5

S.C.R. MACKIE.
2. (centre aligned)

On the 1st March, 1942, F/Lt. Mackie had been posted from the Bombing and Gunnery School, to No. 1 Air Navigation School, Rivers, Manitoba, where he was remustered to air navigator. During April, 1942, he proceeded to No. 1 "Y" Depot, Halifax, Nova Scotia, for embarkation to the United Kingdom.

F/Lt. Mackie arrived at No. 3 Personnel Reception Centre, Bournemouth, on the 13th May, 1942, and was posted to No. 2 (Observer) Advanced Flying Unit, Millom, Cumberland, on the 15th June. He proceeded to No. 11 Operational Training Unit, Bassingbourn, Hertfordshire, on the 18th August, where he crewed up and completed his training on Wellington bomber aircraft. In February, 1943, he proceed to No. 1652 Conversion Unit, Marston Moor, Yorkshire, for conversion to Halifax bomber aircraft, and after completing the course was posted late in February to No. 78 Squadron, Linton-on-Ouse, Yorkshire. With this squadron, as a member of the crew of a Halifax bomber, he took part in 5 operational sorties, the targets being Duisberg, Berlin, Essen, and Kiel, in Germany and St. Nazaire, in Occupied France. F/Lt. Mackie was then posted on the 20th April, 1943, to No. 35 Squadron of the Pathfinder Force stationed at Graveley, Huntingdonshire. With this squadron he took part in a further 32 operational flights, the targets including Essen, Dortmund (2), Duisberg, Bochum, Munster, Cologne, Krefeld, Wuppertal, Aachen, Hamburg (3), Homburg, Mannheim (2), Nurnberg (2), Berlin (3), Munchen-Gladbach, Bremen, Lepzig, and Frankfurt, in Germany; Turin (2), in Italy, and MonteBeliard and Valenoiennes, in Occupied France.

In October, 1943, F/Lt. Mackie was awarded the Distinguished Flying Cross, the citation reading as follows:

"One night in September, 1943, Pilot Officer Mackie was navigator of an aircraft detailed to attack Mannheim. The operation demanded a high degree of skill and the success achieved reflects the greatest credit on the efforts of this member of the crew, who executed the task faultlessly. He had always taken part in many previous operations, and has always displayed courage, determination and devotion to duty of high order".