"Molly" Small, as he was known, had joined the RCAF in 1928 as an Aircraft Mechanic, and later qualified as a Sergeant Pilot. He left the service in 1937 to fly commercially, but re enlisted as a Pilot Officer when war broke out in Sept 1939.
Small first worked as a flying instructor and was later posted to Ferry Command where he made a number of Catalina Flying Boat deliveries from North America to England. Some of these flights took over 24 hours. He was next employed in survey work searching for suitable airport locations in Labrador and the NWT. For his dedication in these activities he was awarded the Air Force Cross.
Small was then posted to Eastern Air Command (EAC) and quickly became recognized for his resource fullness and innovative ideas in anti submarine warfare. During the spring of 1942 he made several unsuccessful attacks on submarines, but on 31 Jul. 1942, while flying a Hudson out of Yarmouth, he made a successful attack and sank U754 near Sable Island. This was the first confirmed "kill" for EAC and he was decorated with the Distinguished Flying Cross.
Small arrived at Gander on 4 Jan 1943 in a Hudson aircraft , accompanied by an experienced Canso crew from 167 Sqn in Yarmouth. They immediately began to prepare for an operational patrol which would take him far offshore and be an endurance demonstration. Small felt the 5 Sqn's aircraft were tail heavy and removed some excess equipment and shifted weight forward in one of the Sqn's aircraft, believing these measures would improve the aircraft trim and increase its's endurance.
Before dawn on Jan 6th, Small along with 2nd Pilot Tingle; Navigator Hudson; Wireless Air Gunners Mangan and White; and Engineers Banning and Wilson boarded Canso 9837. It was loaded with fuel, ammunition and depth charges to within a few pounds of its maximum allowable 34,000 lb take-off weight.
All systems were reported serviceable and at 6.45 AM the heavily laden aircraft lumbered into the air and commenced to climb. As they crossed Gander Lake they experienced the same severe turbulence reported by another aircraft that had left a little earlier. The up and down drought were so severe as to cause changes in altitude as much as 300 feet in either direction.
Shortly after passing over the Lake, Sgt Wilson, heard Small ask the Navigator for his course, and as they started to turn Wilson felt the aircraft fall very fast, with a tilt and a slide to starboard and then it started to clip the tops of trees in rising ground.
The aircraft cut a swath as it plowed through the trees for about 200 feet, at a flat angle of approach before the wings were ripped off. The hull and engines continued another 300 feet, then turned over and caught fire. F/Sgt Benning, the flight engineer dropped out of his seat in the "tower" and fell to the ground, while Wilson who had been in the "fitters" seat, below him, was thrown clear of the wreckage.
Benning's ribs were broken and Wilson had lacerations to his head and face and both were thoroughly shook up. They looked for other survivors but found no sign of life in or around the burning wreckage, and it was obvious the other crew members had been killed on impact. After daybreak they searched and found an emergency ration kit, two personnel kits and two dinghies. The area was covered in deep snow and they did'nt know how far they were from the Lake so they decided to make a lean-to from the salvaged items and wait for rescue.
During that day and the following night, several aircraft, including Trans Canada Airlines,flew over them and each time they fired a distress flare but but it didn't attract attention. The next day they realized there would be no quick rescue and decided to try and make their own way to the Lake. It was heavy going and they didn't reach the lake until late that evening.
They followed the shoreline to a point opposite the US Army wharf and lit a fire and waited. Later that night they saw the lights of a car coming down the road to the wharf and realizing this might be their salvation they fired off a flare. Shortly after this an aircraft took off from the airport and as it circled their position they fired another flare. A boat soon came over and picked them and they were taken to the RCAF hospital and treated for their injuries.
Meanwhile back at Gander the #5 Sqn Daily Diary for 7 Jan 1943 had the following entry
S/L Small has not returned from patrol and great anxiety is felt. It was his intention to go some 600 to 700 miles to sea and it is felt he had now run out of gas short of the airport. 3 Canso and a Flying Fortress from Ferry Command are out, also aircraft from Torbay, Goose Bay and Yarmouth.
A ground party reached the wreckage the next day and the bodies were recovered. When found, Small was still clutching the broken ring of the control column.
A Board of Inquiry investigated the accident but could not establish an exact cause of the accident. Small's log book showed that all of his flying in the past seven months had been on Hudson aircraft and he had not flown over Gander or flown a Canso in that time period. They concluded that Small might have been momentarily concentrating on his compass and not on his other flying instruments and so commenced a partial stall.
Air Commodore FV Heakes the Commander of 1 Grp in St John's added the final comment.
In my opinion the accident was due to the pilot encountering a severe down draft in a heavily loaded condition, at the moment of commencing a turn on course, possibly in association with lack of immediate experience on this type from Gander Airport.
An official who reviewed the file at Air Force HQ noted that Banning and Wilson were worthy of commendation for their coolness and fortitude and the manner in which they extricated themselves from a difficult situation hampered by cold and deep snow.