Danny - some answers to your questions of 30th November.
I asked Dad what he thought of Vultee Valiants - he said 'not a lot'! They 'needed very careful handling but were alright after enough practice'.
In his view the Manchester was 'alright, but more difficult to fly than the Lanc - which was fabulous'. 'The Manchester was just not so good, and not many people ever flew it'. He wouldn't say he was glad to see the back of the Manchester, but it was overtaken by the Lanc which was far superior.
In terms of Turner Field - for a short time the RAF came in and joined up with the Americans. So he trained American pilots as well as RAF. This situation worked perfectly well in his opinion. He enjoyed being at Turner Field.
He thinks you are probably right about your instructor coming from Canada.