Lieutenant-General Lieutenant general (Lt Gen, LTG and similar) is a military rank used in many countries. The rank traces its origins to the Middle Ages, where the title of lieutenant general was held by the second-in-command on the battlefield, who was normall ...

Donald Currie Laubman, (16 October 1921 – 20 June 2018) was a Second World War Canadian

fighter pilot A fighter pilot or combat pilot is a Military aviation, military aviator trained to engage in air-to-air combat, Air-to-ground weaponry, air-to-ground combat and sometimes Electronic-warfare aircraft, electronic warfare while in the cockpit of ...

and

flying ace A flying ace, fighter ace or air ace is a military aviation, military aviator credited with shooting down a certain minimum number of enemy aircraft during aerial combat; the exact number of aerial victories required to officially qualify as an ...

. He remained in the Canadian armed services after the war rising to the rank of Lieutenant-General.

Biography

Laubman was born in

Provost, Alberta Provost () is a town in central Alberta, Canada. It is located at the junction of Highway 13 and Highway 899, west of the Alberta-Saskatchewan border. History The town was originally named "Lakeview" but renamed by the Canadian Pacific Ra ...

, on 16 October 1921. He enlisted in the

Royal Canadian Air Force The Royal Canadian Air Force (RCAF; ) is the air and space force of Canada. Its role is to "provide the Canadian Forces with relevant, responsive and effective airpower". The RCAF is one of three environmental commands within the unified Can ...

(RCAF) in September 1940, and completed his pilot training in

Calgary Calgary () is a major city in the Canadian province of Alberta. As of 2021, the city proper had a population of 1,306,784 and a metropolitan population of 1,481,806 making it the third-largest city and fifth-largest metropolitan area in C ...

at No 3 Service Flying Training School (SFTS). Rated above average as a pilot, he then served as an instructor at No 31 Elementary Flying Training School (EFTS) at

De Winton De Winton & Co (1854–1901) were engineers in Caernarfon, Wales. They built, amongst other things, vertical boilered narrow gauge locomotives for use in Welsh slate mines and other industrial settings. At least six De Winton locomotives have ...

. In September 1942 he was commissioned and served with No. 133 Squadron, RCAF on the Canadian west coast until May 1943.

Service career

In September 1942 he was commissioned and served with No. 133 Squadron, at Boundary Bay,

British Columbia British Columbia is the westernmost Provinces and territories of Canada, province of Canada. Situated in the Pacific Northwest between the Pacific Ocean and the Rocky Mountains, the province has a diverse geography, with rugged landscapes that ...

, Canada until May 1943. In August 1943 he went overseas to

RAF Redhill Redhill Aerodrome is an operational general aviation aerodrome located south-east of Redhill, Surrey, England, in green belt land. It also serves as an important reliever airport for Gatwick airport. Redhill Aerodrome has a CAA Ordinary Li ...

in the

United Kingdom The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland, commonly known as the United Kingdom (UK) or Britain, is a country in Northwestern Europe, off the coast of European mainland, the continental mainland. It comprises England, Scotlan ...

and then posted to No. 412 Squadron RAF, 126 Wing (83 Group, 2nd Tactical Air Force). In the late spring and early summer of 1944 Flight Lieutenant Laubman and 412 Squadron were based in

Tangmere Tangmere is a village, civil parish, and electoral ward in the Chichester District of West Sussex, England. Located three miles (5 km) north east of Chichester, it is twinned with Hermanville-sur-Mer in Lower Normandy, France. The pari ...

West Sussex West Sussex is a Ceremonial counties of England, ceremonial county in South East England. It is bordered by Surrey to the north, East Sussex to the east, the English Channel to the south, and Hampshire to the west. The largest settlement is Cr ...

, and flew fighter operations over occupied Europe. After witnessing an impassioned speech given by General

Dwight D. Eisenhower Dwight David "Ike" Eisenhower (born David Dwight Eisenhower; October 14, 1890 – March 28, 1969) was the 34th president of the United States, serving from 1953 to 1961. During World War II, he was Supreme Commander of the Allied Expeditionar ...

, 412 crossed the

English Channel The English Channel, also known as the Channel, is an arm of the Atlantic Ocean that separates Southern England from northern France. It links to the southern part of the North Sea by the Strait of Dover at its northeastern end. It is the busi ...

on 6 June 1944 (D-Day), covering the landings on

Juno Beach Juno and or Juno Beach was one of five beaches of the Allies (World War II), Allied invasion of German occupation of France during World War II, German-occupied France in the Normandy landings on 6 June 1944 during the World War II, Second Wo ...

. From

D-Day The Normandy landings were the landing operations and associated airborne operations on 6 June 1944 of the Allied invasion of Normandy in Operation Overlord during the Second World War. Codenamed Operation Neptune and often referred to as ...

VE Day Victory in Europe Day is the day celebrating the formal acceptance by the Allies of World War II of Germany's unconditional surrender of its armed forces on Tuesday, 8 May 1945; it marked the official surrender of all German military operations ...

, 13 RCAF fighter pilots in service on the continent accounted for more than 120 German aircraft claimed destroyed. The top scorer was

Squadron Leader Squadron leader (Sqn Ldr or S/L) is a senior officer rank used by some air forces, with origins from the Royal Air Force. The rank is used by air forces of many countries that have historical British influence. Squadron leader is immediatel ...

Don Laubman, with 15 victories. On 26 and 27 September Laubman flew four missions and downed seven enemy aircraft; four German

Focke-Wulf Fw 190 The Focke-Wulf Fw 190, nicknamed ''Würger'' (Shrike) is a German single-seat, single-engine fighter aircraft designed by Kurt Tank at Focke-Wulf in the late 1930s and widely used during World War II. Along with its well-known counterpart, the ...

s and three German

Messerschmitt Bf 109 The Messerschmitt Bf 109 is a monoplane fighter aircraft that was designed and initially produced by the Nazi Germany, German aircraft manufacturer Messerschmitt#History, Bayerische Flugzeugwerke (BFW). Together with the Focke-Wulf Fw 190, the ...

s (plus another Bf 109 damaged). This happened in the

Nijmegen Nijmegen ( , ; Nijmeegs: ) is the largest city in the Dutch province of Gelderland and the ninth largest of the Netherlands as a whole. Located on the Waal River close to the German border, Nijmegen is one of the oldest cities in the ...

area (the location of Operation Market-Garden, the airborne operation to capture the Dutch Rhine bridges.) After his tour ended he arrived back in Canada in November 1944. Laubman applied to return to active duty and was assigned command of No. 402 Squadron RAF as a Squadron Leader. When Laubman's Spitfire was downed by the explosion of his strafed target, he became a

prisoner of war A prisoner of war (POW) is a person held captive by a belligerent power during or immediately after an armed conflict. The earliest recorded usage of the phrase "prisoner of war" dates back to 1610. Belligerents hold prisoners of war for a ...

on 14 April 1945.

Tally

Laubman's final count was 15 destroyed, and 3 damaged. 14 of those 15 were between June and October 1944. His decorations include the Distinguished Flying Cross and

Bar Bar or BAR may refer to: Food and drink * Bar (establishment), selling alcoholic beverages * Candy bar ** Chocolate bar * Protein bar Science and technology * Bar (river morphology), a deposit of sediment * Bar (tropical cyclone), a laye ...

as well as the

Canadian Forces' Decoration The Canadian Forces' Decoration (post-nominal letters "CD") is a Canadian award bestowed upon members of the Canadian Armed Forces who have completed twelve years of military service, with certain conditions. By convention, it is also given to t ...

with two Bars. He is the fourth ranking RCAF ace.

Postwar career

He was released from the RCAF in September 1945, but rejoined the RCAF in January 1946. Laubman first served with No. 6 Communications Flight, NWAC. He was a founding member of the Blue Devils aerobatic team and flew with the team from 1949 to 1951. He then commanded No. 416 Squadron from January 1951 to March 1952. He went on to command No. 3 Wing at

Zweibrücken Zweibrücken (; ; , ; literally translated as "Two Bridges") is a town in Rhineland-Palatinate, Germany, on the Schwarzbach (Blies), Schwarzbach River. Name The name ''Zweibrücken'' means 'two bridges'; older forms of the name include Middl ...

from July 1963 to August 1966. In April 1967 he was promoted to

Air Commodore Air commodore (Air Cdre or Air Cmde) is an air officer rank used by some air forces, with origins from the Royal Air Force. The rank is also used by the air forces of many countries which have historical British influence and it is sometimes ...

and he took up command of No. 1 Air Division in July 1969, remaining in the post until April 1970. He was then made Commander of

Canadian Forces Europe Canadian Forces Europe was the Canadian Forces military formation in Europe during the Cold War. The CF assisted other NATO allies in watching the military activities of Warsaw Pact and the Soviet Union. Canadian Forces Europe (CFE) consisted o ...

in April 1970 to August 1971 before becoming Chief of Personnel, CFHQ in May 1972 until his retirement. Upon his retirement he held the rank of

Lieutenant General Lieutenant general (Lt Gen, LTG and similar) is a military rank used in many countries. The rank traces its origins to the Middle Ages, where the title of lieutenant general was held by the second-in-command on the battlefield, who was norma ...

. In 1979, he opened a Canadian Tire store in Red Deer, Alberta, and was very active in community affairs. In 2007, he was awarded the

Alberta Order of Excellence The Alberta Order of Excellence is a civilian honour for merit in the Canadian province of Alberta. Instituted in 1979 when Lieutenant Governor Frank C. Lynch-Staunton granted royal assent to the Alberta Order of Excellence Act, the order is admi ...

for distinguished service as a fighter pilot with the Royal Canadian Air Force and as a central Alberta business and community leader. He died in June 2018 at the age of 96. Two CF-18 Hornet fighters from the RCAF base at Cold Lake, Alberta, performed a flyby at the celebration of life for him and his wife in Red Deer.Sheldon Spackman, "CF-18 Hornet flyby honours decorated Red Deer war vet, community builder Don Laubman, wife Margie," RDNewsNow, July 1, 2018

References

Air Force Association of Canada entry
Retrieved 2 April 2014
The Alberta Order of Excellence
Retrieved 2 April 2014 *Milberry, Larry, ed. ''Sixty Years—The RCAF and CF Air Command 1924–1984''. Toronto: Canav Books, 1984. .

External links

Don Laubman at acesofww2.com
{{DEFAULTSORT:Laubman, Donald 1921 births 2018 deaths Canadian military personnel from Alberta Canadian generals Canadian World War II flying aces Members of the Alberta Order of Excellence Canadian recipients of the Distinguished Flying Cross (United Kingdom) World War II prisoners of war held by Germany