1944 should have. In a very subtle way, his accomplishments have been acknowledged by his peers He and his Mustang photo reconnaissance aircraft have been painted twice by Michael Martchenko in scenes based on his Second World War experience. People in the know suggested him as a subject to Martchenko. The images have been offered for sale to enthusiasts in catalogs containing similar images of Canada’s aviation greats, like Billy Bishop. Ted thinks he is a pretty good company and happily accepts the compliment."

Kevin Shackleton (Canadian Military Author)

"Thank you, Dimitris, from all my siblings for your dedication and all your work in documenting the war efforts of our Greek ancestry fathers - they would be proud that they have not been forgotten. Also for the pleasure of your company tonight at the very excellent restaurant in downtown Athens!!" 

Zoe Lambros