John Bryson (RAF officer)

John Samuel Bryson
Birth name	John Samuel Bryson
Born	Westmount, Canada
Died	24 September 1940
Buried at	St Andrew's, North Weald Bassett, Essex
Allegiance	Canada
Service/branch	Royal Air Force
Years of service	1939 – 1940
Rank	Pilot Officer
Unit	No. 92 Squadron RAF
Battles/wars	World War II Battle of Britain

Pilot Officer John Samuel Bryson (1913? – 1940), called "Butch", was a Canadian fighter pilot who flew with the Royal Air Force during the Battle of Britain.

Bryson, the son John T. Bryson and Marion Elphinstone Bryson, was born in Westmount an enclave of Montreal, Quebec, Canada. Prior to the war he was a member of the Royal Canadian Mounted Police,^[1] but bought his way out in order to serve in defense of Britain.^[2]

In January 1939 he joined the Royal Air Force on a short service commission. Upon completion of his flying training at No. 13 Flying Training school at RAF Drem, he was posted to No. 92 Squadron RAF. He joined the squadron at RAF Tangmere on 10 October 1939. He had one 'kill', an He 111 over Dunkirk on 2 June 1940, and shared a kill on 24 July 1940 of a Junkers Ju 88 over the Bristol Channel. Flying with the 92d out of Biggin Hill, joining two other squadrons in a Big Wing group, on 24 September 1940, in response to a ten Ju 88 medium bomber attack, defended by over one-hundred 109s, Bryson was "last seen making a solo attack on a large formation of Me 109s".^[3] He was shot down and killed, his Spitfire, X4037, crashing and burning out near North Weald. Butch Bryson was 27 years old. He was buried in St Andrew's Church, North Weald Bassett, Essex.^[4]

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