by Bruce Forsyth (www.militarybruce.com), with permission

Originally opened on 1 June 1941 as No. 32 Service Flying Training School. Relief Landing Fields were also constructed near Buttress and Burdick. By the time the school closed 17 October 1944, 1,207 pilots had graduated. RCAF Detachments Buttress and Burdick were abandoned.

Memorial for those who served at No. 32 SFTS.  Another one.

No. 2 Reserve Equipment and Maintenance Unit occupied the aerodrome until it closed in 1947. The aerodrome then became a civilian airport, but the Department of National Defence retained control of the property.

The post-war growth of the RCAF resulted in many WWII stations being re-activated. In July 1952 RCAF Station Moose Jaw re-opened as the new home of No. 2 Flying Training School, which re-located to the station from RCAF Station Gimli.

In 1964, RCAF Station Moose Jaw became the first all-jet training station with the arrival of the Canadian-built CT-114 Tutor jets, an aircraft still flown by 431 Air Demonstration Squadron, “The Sonwbirds”.

As part of unification the station was re-named Canadian Forces Base Moose Jaw.

The end of the Cold War in 1991 placed the future of CFB Moose Jaw in doubt, but the base, re-named 15 Wing Moose Jaw in 1993, did survive. Today, 15 Wing is the home of the NATO Flying Training Centre, established in July 2000, whose mandate is to train pilots not only for Canada but for her NATO allies and friendly, non-NATO countries.

On 27 May 2004, members of the Air Force Association of Canada and 15 Wing unveiled a plaque honouring the men and women who served at No. 32 SFTS.

Source Material: 15 Wing web site – www.moosejaw.dnd.ca.

The following perished while serving or training at 32 SFTS/CFB Moose Jaw/15 Wing: BG Alston, SG Antaya, BR Arnot, HM Boyd, CR Bryers, R Cran, LW Daily, C de Jong, MJ Diss, GW Fulton, RL Hahn, JP Hamilton, TA Heyfron, DH Hook, DWE Jerwood, JW Koroluk, RL Lamont, RF Luneberg, F MacGuire, KJ Maher, SC McCaughey, BAN Mitchell, RH Mullen, RA Murray, JMG Nadon, AJ Naismith, AE Nygaard, RJ Palmer, RW Pardell, RN Perkins, CR Scheldrup, JH Scott, DM Selby, CJF Senécal, WS Thomas, FH Tozer, MJ VandenBos, LB Waterer and VAH Williams.