Name: Harris Gordon Hagen Rank: Flight Sergeant (Pilot) Service Number: R/ 99069 Service: 24 OTU, Royal Air Force Royal Canadian Air Force Date of Birth: May 16, 1916 Place of Birth: Amherst, Cumberland Co., NS Date of Enlistment: April 10, 1941 Place of Enlistment: Amherst, Cumberland Co., NS Address at Enlistment: Nappan Station, Cumberland Co., NS Age at Enlistment: 24 Height: 6 feet Complexion: Dark Eye Colour: Brown Hair Colour: Dark Brown Occupation: Accountant Marital Status: Single Religion: Anglican Next of Kin: Blanche McKenzie Hagen (Mother), Nappan Station, NS Date of Death: June 2, 1943 Age: 27 Cemetery: Evesham Cemetery, Worcestershire, England Grave: Grave 1379 Harris Gordon Hagen, Jr., was the son of Harris Gordon Hagen, Sr. (1869-1943), and Blanche McKenzie (McCallum) Hagen b. (1880-1951), and the brother of Constance Hagen (1909-1927). Harris enjoyed badminton, skating, on hockey prior to enlisting with the Royal Canadian Air Force in April 1941. In June 1943, Harris was serving with the Royal Air Force’s No. 24 Operation Training Unit (24 OTU) flying from RAF Honeybourne, which was located 1 km south of Honeybourne in Worcestershire, England. On June 2, 1943, he was serving as the Pilot of Armstrong Whitworth Whitley Mk V aircraft Z6639. Flying from Honeybourne, the pilot had been given a red signal by the airfield controller, and, in making a circuit, struck a hill in cloud 200 yards from the Broadway Tower at Honeybourne, England. In addition to Harris who was killed, the other crew lost were: Sergeant Richard Stanley (Ted) Phillips, Navigator, RAF, Service No. 591875 Flight Sergeant Donald Herbert Kelly, Bomb Aimer, RCAF, Service No R/113903 Sergeant Donald Alfred Marriott, Wireless Operator / Air Gunner, RAFVR, Service No. 1223111 Sergeant George Edward Ekins, Rear Gunner, RAFVR, Service No. 181713 First on the crash scene were two Royal Observer Corps (ROC) observers who braved the flames to rescue Sergeant Ekins, who sadly later died. The two observers were ROC Observer Mr. Ernest Hollington and Mr. Albert Lowe. Flight Sergeant Hagen was interred at the Evesham Cemetery in Evesham on the edge of the Cotswolds in the Whycavon District of Worcestershire, England. A memorial to the crew is located on Broadway Tower Hill. A remembrance service is held on June 2nd at 2pm every year to mark the anniversary of the 1943 crash at the foot of Broadway Tower where all crew lost their lives. In June 1998, an event was held to mark the 55th anniversary of the crash, with a plaque and painting placed in the Tower's restaurant (the Morris & Brown Café in 2025).

Sources: Library and Archives Canada Canadian Virtual War Memorial Memorial photos: Raymond Jacks (St Helens, Merseyside, England)