Flying Officer Thomas Wood

Flying Officer Thomas Wood, 418 ( City of Edmonton ) Squadron ,Royal Canadian Air Force. He was a navigator and was lost together with his Canadian pilot Hugh Glassco on Operations over Germany on 5th January 1945, aged 22. He had been born in Leitholm and was the son of Andrew and the late Annie Wood of East End, Leitholm.  He had been commissioned from Leading Aircraftman in April 1944 and promoted in October of that year. He is buried in Rheinberg War Cemetery, Germany. 418 Squadron  flew the superb De Havilland Mosquito in a Fighter Bomber Role. They were well versed in ” train busting ” and low level raiding over enemy territory. He is also commemorated on the Eccles Memorial. He was the son of Andrew and Annie Wood and  was educated at the Berwickshire High School, Duns where he is commemorated on the Memorial Tablet placed in the new High School, Duns. After leaving the B.H.S. he had trained to become a Solicitor and he had also joined the  Royal Air Force Volunteer Reserve. (  418 was a R.C.A.F. Squadron under the operational control of the R.A.F. and it was Canada’s highest scoring  unit in terms of both air-to-air and air-to-ground kills