GILL, Thomas Fergusson
| Service Number: | SX4550 |
|---|---|
| Enlisted: | 20 June 1940, Woodside, SA |
| Last Rank: | Captain |
| Last Unit: | 1 Australian Air Liaison Section |
| Born: | Largs Bay, South Australia, 18 August 1914 |
| Home Town: | Largs Bay, Port Adelaide Enfield, South Australia |
| Schooling: | St Marks College, South Australia |
| Occupation: | Chartered Accountant |
| Died: | Killed in Action, New Britain, New Britain, Pacific Islands, 10 September 1943, aged 29 years |
| Cemetery: |
No known grave - "Known Unto God" |
| Memorials: | Adelaide WW2 Wall of Remembrance, Australian War Memorial Roll of Honour, Naval Military and Air Force Club of SA Inc WW2 Honour Roll, Rabaul Memorial |
World War 2 Service
| 20 Jun 1940: | Enlisted Australian Military Forces (Army WW2), Lieutenant, SX4550, 2nd/27th Infantry Battalion, Woodside, SA | |
|---|---|---|
| 7 Jun 1941: | Involvement Australian Military Forces (Army WW2), Lieutenant, SX4550, 2nd/27th Infantry Battalion, Syria - Operation Exporter | |
| 10 Sep 1943: | Involvement Australian Military Forces (Army WW2), Captain, SX4550, 1 Australian Air Liaison Section, Air War SW Pacific 1941-45, Aircraft seen to ditch |
Help us honour Thomas Fergusson Gill's service by contributing information, stories, and images so that they can be preserved for future generations.
Add my storyBiography contributed by David Barlow
RAAF 30SQN Beaufighter A19-132 was hit by Japanese anti-aircraft fire and forced to ditch into the ocean off Palmalmal Plantation on the south coast of New Britain on 9 September 1943 - all crew were seen in dinghies the next day but they did not survive. They have no known grave and are all are listed on the Rabaul Memorial in New Britain.
Captain Thomas Fergusson Gill SX4550 of Number 1 Australian Air Liaison Section - army observer
Flying Officer John Robert Newman 404733 and Flying Officer William George Ronald Binnie 43192 - crew
Biography contributed by Grace Neuhaus
Thomas Fergusson Gill was from Largs Bay, South Australia. In 1933 he came to St Mark's College, Adelaide where he studied a diploma of commerce, receiving a credit and 2nd place in Commercial Law in 1933.
He enlisted at Woodside into the Australian Militia (10th Batallion) in 1938, and the AIF 2/27th Infantry Batallion in 1939.
On the 10th of September 1943, Gill was serving with the 1 Air Liason group as an army observer conducting an armed recognisance of the South coast of New Brittain when his plane came under Japanese anti-aircraft fire. A hole was torn in the wing and the plane crashed into the ocean about 30 miles off the coast.
An accompanying aircraft identified the Pilot J.R. Newman, Navigator W.G.R. Binnie and passenger Captain Gill had all emerged from the sinking plane, but with no lifeboat. Another plane was sent out from base an hour later to drop off dingy's, to which the three men were seen climbing aboard. Continuous patrols over their position were conducted with further supplies, food and water dropped for the men.
A search the following morning revealed two empty dingies along the coast of New Brittain, it was assumed the men washed ashore and were 'most probably safe'. A confirmatory memorandum report of the flying casualty notes Captain gill was 'a soldier familiar in jungle warfare and had an intimate knowledge of the escape procedure in New Britain.
However, the men were never found and presumed to have died over the course of that night. Gill has no known grave as his body was not recovered, but is commemorated on the Rabaul Memorial, East New Britain, Papua New Guinea.
Gill received a mention in despatches for 'Gallant and Distinguished Services in the South-West Pacific area'. He was recommended by the Governor-General on the 31st of July 1943, but not promulgated until 3 months after his death on the 23rd of December 1943.
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