Born on the 19th February 1915 at Greenville,
Texas, the son of Sidney Francis & Amy Carragher
of St. Joseph, Missouri, USA.

AM 118 - Attached to No. 3 FPP (Ferry Pilots Pool
situated at Hawarden, near Chester), he was flying
a Mohawk MkIV aircraft, No. AR664 with a Cyclone
engine from Blackpool Airport to Manchester
Ringway Airport.  Francis died whilst performing
unauthorised aerobatics at Ringway Airport.  
Engine failure led to a stall and spin into the
ground.  Fourteen days previous to this incident
he had been prohibited from undertaking any
inverted or low flying.  He had 700 hours flying
time experience.

My thanks to the RAF AHB for much of this
information.

His death was reported in the Saturday 8th
February 1941 edition of "The Frederick Post"
newspaper.   The report stated that he was friends
with a Miss Marjorie E. Dunn who also resided in
the town of Frederick.  They both attended Rhode
Island State School and she last saw him in
October 1940 when he left for England to join the
A.T.A.  He started his military career on his
graduation from college.  After training at Fort
Adams, Randolph Field and Kelly Field [presumably
airfields], he was commissioned as a Second
Lieutenant and assigned as a flying instructor at
a Californian Field.   Upon being placed on the
Army Reserve List last Fall, he went to Canada and
volunteered for service in England.

After his graduation from High School, he worked
for two years as an Elevator Boy in order to earn
money to put himself through college.  Whilst
attending Rhode Island State, he worked as a
Waiter in the College's cafeterias and in hotels
at New England summer resorts.  He was survived by
his mother, five sisters and one brother.

See also the excellent website -
www.afleetingpeace.org/the -ata/index.php

He was buried in the Manchester (Southern)
Cemetery on the 5th February 1941.