Virtual
War Memorial
Australia

* Embarked - May 1940(?) - RMS Queen Mary (as 83rd Engineer? - 1940/41{18mths}? - See merchant Navy for details - (Merchant seaman were a reserved occupation during WW-2 and their service on merchant ships were equivalent to service in the armed forces).
* 1st Enlisted – 19 Aug 1942, London UK, RAF Motorboat crew – Commando Unit Combined Opps UK (4yrs 87d)
* Last Rank – Leading Aircraftsman
* Last Unit – R.A.F.V.R. Motorboat & Air Crew – Volunteer RAF training and flying in operational roles
* Born – 11 Jan 1923, North Sydney NSW
* Disembarked - Aug 1946 - SS Orbita, Sydney NSW
* Discharged – Nov 1946, Sydney NSW
* Hometown – “Lahore” #51 Cliff Ave, Northbridge NSW
* Schooling – Intermediate, St Aloysius College (Jesuit) NSW
* Occupation – Refrigeration Mechanic/Motorboat & Air Crew/Flight Mechanic/Welder/Linesman/Real Estate
* 2nd Enlistment – Jun 1948, Bradford Pk NSW, RAAF - (15Mth)
* Died – 03 Mar 1998 (75yrs), Sussex Inlet NSW
Cemetery – North Columbarium, North face, Row 2, Column 11 - Springwood, City of Blue Mountains, NSW
* 1st Marriage – Jan 1943 – Pauline Joan Walton (Nee Joseph)
* 2nd Marriage – Mar 1953 – Mary Veronica Walton (Nee Stevens)
Conflict – WWII – 1940-46 – Atlantic, W-Africa, Middle East & Far East
John St Clair Walton was the middle child (1st son) of Mr. John Edward & Elizabeth “Betty” Walton. He was born in 1923 and was schooled at St Aloysius (Jesuit school for boys) College North Sydney NSW. He left school at the end of 1939 where his education was aimed at forming the "whole person" (cura personalis), emphasizing Jesuit values, discipline, and a strong moral framework. (a Deep integration of Catholic theology and Jesuit spirituality, preparing students to be men for others.) Like most returned service men our father would not discuss his "WW-2 Journy" until later in his life. When war broke out, he embarked RMS Queen Mary (May 1940?) - as 83rd Engineer/refrigeration mechanic working for chief "McClelland" who was part of the Cunard line engineering team he was 17yrs, 4mth old. Some notable dates for QM are:
* Apr 1940 - QUEEN MARY arrives in Sydney - Passenger fittings removed & stored/Cockatoo Dock - 1st voyage from Sydney to Gourock, Scotland with 5,500 troops
* Feb 1941 - QUEEN MARY & AQUITANIA - Depart Sydney, Australia as part of the Allied convoy US.9, to the Middle East
* Jan 1942 - QUEEN MARY - Depart Boston USA - Refit passenger load increase from 5000 to 8500 troops. (met 1st wife) - First time the Queen Mary carried American troops (8,398 troops, 905 crew).
* Aug 1942 - QUEEN MARY - Carried 1x Complete armoured Division across Atlantic (15,125 troops)
He would tell stories of his "adventures" of how he travelled to Cape town and got into a fight and made a "Shambles-of-the-Place" and he missed QM's departure and had to serve on a coal fired steamer from Port Elizabeth to Tufik.(Bottom of Suez canal?), also he served on a Leaf-Class tanker going from Greenock (Scotland) to Canda/US when he found out about the Japanese attack on Pearl Harbour. He said he met Churchill who convinced him (plus 3x Others) that he would provide passage for them back to Australia, if they joined the British Army (turned out not to be true) - and he forever said: “Cigar smoking arch Bastard!
* Aug 1942 - He then Enlisted (London UK) as volunteer RAFVR Motorboat/Air crew – operational roles - Commando Unit & Combined Opps (specialized, in "dirty" counter warfare, Close-Quarter Combat, Weapons & Demolitions Amphibious/Night Operations: etc) training followed in Scotland - for three weeks he became familiar with bayonets and grenades, ran miles and undertook more PT (physical training) he practised many close combat techniques, including the silent disposal of sentries , It was remote, mountainous country, where only the fit survived. (Note: Admiral Keyes establishes Combined Training Centre, Inveraray & Achnacarry, Scotland - 1st Commando Part of "Combined-Operations" (COHQ) The 1st Australian Commando's history began with the 1st Independent Company (AIC) in WWII (1941), performing reconnaissance, guerrilla warfare, and sabotage in the Pacific (New Guinea, New Britain) before being disbanded, its members scattered). Some notable dates for him are:
* Nov 1942 - Operation Torch was the invasion of west North Africa to prevent the Germans taking control of the territories
* Jan 1943 - His 1st Marriage to Pauline Joan Walton (Nee Joseph) after they met on one of QM trips to Boston (1942) they had a daughter who still lives in the US.
* Oct 1943 - British Commandos and SAS landed behind German lines at Termoli on the Adriatic coast.
* Jan 1944 – MTB1107 Patrol German movements in the Strait of Messina and Monte Cassino base Italy (21st Birthday)
* Aug 1944 - French SAS and elite commandos supported the French Resistance (Maquis) in clearing remnants of German Army Group G, securing the Rhone Valley.
* Nov 1944 – He transitioned from Mediterranean duties to the Far East Burma campaign Ceylon (Sunderland flying boat)
* Dec 1944 – Force 136 Training - Special operations personnel underwent 12wk courses, including stalking, jungle survival, and demolition. (He met the Gurkhas who provided jungle training)
* Jan 1945 – Detachment 385, a specialized Royal Marine unit under the Small Operations Group (SOG), including 3rd Commando Brigade conducted clandestine raids, (using small motor launches) and amphibious assaults and sabotage against Japanese forces at Myebon and in the Malacca Strait. (fought off repeated Japanese attacks)
* Feb 1945 - 3 Commando Brigade spearheaded amphibious assaults in the Arakan coastal region, securing vital airfields and ports, such as the brutal fighting at Hill 170. (Tested endurance with disease, supply difficulties, and the monsoon were as formidable as the Japanese defenders.)
*Apr 1945 – Operation Dracula - major amphibious assault on Rangoon occurred in early May, preparations and shaping operations by special forces and marine units continued throughout late April, aiming to capture the city before the monsoon season. This operation featured 1st and 2nd Air Commando Groups, which provided essential air support and transport for the Gurkha Parachute Battalion that spearheaded the attack on 1 May.
* Aug 1945 - Commando battles in Burma marked the final, desperate stages of the Arakan campaign, where the 3 Commando Brigade spearheaded amphibious assaults against retreating Japanese forces. (Despite the war effectively ending, fighting persisted in the jungle, with specialized units securing the coastline and advancing toward Rangoon)
* Nov 1946 – Returned to Australia and discharged (Merchant marine & RAF - 6yrs, 4mth – 24yo) to take up a “normal-life” back home in Australia, however, his wife & child missed her family and returned to the US.
* Jun 1948 - Enlistment (RAAF) – Bradford Pk NSW (15Mth) - No. 60 Squadron RAF, part of the Air Command Southeast Asia (ACSEA) – Postings: Richmond, Wagga, Concord, Wagga, and Laverton. (This period marked a transition from post-WWII policing to anti-insurgency operations, with the squadron based at RAF Tengah and later Kuala Lumpur.)
* Mar 1953 - His 2nd Marriage, to Mary Veronica Walton (Nee Stevens), North Sydney where he perused work as a real-estate developer and finally moved to the homestead “Blairmount” in the City of Campbelltown NSW in 1968 and raised 4 sons. (John, Markham, Anthony & Matthew who all served in the NAVY & ARMY)