The decision to operate the two CF-104 squadrons to be based at No. 1 Wing, Marville in the photo-reconnaissance role in late 1963 made urgent the requirement to train crews in the new role. No. 441 Squadron was re-activated on 15 September 1963. No recce training had been available at No.6 (ST/R) OTU at Cold lake, so crews awaiting some kind of training program to be implemented, took the opportunity to photograph many of the local European landmarks with the new camera pod that Lockheed Aircraft USA, Computing Devices of Canada and W Vinten Limited of England had designed and delivered. No. 439 Squadron was re-activated on 1 March 1964.
The centreline fuselage pod was constructed of cladded aluminum alloy, was 8 feet long; 15 inches wide; and two feet deep. Photographic equipment built into the pod comprised four Vinten F-95 70mm cameras; two in the side oblique configuration, one facing port and one starboard; one vertical camera and one forward facing camera. Normally, all cameras were fitted with lenses of 3 inch focal length. Pilot-selected shutter speeds available were 4 and 8 frames per second (fps) that represented exposures of 1/1000 and 1/2000 respectively. With an iris control located in the lens barrel, settings of “Bright”, “Hazy” and “Dull” were automatically selected by signal data from a Light Level Monitoring (LLM) system built into the pod. Data recorders built into each of the pod cameras recorded on exposed film the position of the aircraft in East/West and North/South distances from its base as supplied by the aircraft’s PHI-5 navigation system.
During an AFHQ/DADTO team visit to RAF reconnaissance establishments in February 1964, it was discovered that Flight Lieutenant (F/L) NT Funge of the RCAF was completing a three-year exchange tour as a tactical-reconnaissance navigator on Canberra aircraft of No. 58 (PR) Squadron of the RAF, based at Wyton, England. F/L Funge had earlier completed a tour on 408 (R) Squadron at RCAF Rockcliffe on photographic operations, including tactical reconnaissance training using the Vinten F-95 camera system. F/L Funge was offered two choices: to be posted to Cold Lake to instruct crews at the OTU; or proceed immediately to 1 Wing Marville to capture the 439 and 441 crews already serving in 4 ATAF. W/C Buzza of the DADTO team considered it more logical to proceed with the latter option.
F/L Funge arrived in Marville in March, 1964. He was immediately tasked to set up a recce training cell and draw up a training program for the approximately ten pilots that were available at the time. A team of ten photo-interpreters (PI’ s), led by F/L RAG “Duster” Martin, arrived shortly afterward, a Mission Planning section, under Squadron Leader (S/L) Bob Hallowell and a photographic processing flight, staffed by personnel with great experience in reconnaissance photography at Rockcliffe, completed the operational support resources. A USAF pilot, Captain Mike Nicolas, fresh from combat experience in tactical reconnaissance on RF-101 aircraft in the Vietnam area, arrived to assist F/L Funge, the Reconnaissance Ground Training Officer (RGTO), in training the aspiring recce pilots.
Initially, lectures were given on the principal types of targets and their means of recognition. Following this, colour slides of various targets were shown to pilots at their morning briefing for periods of about four seconds (considered to be the time a pilot would be able to see and recognize targets in a low-level pass at 500 knots) so that pilots could hone their visual recce skills.
Several RAF recce bases were visited to glean study material and compare techniques that might be adapted to RCAF use. RAF squadrons employed both Hunter fighters and Canberra bombers on recce operations in 2ATAF. Both of these aircraft were vastly more manoeuvreable than the CF-104. However, the cameras in use were identical and their processing techniques were wholly adaptable to the 1 Wing operation.
Unfortunately, the PI's posted to 1 Wing to interpret the aerial photography had received training in Second Word War techniques of higher-altitude recce. The RGTO was faced with also having to familiarize the team of PI’s with low-level large-scale imagery and targeting. Because their basic PI training had been sound, these interpreters took very little time to adapt. Mobile photographic interpretation vans had been acquired, which allowed PI’s to extract target data from the processed 70mm film right on the flightline in the minimum possible time.
Training proceeded apace, with the pilots of 439 led by S/L Jack Frazer, and those of 441, led by Wing Commander (W/C) Bob Edwards, AFC, showed both enthusiasm and skill at the new role. The poor manoeuvreability of the 104 required an accurate and well thought out run-in to the target. Strip maps produced by the Mission Planning section were the essential tools for finding target locations. The RGTO demonstrated to early pilots that a grease pencil mark could be place on the canopy to show the position of the oblique exposure foreground. This was a technique used effectively by the RAF pilots. Experience taught most recce pilots that the port and oblique cameras yielded the best results for confirmatory visual recce and for the PI’s to use stereoscopic analysis of the imagery.
As training proceeded, F/L Funge produced a comprehensive target recognition and training manual entitled: Aircrew Recce Handbook; a copy of which is now held in the RCAF Memorial Museum library, at Trenton. Visual reconnaissance forms, adapted from both USAF and RAF examples, were utilized to ease the burden of in-flight recording of target data. Since 1 Wing was tasked to respond to “frag” messages from the US Seventh Army, a liaison officer, Captain “Chuck” Summers arrived to assist our relations with our tasking agency. Chuck was later forced to eject from a 104 dual on a training sortie. In July, 1965, it was felt that the requirement for a supernumerary recce training cell had ceased to exist; training having evolved to a stage where the entire operation was self-sustaining and running well. F/L Funge was posted to recce instructional duties at Canadian Joint Air Training Centre (CJATC) at Rivers, Manitoba.
The annual “Royal Flush” recce competition between squadrons/units of 4 ATAF and 2 ATAF provided a valid opportunity to compare the abilities of aircrew, PI’s and photo techs from each base:
"Gradually the skills were honed to an impressive degree. Excellence in recce in those days was measured in terms of success in a multi-national flying competition called “Royal Flush”. It was intensely competitive, with national pride seeming to be at stake, as is usual in such events. The Canadian squadrons’ first attempt at Royal Flush was not a stunning success, but the next was somewhat better. By the spring of 1969 training for that year’s event had reached a fever pitch; everyone, groundcrew and aircrew alike, got into the spirit of the coming competition. Finally on the 20th and 21st May, the Royal Flush took place and the results were incredible; the Canadian squadrons, only a few short years before completely new to the tactical recce business, had come first and second, defeating the best of our NATO allies. In first place was 441 Squadron, with 439 Squadron just a few points behind. To top things off, the best individual score in the meet was posted by a 439 pilot, Captain Scott Clements. It was a remarkable accomplishment all around”.
(From: The CF-104 Reconnaissance Years, LGen PD Manson, Der Kanadier, 26 Feb 86.)
In 1967, due to France’s withdrawal from the military structure of NATO, 1 Wing was moved to a former French Air Force base at Lahr, (then) West Germany. Shortly after the outstanding success in Royal Flush, the decision was taken to reassign the 1 Wing CF-104 squadrons to the Strike/Attack role. The heady days of the CF-104 tactical reconnaissance role were over.
Updated: April 11, 2004