Just a few points:

After decades of debate, Canadian merchant marines were accepted as valid military servicemen. I think it was around 1995, when many were ready for a military pension.

My uncle trained as a bombardier for WW2. He was set to go to Europe, but the war ended. His training took almost a year.

My uncle's cousin was trained as a bomber pilot. His plane was shot down in Netherlands. His crew survived, but spent two years in a POW camp. Being an officer, Richard was treated reasonably well.

Both Uncle Bill and Richard were first generation Canadians and spoke fluent Ukrainian.

I believe that the return rate for Canadian (British) bombers was about 95%. But after 25 missions, 95% per mission was not good odds. It was a dangerous job.