Karl Gravell

Karl Mander Gravell, GC was a Swedish leading aircraftman who was posthumously awarded the George Cross, the highest British Commonwealth award for bravery out of combat. The decoration was awarded for the heroism he showed on 10 November 1941 in Calgary, Alberta.

Early life

Born in Sweden in 1922, Gravell moved to Canada with his family in 1937 and became a naturalized Canadian citizen in July of that year. The aspiring air gunner joined the Royal [Canadian Air Force] on 15 March 1941 from his adopted home town of Vancouver, British Columbia. After completing his depot training, he had been posted to No. 2 Wireless School in Calgary.

Second World War

Gravell was on a training flight when the Tiger Moth aircraft he was flying in suffered mechanical failure and crashed in flames. Gravell managed to get clear but despite his serious injuries – he had lost an eye and was badly burned – he dived back into the inferno with his own clothes still on fire in an effort to rescue the pilot. He was pulled from the wreckage but later died from his grievous burns.
The following citation was published in The London Gazette on 11 June 1942:
Gravell is buried in Mountain View Cemetery, Vancouver. A monument to the bravery of Gravell and the schoolteacher, Frances Walsh, who pulled him from the wreckage, stands near the site of the crash, on the north-east corner of the intersection of Range Road 25A and Big Hill Springs Road west of Airdrie. Walsh was awarded the George Medal for her heroism.