By Gustavo and Clara Corujo

On July 6th, friends and members of 434 Wing Royal Canadian Air Force Association gathered to celebrate Tom Vance’s 100th birthday.

Vance, the last of the 411 squadron Spitfire pilots from WWII was born in Ottawa, Ontario, on July 26, 1922. Vance joined the RCAF on March 2, 1942.

By the end of the war, Vance was attached to 414 Squadron RCAF in Dunsford, England. He took his last flight as a fighter pilot in the Mk IV Spitfire.

Vance’s good friend and fellow aviator Alfred Beam organized the private event where he was treated by a Dr. Dave Martin solo aerobatic display, Pete Spence and Dave Hewitt (former members of the Canadian Harvard Aerobatic Team) and the T28 Trojan formation headed by Alf Beam, Danny Richer and Brent Mahoney.

For more photos of the event visit Gusair’s website.