No. 428 Squadron RCAF
On 7 Nov 1942, he assumed command of No 428 (RCAF) Squadron, standing up the squadron in No. 4 Group. As the OC, it was noted that "Wing Commander Earle was a grand chap, one who can genuinely be called, 'One of Nature's Gentlemen'. He was well liked by the Canadians and sadly missed when he left on promotion to group captain in February 1943. He flew two operations from Dalton, occupying the astro-dome. He had previously been flying Fairey Gordons in the Middle East (Iraq), and found the Wellington difficult, partly due to his eyesight not liking the English skies, and partly as he was not a tall man." After only three months, he left 428 Bomber Squadron (RCAF) as an acting group captain on 7 Feb 1943, when he was assigned as the station commander of RAF Ridgewell and then RAF West Wickham, late in 1943, then as a temporary group captain. He ended the war as Air Officer Commanding No. 300 Group RAF (RAF Transport Command) in Australia.
No. 6 Squadron RCAF
No. 6 Squadron was authorized as a Torpedo Bomber unit on 4 March 1936 at the RCAF main training base in Trenton, Ontario, under the control of RCAF headquarters. It began service training with Canadian Vickers Vedette flying boats before receiving Blackburn Shark torpedo bombers from England in January 1937. Flight Lieutenant C.L. Trecarten became commander on 23 November 1936; subsequent prewar commanders were RAF Flight Lieutenant E.A. Springall from 18 February 1938, and Wing Commander A.H. Hull from 13 June of the latter year. In November 1938 it relocated to Jericho Beach, British Columbia, joining Western Air Command there on 5 November after departing Trenton on the first day of the month. The squadron trained in torpedo dropping at Jericho Beach.