Son of Stanley and Emily (nee Arkwright) Wilde, of London, ON. Brother of Mary, Elizabeth, and Reginald Peter.
There is no clear consensus on the cause of the crash that killed Flight Sergeant Wilde and four members of his crew, however, the rear gunner (who managed to escape with minor injuries) recounted that he had heard the pilot say during the plane's approach to land "who is mucking about with the controls?" and later "Crash positions." This, however, was not recorded in the Control Leg.
Flight Sergeant Wilde was honoured with a private funeral service at the home of his aunt (his mother's sister) in Wigan, Lancashire, UK, where he was also buried.