Wing Commander Howard Peter "Cowboy" Blatchford DFC (25 February 1912 – 3 May 1943) was a flying ace, who achieved the first Canadian victory in World War II.

On 23 September 1941, John Gillespie Magee, the author of the famous flying poem "High Flight," arrived at Digby for his first operational posting, on RCAF 412 Squadron.

[5] On 12 October 1941, Magee's squadron moved from the Digby aerodrome to the nearby RAF Wellingore, from which he was operating when he died.

On 29 March 1943 his Spitfires propeller was hit by Flak splinters during morning sortie (ca.

On 4 April 1943 while leading 167 Squadron on a sortie escorting 24 Lockheed Venturas attacking Rotterdam, his Spitfire was severely hit by a Jagdgeschwader 1 fighter with cannon and machine gun fire.

Leading the Coltishall Wing to escort bombers attacking a power station in Amsterdam, Blatchford was shot down and killed in action on 3 May 1943 by Obfw.