Victory
31
Biography
Born in 1921 in Montreal, Canada, George Beurling came to the United Kingdom and joined the RAF in September 1940. After his pilot training, he was posted in the spring of 1942 to 41 Sqn, equipped with Spitfire V, as Sgt. Within this unit, he obtained in May his first two victories (two Fw 190) off the French coast. The following month he flew to Malta as part of Operation Salient and upon arrival Beurling was assigned to 249 Sqn based in Takali. He immediately made efforts to improve his skills as a fighter pilot (particularly in regards to deflection firing), thus greatly increasing his chances of survival in the skies above the besieged island. Beurling turned out to be a complex, self-effacing character who didn't smoke, drink or swear (in fact, his favorite expression towards anyone or anything unusual was "goofy" (screwball) and of course that became his nickname. In July 1942, the Axis forces launched a series of all-out attacks on the island, and in these desperate circumstances Beurling was in his element.
That month he was credited with destroying 15 enemy aircraft (all Italian or German fighters) and damaging six, a remarkably high kill rate. The following month he was appointed P/0.
October saw a resumption of large-scale Axis raids on Malta, and in a particularly heavy fight on the 14th, Beurling was credited with the destruction of a Ju 88 and two Bf 109s before being wounded in the heel by shrapnel and having to parachute out of his BRI73/"D" and falling into the sea, where he was quickly rescued. After being decorated with the Distinguished Service Order (DSO), he was airlifted from the island later that same month and flown back to the UK, where he was treated and convalesced. Beurling was then transferred to the RCAF, returning to operations in the fall of 1943 flying Spitfire Mk IXs, first with 403 Sqn, then with 412 Sqn (during this period he added two Fw 190s from more to his hunting list). Despite his talent as a fighter pilot, his refusal of authority led him to make many enemies among his superiors, and there can be no doubt that during this period, only his fighter chart saved him from court martial. In April 1944 he returned to Canada and following further disciplinary problems he was cleared to resign and retire from service in October of that year.
Outside of military aviation, Beurling adapted no better to the demands of civilian life, and for the next three years he moved from job to job. Then, in the spring of 1948, he accepted an offer to fly in the fledgling air force created by the young state of Israel. His first mission was to fly a Norduyn Norseman light transport to that nation, but on May 20, after taking off from Rome, the aircraft exploded in midair and crashed, killing him and his co-pilot (a suspected sabotage but nothing could ever be proven). By the end of the war, George "Screwball" Beurling had 31 kills, 1 in co-op as well as 9 damaged, all but two of which were achieved flying a Spitfire V. This total easily makes him the best pilot on this variant.