Robert Ross Ferguson

Bob Ferguson's flight training took place over the winter of 1940-41. He was then assigned to the Royal Canadian Air Force No. 410 Squadron, "the Cougars", stationed at RAF Ayr to protect the coast of Scotland and England.

While with Squadron 410, Bob Ferguson met and became roommates with John Aiken, who later became the Chief Air Marshal of the Royal Air Force. Sir John would later describe him as "a natural leader, Bob Ferguson cared deeply for his squadron and it showed in the respect he showed his pilots and his initiative in improving skills. Indeed to me he personified the success of the British Commonwealth Air Training Plan." Ferguson was promoted rapidly, achieving the rank of Flying Officer in October 1942, Flight Lieutenant in January 1943, and Squadron Leader in January 1944.

Bob Ferguson quickly developed a reputation for innovative training and meticulous preparation with his squadron. He identified several weaknesses in the aerial gunnery courses which were all taught on Spitfires while most pilots flew other more heavily armoured aircraft. Hearing his criticism Wing Commander Archibald Winskill of RAF Winfield called on Ferguson to set up and develop a twin-engine gunnery course. He did, the course was very successful and soon pilots brought their own de Havilland Mosquito or Beaufighter planes with them for training from all over the United Kingdom. The students were interviewed continually to refine the course and further improve the training before the pilots were posted to aerial combat.

Ferguson flew the Mosquito fighter-bomber during war. When the Mosquito entered production in 1941, it was one of the fastest operational aircraft in the world. Entering widespread service in 1942, the Mosquito supported RAF strategic night fighter defence forces in the United Kingdom from Luftwaffe raids, most notably defeating the German aerial offensive Operation Steinbock in 1944. Offensively, the Mosquito units also conducted nighttime fighter sweeps in indirect and direct protection of RAF Bomber Command's heavy bombers to help reduce RAF bomber losses in 1944 and 1945.

Home on leave in September 1944, Bob was invited to "pin" the wings on his younger brother David at his graduation as a pilot and air gunner in the RCAF.

Bob Ferguson gave up flying after the war but maintained a keen interest in his beloved 410 Squadron, later led by his brother-in-law, Wing Commander Keith Fallis. Now responsible for ensuring the safety of Canada's domestic airspace, the squadron currently operates out of CFB Cold Lake, Alberta as the operational training squadron for Canada's McDonnell Douglas CF-18 Hornet fleet.[4]

After the war, Ferguson returned to the University of Saskatchewan to complete his degree. He had begun farming before the war and resumed it when the war ended, at the same time finishing his Bachelor of Arts degree (1946) from the University of Saskatchewan and Bachelor of Science in Agriculture in 1949.

His 1946 graduation marked a memorable occasion: his father received an honorary Doctor of Laws degree at the same ceremony. "When I got my BA, he got his Honorary Doctor of Laws. And when I went across the stage to pick up my diploma, my father bowed graciously as I went by" he recalled in an interview with the University of Regina's alumni magazine in fall of 1999.

In the film 'My Father's Legacy', he recounts his father saying, "Now that you have received your degree you must remember that you have only paid for a small part of the cost of your education. What are you going do for your community, your province and your country to help repay the cost of the education for which they have paid for you." With characteristic understatement, he said, "When dad asked me what I was going to do it got me thinking." Despite his disappointment at not being able to follow in his father's footsteps by establishing a medical career, he found another vocation: farming.

Farming opened the door to extensive involvement in community service, particularly in support of Saskatchewan's two universities. As a University of Regina alumnus, he helped build the alumni association, serving on the board from its inception. In that capacity, he helped establish awards for excellence to honour professors' research and teaching and was the first chair of the scholarship committee. He saw scholarships as a way to give back to the institution and has established three at the University of Regina.

His public service after his career in the Royal Canadian Air Force included:[2][5]

• Member, Board of the University of Saskatchewan
• Founding member, Board the University of Regina
• Chair, Alumni Fund, the University of Regina
• Reeve, Municipality of Qu'Appelle
• Chair, Saskatchewan Lung Association
• Member, Edgeley Cooperative Association Board
• Member, Egg Lake, Saskatchewan Conservation and Development Authority