STRANGE LINK BETWEEN CAREERS

The article above appeared in the Perthshire Advertiser and discussed the parallel careers of James McCash and Iain MacLaren. They attended Perth Academy together, volunteered together, trained together, qualified together and were commissioned together. A sad postscript to their story is the fact that they both lost their lives within 28 days of each other in May/June 1940.

J McCash and Sons were established in 1746. They started out as a family owned mill at Loakmill near Bankfoot, but moved into town when the railway came to Perth and the cattle market boomed. The current owners, Broomhall Limited bought the firm in 1998 and have retailed in Perth as McCash’s Country Store ever since.

During our research for the “Perth Academy Remembers” project we contacted Mr Alastair Murhead, the manager of McCash’s Country Store, and he very kindly gave us permission to take photographs of the pictures of the four generations of the family which are on display in the store to this day. Alastair also allowed us to borrow a framed photograph of James McCash which takes pride of place on the wall in his office. We were delighted to be able to put it on display in front of the school war memorial during “Doors Open Days” in September 2023.

James McCash lost his life on 18th June 1940, while serving with the Royal Air Force Volunteer Reserve in the Second World War, but he wasn’t the only member of the family to make the supreme sacrifice. Two of the previous generation of the McCash family lost their lives in the Great War: John McCash was killed on 22nd November 1917, while serving with the Royal Flying Corps and his cousin George McCash was killed on 20th September 1917 while serving with the Seaforth Highlanders.

A formation of 12 Blenheims and 6 Hurricanes took off from RAF Tangmere, West Sussex, being sent to Malta. Severe storms were encountered North West of Limoges and the formation was forced to break up. An absolute tragedy as no less than 7 aircraft were lost with the loss of 18 valuable crew members.

Courtesy of Traces of World War 2 website:

“Royal Air Force, Battle of France 1940 and start of Strategic Air Offensive against Germany"

“Type: Bristol Blenheim IV; Serial number: L9315; Operation: Transfer flight to the Middle East. Lost: 18/06/1940."

"Pilot: P/O James McCash, RAFVR, age 22, 78977. Crew: Sergeant Ronald Micklethwaite, RAF, age 19. Crew: Aircraftman 1st Class George Harris, RAF, 626479, age unknown. Took off from Tangmere between 06.30 and 06.45 hours. Lost in severe storm conditions north-west of Limoges. The formation became split up over France in thick cloud 110 km south of the Loire River. L9315 crashed at Hiesse.”

Perthshire Advertiser, 29th June 1940

“War Casualties"

“Perth Pilot Believed Killed, Observer Missing" 

“Mr and Mrs D. N. M‘Cash, Waverley Bank, Viewlands Road, Perth, were notified by the Air Ministry yesterday that their only son, Pilot Officer James M‘Cash (23), was reported missing but believed to have lost his life in an aircraft accident on June 18."

“Pilot Officer M‘Cash, whose father is a well-known Perth business man, was a junior member of J. M‘Cash & Sons, grain merchants, Feus Road."

“A former pupil of Perth Academy, he received his flying training at Perth Aerodrome."

“Recently, after a spell as instructor at Evanton, Ross-shire, he was transferred south to the Ferry Pilot Corps.”

Perthshire Advertiser, 17th November 1945

“FLOWERS from the garden of Mr D. N. McCash, Waverley Bank, Perth, were sold recently and realised £24 for the Soldiers’, Sailors’, and Airmen’s Families Association. A cheque for this amount has been forwarded to Mrs. M. Wilson, convener of the Perth branch of the Association.”

The Scotsman, 21st June 1947 

“McCASH - Pilot Officer James McCash, only son of Mr and Mrs McCash, Waverley Bank, Perth, missing since 18th June 1940, now known to have lost his life on that date, buried along with his crew in the little cemetery at Hiesse. France, aged 22 years. (No letters please.)”

James McCash is also commemorated on the Perth (North) Church War Memorial.