Air Commodore Leonard Joseph Birchall, CM, OBE, DFC, OOnt, CD (6 July 1915 – 10 September 2004), "The Saviour of Ceylon", was a Royal Canadian Air Force (RCAF) officer who warned of a Japanese attack on the island of Ceylon during the Second World War.

On June 10, 1940, Birchall was responsible for the capture of an Italian merchant ship, the Capo Nola, in the Gulf of Saint Lawrence, hours after Canada declared war on Italy.

Birchall had been informed of the declaration of war by radio so made a low pass over the freighter, as if making an attack.

The Easter Sunday Raid went ahead despite Birchall's signal, but his warning put the defenders on alert and allowed the harbour to be partially cleared before the Japanese attacked Colombo.

During his time in the POW camps, he repeatedly stood up to the Japanese and demanded fair treatment of the prisoners, in compliance with the Geneva Convention.

His diaries, written during his captivity and buried, formed the basis of a number of Allied wartime trials at which Birchall testified.

Birchall was made an Officer of the Order of the British Empire (OBE) in 1946, after his return to Canada for his work at prisoner of war camps.

The citation, in part, read: "he continually displayed the utmost concern for the welfare of fellow prisoners with complete disregard for his own safety.

Birchall was also awarded the Distinguished Flying Cross (DFC) for his part in detecting the attack on Ceylon and for alerting the Allies during that 1942 flight.

[11] When citizens of his hometown, St. Catharines, Ontario, heard Birchall was missing in action, students of Connaught school planted a memorial tree.

[8] In 1950, U.S. President Harry Truman appointed Birchall an Officer of the Legion of Merit, saying: "His exploits became legendary throughout Japan and brought renewed faith and strength to many hundreds of ill and disheartened prisoners."

He was also honoured for his years of service to the community, including building a facility in 1993 at a Kingston Girl Guide camp at his own cost.

Birchall was honoured in 2009 as one of the 100 most influential Canadians in aviation and had his name emblazoned directly behind the starboard roundel on the fuselage with the others on the 2009 CF-18 Centennial of Flight demonstration Hornet.

[14] His widow Kathleen Birchall donated money to the Air Cadet League of Canada to set up a scholarship in his name.

[15] In 2011, Air Commodore Birchall's name was also added to the wall of honour at the Royal Military College of Canada.