Spitfire pilot 'Flying Fox' remembered for veterans' work

Canadian Second World War hero Charley Fox's notoriety may have stemmed from wounding one of the biggest names in the Third Reich, but it was his work paying tribute to fallen comrades after the war that distinguished him as a true hero.

Fox, a Spitfire pilot, died Oct. 18 in a car accident in southern Ontario. He was 88. He is credited with injuring German Field Marshall Erwin Rommel (also known as the "Desert Fox") after hitting the officer's car during an air attack in 1944, a fact only verified in the past few years by a Canadian historian.

A native of Guelph, Ont., Fox spent the first years of the war as an instructor in nearby Dunnville, as well as in Bagotville, Que. In 1944, he began his tour of duty in Europe with the 412 Squadron.

His specialty was ground attack, and he personally destroyed or damaged 22 locomotives and 34 enemy vehicles over the course of the war. He made his most famous hit, however, just a month after the Allies landed in Normandy on D-Day.

Steve Pitt, author of Day of the Flying Fox, The True Story of World War II Pilot Charley Fox, recalls:

"He spotted a staff car, but flew by, pretending he didn't see it. He was like a hunter — he didn't want to spook it. Then he signalled to his wingman that they would go after it. As soon as they were over the horizon, they dropped down to the deck and came in from behind.

"He could see a German staff officer in the back, so he knew it was a biggie. He got in close, but the Germans didn't know he was there until he opened fire. It was one quick spurt; the car went off the road and hit a tree."

It wasn't until Fox landed that he learned Rommel's car had been hit. In his log book, he recorded the hit with the words "One staff car destroyed. Rommel?"

Knowledge came with burden

Initially, the Americans claimed the attack as theirs, but then it was credited to a South African pilot. Fox thought nothing more of it until 60 years later, when Quebec historian Michel Lavigne calculated the time of the hit, taking into account the time difference between Germany and England, and Fox received the credit.

Rommel was injured and his ability to return to active duty was affected by it.

Pitt says knowledge of the hit came with some burden for Fox. "He remembered that Rommel had been involved in a plot against Hitler, and he wondered if perhaps he'd changed the course of history. He rationalized it, though, by saying the 'what-ifs' of war don't actually count. You have to look at what actually happened."

In addition to the Rommel incident, Fox flew operational trips over Normandy on D-Day and took part in the Battle of Arnheim, immortalized in A Bridge Too Far about the Allies' unsuccessful push into the Netherlands. He also was awarded the Distinguished Flying Cross twice.

After the war, Fox returned to Canada to work in a large shoe- and slipper-manufacturing firm, married and had three children. But it was words the mother of a friend who disappeared during the war that haunted him. Pitt says, "She recognized him and started beating on his chest. 'Why did you come back and not my son?'"

It was a question that haunted Fox for years and was the subject of an autobiography he was working on when he died. It also became a driving force in his later years, compelling him to visit schools to educate children about the war and supporting various commemorative events for Second World War veterans.

His son Jim Fox says, "For the last 10 or 12 years of his life, his whole personal being developed out of 'why not me?' That answer came to him more when he started talking openly about his experiences."

Bigger contribution after the war

Charley Fox established the Torch Bearers, a non-profit organization that educated young people about the military's exploits. In addition to that, he was active in trying to gain more recognition for Polish war veterans who he felt had not been properly acknowledged for their part in the Second World War.

He also lobbied for improved benefits for veterans who served in Canada during wartime, as well as those who were prisoners of war.

Fox's big project was to take 5,000 schoolchildren to the Netherlands in 2010 for the 65th anniversary of the liberation of the Netherlands by the Canadian army.

"Some call him a war hero, and he made a significant contribution during the war," says his son, Jim Fox, "but he was a hero for what he has done in the past 10 years. Hopefully, his legacy will be that he raised the profile of veterans. Perhaps someone will be able to pick up the torch and continue his work."

Charley Fox served as honorary colonel of 412 Squadron, a title he had held for the past four years. On Sunday, Nov. 2, a special service was held for him at the hangar in Ottawa where the squadron is located.  

Charley Fox was wearing his uniform when he died. He had just spoken to some young aviation enthusiasts at the Canadian Harvard Aircraft Association in Tillsonburg, Ont., and was gearing up for this year's Remembrance Day — a hero to the end.