Virtual
War Memorial
Australia

Alan Serafino Righetti was his full registered birth name. Alan was born in Heywood in rural Victoria in 1918. The Righetti family had a general store and ran a sawmill. Alan was the son of Leonard Alan Righetti and Ethel Rose Righetti (nee Watson). He had four siblings as per Righetti MyHeritage website. 

Alan was named after his cousin who was KIA two years before Alan was born. Lt Alan Serafino Righetti 2nd LH Regiment was KIA in 1916.

Serafino Righetti was the name of their patriach. He had migrated from Switzerland in 1850 to try his luck during the Ballarat Gold Rush. Serafino's prospecting luck was not very good so he abandoned the lure of gold to establish what became their family business. 

Alan matriculated at Melbourne Grammer School, before gaining entry into Melbourne University.

He was a university student when he volunteered for RAAF Aircrew in 1940. He had wanted to serve because members of his family had proudly served in earlier conflicts.

That includes the Boer War and First World War. Alan felt that it was his duty to fill the shoes of his name sake who was KIA.

Hence, his family had a proud tradition of rendering military service when the call to arms is sounded. For Australia was the country that his Swiss patriach had adopted back in 1850. Hence generations of Righetti's who had succeeded here in business, had answered the call to defend Australia's Freedom.   

Alan was called up in early 1941. He did three months RAAF basic training before being sent overseas to train as a Pilot. He did his elementary flying training in Rhodesia in a DH82 Tiger Moth. Followed by his more advanced service training in the North American T-6 Harvard.    

He got his wings in the Southern Rhodesian Air Force under the Empire Air Training Scheme. Alan was assessed as an above average Pilot. Hence sent to England to train in the Fighter Command stream. 

He did his Fighter Combat Training in an RAF Hurricane. Following that, he was posted back to Africa to do his RAAF P-40 Kittyhawk conversion. Finally, Alan was deemed ready for Fighter Combat Ops.

He was posted to No. 3 Sqn (Fighter) RAAF.

Alan flew Fighter Combat Missions during the 2nd Battle of El Alamein. He was part of the Desert Air Force. Alan flew P-40's in No. 3 Sqn (Fighter) RAAF. For three epic months of intense combat before he was shot down.

He did not have enough kills to make ace before his Fighter combat career ended abrupty.  

For the ME109 was a superior fighter in dog fights compared to his P-40. The latter was more effective in the ground attack role. That would have been Alan's prime P-40 role during the 2nd Battle of El Alamein. 

Alan was hospitalized after being captured on 21 Jan 1943. He was shot down on a strike mission against Italian Tripolitania. Alan suffered significant injuries.    

He was incarcerated in both Italian and German POW camps. That includes a long stetch of 480 days at Stalag Luft III.

Alan was privvy to the Great Escape. He was on the ferret lookout roster. However Alan was in a 'lucky dip' category. Hence he was not selected to be assigned a number in the Tunnel exit order list. For there was a limit to how many forged indentity documents and civilian suits etc that could be made.

Alan's Stalag Luft III POW room mate, fellow Desert Air Force Kittyhawk Pilot, Flt Lt George William Wiley RCAF got the final Tunnel ticket that he missed out on.

Alan hid his disappointment. He then congraduated George, who had asked him to sent a few left behind photos to his folks, in case he did not make it.

Flt Lt Geo. Wm. Wiley RCAF, Alan's Stalag Luft III room mate was recaputered and executed. 

[as per "Australians in Stalag Luft III" reference link dated 17 August 2105]

The approved Tunnel escapee list was quite long. The escape order was carefully considered and assigned. However, 76 comrades did escape before the alarm was raised.

Three made a home run. However Fifty Allied Airmen from amongst his 73 comrades who were recaptured outside Stalag Luft III's razer wire, were subsequenty executed. That execution list included Alan's room mate Flt Lt George Wm. Wiley. It also included his good mate from Geelong Grammer School, Sqn Ldr James Catanach RAAF. Lest We Forget.

Alan's Stalag Luft III comrade, Flt Lt Paul Brickhill RAAF, an RAF Spitfire Pilot, published an inside account in 1950, called "The Great Escape". Paul dedicated his book "To the Fifty" whom the Gestapo  murdered. RAAF comrades were amongst the fifty. 

Alan spent the last three months of the war incarcerated in a POW camp near Bremen. For he was force marched from Stalag Luft III prior to Soviet troops reaching Sagan on 27 Jan 1945.

Alan was liberated by the British 2nd Army on 2nd May 1945. He had been incarcerated as a POW for more than 800 days of his life.  

Alan was promoted RAAF Flight Lieutenant in 1945 but not discharged until 3 Sep 1946. That was to ensure that he fully recovered from his ordeal plus he had access to RAAF support services.

Alan married his beloved Janet in 1950 and raised a family. Janet was the grand-daughter of Sir George Pearce, Australia's longest serving Defence Minister who oversaw the formation of the RAAF in 1921.  

Alan agreed to participate in a video interview to be conducted by UNSW for the Australians at War Film Archive on 16 Sep 2003.   

His cited UNSW Archive video interview is linked.

Likewise other cited reference links are provided. 

Alan died at the age of 97 years on 15 August 2015.

Lest We Forget.