Biography
Chief Warrant Officer W.H. Carlson, CD
Chief Warrant Officer
W.H. Carlson
CWO William (Bill) Carlson was born in the Peace River country in Alberta on January 26, 1934. He attended grade school in Lymburn Alberta and completed his grade X11 in Thorhild Alberta, acquiring a High School Diploma in June of 1953. While in Thorhild he became an Army Cadet and spent two summers at the Vernon Cadet Camp in BC earning a Canadian Army Certificate of Military Qualification as a Driver Mechanic Group I and as an Instructor Basic Training.
CWO Carlson enrolled in the RCAF in September 1953 and completed basic training in St Jean PQ. He was selected to attend basic electronics training at Number1 Radar and Communications School Clinton, Ontario, graduating with honours as a Performance Checker Ground. He was posted to 5 Air Division (Vancouver BC) and returned to Clinton for completion of electronic training, graduating as a Telecommunications Technician Ground. Leaving Clinton, he served at Falconbridge, Ontario, Gander Newfoundland, Metz France (61 AC&W Sqn.), and Portage La Prairie, Manitoba.
While at Portage he became the Secretary-Treasurer of The Southern Film Federation, which was affiliated with the National Film Board of Canada and the University of Manitoba Film Group in Winnipeg.
Promoted to Cpl he was transferred to Puntzi Mountain, British Columbia, then to Comox, British Columbia for 26 months. At Comox he was employed as the NCO i/c Communications Ground, a Flight Sergeant position, for a period of six months.
Upon promotion to Sgt he took over the duties of NCO i/c at the Ground Air Transmit Receiver site at the Radar Station at Beausejour, Manitoba. While there he became the President of the Mess Committee of the WOs and Sgts Mess, and also he served as the Chairman of the Station Credit Union.
Then he went to Chatham, New Brunswick, as a WO for four years, and from there he was sent to the Canadian Forces Communications and Electronics School, Kingston, Ontario. Promoted to MWO at Kingston, he became the Course Director of the Communications Technician/Radar Technician 6B training.
Upon his promotion to CWO in June 1981, he was posted to CFS Carp T1 as the Detachment Commander.
CWO Carlson was selected as the first Communications and Electronics Branch Chief Warrant Officer in 1986 and served in that capacity until his retirement in 1989.
