PETTET, Laurence Edward
| Service Numbers: | SX534, 417758 |
|---|---|
| Enlisted: | 17 October 1939 |
| Last Rank: | Flying Officer |
| Last Unit: | 6th Division Cavalry Regiment |
| Born: | Carlton, Victoria, Australia, 27 November 1915 |
| Home Town: | Melbourne, Melbourne, Victoria |
| Schooling: | Not yet discovered |
| Occupation: | Tractor Driver/Mechanic |
| Died: | Geelong, Victoria, Australia, 3 September 1976, aged 60 years, cause of death not yet discovered |
| Cemetery: |
Barrabool Hills Cemetery, Victoria |
| Memorials: |
World War 2 Service
| 17 Oct 1939: | Enlisted Australian Military Forces (WW2) , Trooper, SX534, 6th Division Cavalry Regiment | |
|---|---|---|
| 10 Jan 1941: | Embarked Australian Military Forces (WW2) , Trooper, SX534, 6th Division Cavalry Regiment, embarked Sydney for Kantara | |
| 18 Jun 1941: | Wounded Australian Military Forces (WW2) , Trooper, SX534, 6th Division Cavalry Regiment, Middle East - shrapnel wounds to head, arms and body | |
| 18 May 1942: | Embarked Australian Military Forces (WW2) , Lance Corporal, SX534, 6th Division Cavalry Regiment, embarked Middle East for Adelaide | |
| 8 Jul 1942: | Discharged Australian Military Forces (WW2) , Lance Corporal, SX534, 6th Division Cavalry Regiment, for service in the RAAF | |
| 9 Jul 1942: | Involvement Flying Officer, 417758 | |
| 9 Jul 1942: | Enlisted Royal Australian Air Force, Flying Officer, 417758 | |
| 9 Jul 1942: | Enlisted Adelaide, SA | |
| 26 Nov 1943: | Embarked Royal Australian Air Force, 417758, embarked Sydney for the United Kingdom | |
| 9 May 1945: | Embarked Royal Australian Air Force, 417758, embarked England for Sydney | |
| 19 Sep 1945: | Discharged |
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Add my storyBiography contributed by Chris Buckley
Elder of two brothers (Laurence and Robert) who served in WWII, Flying Officer Laurence Edward Pettet (Service No:417758) initially enlisted in the AIF on 17 October 1939 as a Trooper (Service No:SX534) with 6th Division Cavalry Regiment. Trooper Pettet - graded Gunner Operator - served in the Middle East (10 January 1941 - 18 May 1942), and was WiA (shrapnel wounds to head, arms and body) on 18 June 1941. Lance Corporal Pettet was attached to 6th Division Cavalry Regiment on 8 July 1942 when he Discharged 'for service in the RAAF' (NAA). Aircraftman II Pettet enlisted in the RAAF at No 5 Recruiting Centre Adelaide on 9 July 1942 - mustered as Driver Motor Transport. By 26 Novemebr 1943, Flight Sergeant/Pilot Pettet had served as a Gunner and Wireless Operator, and in England was attached to RAF Station Methwold, 3 Lancaster Finishing School Feltwell and 1651 Conversion Unit at Foxwell Lodge, and flew DH82s, Fairey Battles, Wellingtons, Stirlings and Lancasters. Appointed to a Commission on 8 January 1945, Pilot Officer Pettet returned from England to Sydney in May, and on 19 September 1945 (at Termination of Appointment) was a Flying Officer attached to 75 Squadron. He reenlisted in the RAAF as an Aircraftman I at Laverton on 6 April 1948, and was Discharged on 30 August 1948.
Laurie was born in Melbourne, Victoria in 1915, eldest of two children of Helena (Nellie) Bremner (b1897 in Melbourne, Victoria). Nellie was Factory Worker with two small sons in 1921 when she married William Pettet (b1882 in Melbourne, Victoria) - William was Divorced with four children. William had served in the Army in WWI (Private; Service No:2281), and worked as a Seaman and Builder's Labourer. Nellie and William settled in Melbourne, where they raised their family (William adpopted Nellie's sons Laurie and Robert), and William worked as a Builder's Labourer and Seaman.
Laurie worked as a Miner and Tractor Driver/Mechanic in Broken Hill, and served in the Army and RAAF from 1939 to 1948. In 1942 in Adelaide, Laurie married his first wife Esther Winifred Tippett (b1920 in Wangaratta, Victoria), and following his Discharge from the RAAF, Laurie and Esther settled in Melbourne - Laurie worked as a Wood Machinist. Following their divorce in the early 1950s, Laurie remarried to Margaret (Peg) Anne Bacon (b1925 in Melbourne, Victoria) and settled in Melbourne - Laurie was a Wood Machinist and Peg was a Process and Hospital Worker. Laurie died in 1976 and Peg died in 2001.
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