Impact
Winston
Churchill once described the British Commonwealth Air Training
Plan (BCATP) as "one of the major factors, and possibly
the decisive factor in the war". It is difficult to gauge
the impact of the BCATP on the events of World War II, however,
and the eventual Allied victory. Almost half of all Commonwealth
air crew spent part of their training in the BCATP; the
Plan graduated a total of 131,553 aircrew over the course
of the war. One third of the sorties conducted by the
Royal Air Force’s
Bomber Command, which helped loosen Hitler’s grip on Europe,
were conducted by those trained through the BCATP. Other
graduates protected the lifeline over the Atlantic, which
sustained Britain throughout the war. The Plan undoubtedly
contributed
in countless ways to the war effort. Many died for it; over
17,000 aircrew from the Royal Canadian Air Force (RCAF) alone
were killed, and almost 900 recruits died during
training.
While
many of the training sites were quickly abandoned and forgotten,
or put to other, non-military uses, the BCATP nevertheless
had lasting influence in Canada. The Plan served to
strengthen Canada’s status as a sovereign nation. It was
a responsibility of an unprecedented level, requiring a
great organizational and logistical capacity, and costing
over $2.2 billion, with Canada’s share accounting for 72
percent of the cost. It allowed for the development of a stronger,
permanent, national Royal Canadian Air Force.
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