WATERS, Leslie James
| Service Numbers: | R5775, 405526 |
|---|---|
| Enlisted: | 21 September 1940, Reserves - Mt Isa, QLD |
| Last Rank: | Flying Officer |
| Last Unit: | 381 Base Squadron |
| Born: | Ipswich, Queensland, Australia, 2 February 1920 |
| Home Town: | Brisbane, Brisbane, Queensland |
| Schooling: | Not yet discovered |
| Occupation: | Teacher |
| Died: | Melbourne, Victoria, Australia, 3 June 2018, aged 98 years, cause of death not yet discovered |
| Cemetery: |
Lilydale Memorial Park, Victoria |
| Memorials: |
World War 2 Service
| 21 Sep 1940: | Enlisted Royal Australian Air Force, Aircraftman, R5775, Reserves - Mt Isa, QLD | |
|---|---|---|
| 31 Mar 1941: | Enlisted Royal Australian Air Force, Flying Officer, 405526 | |
| 24 Oct 1941: | Wounded Royal Australian Air Force, Leading Aircraftwoman, 405526, Crew on Fairley Battle (P5239) - forced landing at South Range, Evans Head NSW | |
| 5 Mar 1942: | Promoted Royal Australian Air Force, Sergeant | |
| 5 Sep 1942: | Promoted Royal Australian Air Force, Flight Sergeant | |
| 5 Sep 1943: | Promoted Royal Australian Air Force, Warrant Officer | |
| 14 Jan 1944: | Honoured Distinguished Flying Cross | |
| 1 Jun 1947: | Embarked Royal Australian Air Force, Warrant Officer, 405526, 381 Base Squadron, ex Sydney to Japan per HNAS Kanibla | |
| 9 Mar 1949: | Discharged Royal Australian Air Force, Flying Officer, 405526 |
Help us honour Leslie James Waters's service by contributing information, stories, and images so that they can be preserved for future generations.
Add my storyBiography contributed by Chris Buckley
Warrant Officer Leslie James Waters (Service No:405526) initially enlisted in the Air Force Reserves (R5775) in Mt Isa, QLD in September 1940 - he was a Teacher at Trekelano via Duchess in Far North QLD. In March 1941 he was in Brisbane, QLD when he enlisted in the RAAF as an Aircraftman - progressing to Warrant Officer by the time of his Discharge. As an LAC, he was injured when, as a crew member on Fairey Battle (P5239), it made a forced landing at South Range, Evans Head NSW in October 1941. The Fairey Battle was one of several aircraft he flew - Wellington, Halifax and Lancaster. He served with 101, 103 and 156 Squadrons, and in the UK with 460 Squadron. In January 1944 Warrant Officer Waters was awarded the DFC - ' completed many successful operations against the enemy in which he has displayed high skill, fortitude and devotion to duty' (National Archives Australia - Citation). In September 1946 Pilot Officer Waters transferred to Special Duties and served in Japan with the British Commonwealth Occupation Force. He was attached to Eastern Area HQ (Sydney) when he Discharged in March 1949.
Born in 1920 in Ipswich QLD, Leslie was the third of four children of George Waters (b1861 in Morwell, Victoria) and Mary Josephine Cleary (b1892 in Gatton, QLD). George (a Farm Labourer) and Mary married in 1912 in Gatton QLD and moved to Melbourne, Victoria briefly before returning to QLD by 1915. George served in WWI (Private; Service No:3151) and the family settled in Bundamba, Ipswich QLD where George was a Labourer.
Leslie trained as a Teacher and was working at Trekelano via Duchess in Far North QLD in 1940 when he enlisted in the Air Force Reserves, before enlisting in the RAAF in 1941. Following his Discharge in 1949, Leslie settled in Sydney, NSW where he resumed work as a Teacher. By 1954 he was living in Melbourne, Victoria where he married Lydia Sylvia Ludwig (b1921 in the Czech Republic) - Lydia (a Typist) had arrived in Melbourne on board the USS General Blatchford from Bagnoli Settlement Camp in Italy as a Stateless Person in October 1949. Lydia had been interned in Seedorf, Germany.
Leslie and Lydia settled in Melbourne, Victoria where Leslie was a Teacher and Lydia a Typist. Lydia died in 2005 and Leslie in 2018.