KNAPPSTEIN, Noel William
| Service Numbers: | Not yet discovered |
|---|---|
| Enlisted: | Not yet discovered |
| Last Rank: | Sub Lieutenant |
| Last Unit: | Not yet discovered |
| Born: | Clare, SA, 7 May 1930 |
| Home Town: | Not yet discovered |
| Schooling: | Not yet discovered |
| Occupation: | Not yet discovered |
| Memorials: |
Korean War Service
| 25 Jun 1950: | Involvement | |
|---|---|---|
| 31 Aug 1951: | Involvement Royal Australian Navy, Sub Lieutenant |
Crash Landing!
On 26 October 1951, Sub Lieutenant Noel Knappstein was hit by flak while attacking ground targets at the mouth of the Han River. Knappstein force landed his Sea Fury on the nearby island of Kyodong Do in the Han Estuary, just south of the 38th Parallel. Realising that the plane was a write off, he salvaged what he could and sold the remainder of the wreck to some local villagers for about 1000 Wong. He was rescued shortly afterwards by HMS Amethyst which was then ordered to retrieve some more much needed and scarce equipment from the downed aircraft. The landing party was confronted by a farmer armed with a blunderbuss gun (an 18th century forerunner to a shotgun) determined to protect his new acquisition. Following some diplomatic discussions, the equipment was retrieved peacefully. Once he had converted the huge wad of cash into Australian currency, the entrepreneurial Knappstein's haul from the exercise amounted to one shilling and nine pence.
http://www.navy.gov.au/history/squadron-histories/805-squadron-history
Submitted 13 February 2019 by Mark Fairleigh