Al Finnbogason was born on August 4, 1921. He attended School in Lundar, MB and in Winnipeg at General Wolfe and Daniel MacIntyre High School.

Al enlisted in the Royal Canadian Air Force in 1940 serving initially as a radar operator then proceeded overseas in 1942 to a Radar site near Glasgow, Scotland. Nine months later, he remustered to Aircrew and returned to Canada to train as Bomb Aimer. He flew operationally from the Isle of Lay in the Hebrides on Sunderland Flying Boats with 10 Squadron, Royal Australian Air Force,  attached to Coastal Command. He then retrained as an Airborne Radar Operator and flew on Sunderlands and Hudson Bombers on Coastal patrols from Plymouth to Gibraltar with 104 Squadron.

Following the war Al had a long career with the T. E. Eaton Company retiring as Manager of Food Services.

Al became a Director of the Air Cadet League in Manitoba in 1950 and became Chairman in 1969 and has been member of the Advisory Board since 1971. He was active in procuring Manitoba's first glider CF-ACL which is now on display at the Western Canada Aviation Museum. He was made a Life Member in 2006. Al received the National League's Certificate of Honour in 2011.

Al also served as an Intelligence Officer with the Reserve Air Force.

His community activities include past president of the following; Better Business Bureau of Winnipeg, Winnipeg Enterprises Corporation, and Manitoba Travel and Convention Bureau, United Services Institute of Manitoba, St. James YMCA, Winnipeg Convention Centre, Tourism Manitoba and other organisations. Alan was also director of the Winnipeg Convention Centre and Tourism Winnipeg, he has also been a consultant to the development of the Forks and Johnson Terminal building and is a Director with Heritage Winnipeg. He and his wife, Marguerite, had one son, Charles and a daughter, Eve.

Al Passed away peacefully On July 10, 2019 at Golden West Centennial Lodge in Winnipeg.