FIRST GREEK FLIER IN CANADA

Peter Valachos was born in 1915 in Brantford, Ontario, Canada. He was the son of James Valachos, a pioneer of the local Greeks in Brantford, Ontario, having come to Canada in 1904. The couple also had three daughters,  Evelyn (Coulos),  Lillian (Roda), and Kathleen (Hawken), and two more sons,  William and George.  He established the Olympia Candy, a landmark of this city which up to 1953 was run by his sons and daughters. Two of his sons served with the Canadian Army, Peter with the Air Force and William with the Army. Peter prior to joining the RAF in 1938 he served in the Dufferin Rifles in Canada. Ηe was also a licensed pilot in Canada and the fact that he was Greek gave him relative publicity as can be seen below, in  A Publisher Extra Newspaper dating September 14, 1938:

"From information received from the secretary of the Brant-Norfolk Aero Club, Brantford, Ontario, Canada, we learn that Peter J. Valachos, age 23, is perhaps the only Greek aviator in Canada. He is now in England where he joined the Royal Air Force on July 20th of the present year as an officer in that branch of the British service. The young aviator learned to fly at the Brant-Norfolk Aero Club in Canada. The Brant-Norfolk Aero Club of Canada is justly proud of the achievements of Mr. Valachos and the editor respectfully extends his congratulations to the Club and its enterprising graduate."

Peter was also a very popular character among his colleagues and a newspaper clipping from April 1938 refers to him and his travel to England to join RAF. 

"Peter Valachos, well-known Brantford flyer, was tendered a farewell party last evening in the Coronation Room of the Brant Hotel, prior to his leaving for England, where he hopes to be able to enlist in the Royal Air Force. The dance was sponsored by a large number of his friends and more than 100 were in attendance. 'Pete', as he is popularly known, leaves Brantford on Sunday for New York from where he will sail for England on April 20. He will be accompanied by Major J. J. Hurley, President of the Brant-Norfolk Aero Club, of which Pete is a member, Leonard Baldwin, formerly of this City and now of Kitchener, and Cecil Richardson, a director of the local aero club. The three companions on the trip were among the guests at the dance. During the evening the guest of honor was presented with a gladstone traveling bag by the female members of the party and with a wardrobe trunk by the men's friends of the party. The music for the dance was supplied by Archie Gray and his Orchestra. Pete has a fine flying record at the local Club with more than 70 hours of flying time to his credit. He has his private pilot's license and has passed~three of the four tests for his commerce license. Upon his arrival in England, he intends to make an application to enlist in the R. A. F. and hopes to be accepted."

However, to enlist RAF needed also some recommendations. His old headmaster Dr. A .M Overholt of the Brantford Collegiate Institute and Vocational School strongly recommended Valachos candidature and Pete was one step closer to achieving his goal, something which finally managed.

ENTER ROYAL AIR FORCE (RAF) BOMBER COMMAND

So far we are not aware of his training, however, we do know from photographs that during his operational training he flew the Handley Page H.P.54 Harrow bomber.  He arrived at No.99 Squadron on 11th July 1940 which was the first unit equipped with the Vickers Wellington bomber. As a Flying Officer was later awarded the Distinguished Flying Cross (DFC) for service with 99 Squadron on 11th February 1941 although he had already transferred to No.214 Squadron on 12th December 1940.  Almost immediately retransferred to No.148 Squadron and flew missions against axis targets in Italy and North Africa, from Luca, Malta. His actions in the No.99 Squadron frequently covered North America and Canada newspapers. According to  The Wilkes-Barre Record, Pennsylvania Thursday, October 31, 1940.

"Adventure in plenty has come to Flying Officer Peter Valachos of Brantford, he reveals in letters home. Flying an RAF bomber, on one occasion his gunner became ill. He returned to the base, picked up another gunner, and carried on to drop his eggs on Berlin. Returning from another raid, he was forced đown in a fog and in pitch blackness, landing in rough country. Damage was confined to one wing. We may get reprimanded, but we consider ourselves lucky, he wrote. The next night he was in the air again." 

True in the article above, on 20th November 1940 Valachos and his crew, force landed Wellington R3203 when returning from an operational flight near Jerusalem Farm, Halsham, east of Hull. The aircraft sustained Cat. R(b) damage. The aircraft was returning back to its home base in Newmarket because of an electrical failure. Later that month it was dismantled and removed by road for repair to V.A. Ltd. at Weybridge and the crew escaped injury. Usually, the Canadian pilots and crews lived in houses and motels together and enjoyed the hospitality of their British owners who were very proud of them and their contribution to the war effort. Mrs. Lady Howe was one of those British who opened her house in Cavenham Park, Bury St. Edmunds, Suffolk, and took care of many young Canadians, including Peter. She sent a letter to the Greek Canadian family back in Brantford which was published in an unknown newspaper. From her letter, we are able to get a good look at how these men spend their time between the missions over Axis-held Europe. 

"Peter is a great friend of ours and often comes here with his other friends for tea, dinner and sometimes to spend the night. After dinner, they retire to the billiard room, and there enjoy several games before I send them off to bed early. They enjoy (whenever they can) a good night’s sleep, and it's wonderful what it does for them. I'm pleased to be able to tell you that Peter is fit and well and often is the life of the party. He often tells me how much he adores his job and says he wouldn't trade it for any other. But what I want you especially to know is that Peter has an English home and an English mother until he gets safely back to you again and if I can help him in any other way, please let me know. I'm doing the best I can for your boy. We all feel so tremendously bucked up and full of confidence in a victorious - and we hope an early - peace with honor."