Alberta Second World War veteran dies at 99
Posted March 11, 2019 10:32 am.
This article is more than 5 years old.
CALGARY (660 NEWS) – He was shot down twice over Europe during the Second World War and shared his story of survival near the end of his life.
Typhoon fighter pilot Jack Henry Hilton of Airdrie has passed away at the age of 99.
The #RCAF sends condolences to the family of 99-year old Jack Hilton, Second World War Typhoon pilot and author of “The Saga of a Canadian Typhoon Fighter Pilot” who passed away on March 7.#RememberThem pic.twitter.com/gp15dEQj3C
— Royal Canadian Air Force (@RCAF_ARC) March 9, 2019
Hilton chronicled his time in the war in the book ‘The Saga of a Canadian Typhoon Fighter Pilot: Jack Hilton’, released in 2015.
Not long after releasing the book, Hilton spoke about his time in the Air Force, when he was just a teenager.
“Nineteen years old from Toronto, never been away from home. Then they shipped me out to Macleod, 3,000 miles from home.”
Hilton said the memories of his time in the war still lingered long after it ended.
“I still get flashbacks, I still get memories, I still get nightmares if you want to call them. I’m still going through the phase and you can’t get rid of it. I tried to forget it, but it doesn’t work.”
LISTEN: Second World War veteran finally publishes his story
In 2015, Hilton was awarded the Legion of Honour, the highest military award from France for Hilton’s efforts during the country’s liberation from Nazis.
Stories on Hilton’s journey in the Second World War can be found online as part of the Memory Project.
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