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Richard Joseph "Dick" Audet DFC* (13 March 1922 – 3 March 1945) was a Canadian fighter pilot ace during World War II. In his first contact with enemy aircraft on 29 December 1944 he destroyed five planes. By the end of January 1945 he had claimed a further five victories and shared a sixth. He was killed in action on 3 March 1945 near Coesfeld, Germany.

Audet enlisted for service in the Royal Canadian Air Force (RCAF) on 7 August 1941 and received his pilot’s wings in October 1942. He was then posted to the UK where he received five months of advanced operational training followed by non-fighter operations. During this time he met and married Iris Gibbins from Northampton.

On 20 September 1944, he was transferred to a RCAF Spitfire Unit, 411 Squadron. Later that year on 29 December, piloting a Spitfire IXe he destroyed two Bf 109s and three Fw 190s in five to seven minutes over Osnabrück. This action earned him a promotion to Flight Lieutenant and he was awarded the Distinguished Flying Cross (DFC).

On 3 March 1945, Flight Lieutenant Audet was strafing a German train west of Münster. The train returned fire and Audet’s Spitfire crashed to the ground. There is some uncertainty as to whether he died in the crash or was captured, but his body was never recovered.

Audet had flown more than 50 combat sorties and added a bar to his DFC. In addition he was awarded the 1939-45 Star, Air Crew Europe Star with Clasp, France and Germany Star, Defence Medal, War Medal 1939–1945 and Canadian Volunteer Service Medal with Clasp


 

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