Arthur Deane Nesbitt Arthur Deane Nesbitt OBE , DFC , CdeG ( 16 November 1910 – 22 February 1978 ) was a Canadian businessman and a decorated pilot and Wing Commander in World War II . Early life . Deane Nesbitt was born in Westmount , Quebec , the son of the very successful stockbroker and co - founder of Nesbitt , Thomson and Company , Arthur James Nesbitt . Trained as an electrical engineer , after his older brother Aird decided to take over permanent management of the family - owned Ogilvy department store in Montreal , Deane Nesbitt joined the family ' s securities business . On the death of his father in 1954 , he became head of the brokerage firm and took over the presidency of the Nesbitt Thomson holding company , Power Corporation of Canada . Under his guidance , Nesbitt Thomson expanded across Canada , and into the United States and Europe . They were the first Canadian firm in three decades to obtain a seat on the New York Stock Exchange . A flying enthusiast , Nesbitt obtained his pilot ' s license and as a member of the Montreal Light Aeroplane Club , and was twice voted the James Lytell Memorial Trophy as the club ' s top pilot . Wartime Service . He had 200 flying hours to his credit when he enlisted in the R . C . A . F . on 15 September 1939 . Nesbitt was trained at Camp Borden as a fighter pilot . As a Flying Officer Nesbitt was then posted to No 1 Squadron RCAF , and flew Hurricanes with the unit during the Battle of Britain before being wounded on 15 September . On 26 August 1940 Nesbitt claimed a ' Do215 ' destroyed , and Bf 109s on 4 and 15 September . He also received the Distinguished Flying Cross . When recovered he later commanded No . 401 Squadron , and returned to Canada in September 1941 to command No . 14 Squadron and later No . 111 Squadron . He was promoted to Wing Commander in June 1942 and given command of Station Annette Island . Nesbitt was made CO , No . 6 SFTS , Dunneville , in December 1943 , and in March 1944 returned to the UK to command No . 144 Wing . he then joined No . 83 Group HQ as Accidents Investigation Officer . Promoted to Group Captain on 1 January 1945 , Nesbitt then commanded No . 143 Wing , with Hawker Typhoons , from January to August 1945 before returning to Canada in September 1945 , retiring in November 1947 . Along with his brother Aird who served the Canadian Army , he was part of the liberation of the Netherlands and at Eindhoven . For his service , Deane Nesbitt received a number of military honours . In 1946 he was made an Officer of the Order of the British Empire and in 1947 a Commander of the Order of Orange - Nassau with Swords , and awarded the Croix de Guerre with Silver Star by the government of France . Post war career . After being decommissioned at the end of the War , Group Captain Nesbitt rejoined the family ' s St . James Street securities firm . Highly successful in business , he also organised the financing for the TransCanada pipeline in the 1950s , the then largest natural gas pipeline in the world and one of the most significant energy projects in the history of Canada . His long and successful business career earned him an induction into the Canadian Business Hall of Fame . At the age of 68 , Deane Nesbitt suffered a skiing accident that left him near totally paralyzed on 4 February . He died in Montreal in 1978 and was interred in the Mount Royal Cemetery . In his honor , the BMO Nesbitt Burns division of the Bank of Montreal established the A . Deane Nesbitt / Charles Burns Award recognizing exceptional performance .