CATANACH, James
| Service Number: | 400364 |
|---|---|
| Enlisted: | Not yet discovered |
| Last Rank: | Squadron Leader |
| Last Unit: | Not yet discovered |
| Born: | Melbourne, Victoria, Australia, 23 November 1921 |
| Home Town: | Melbourne, Melbourne, Victoria |
| Schooling: | Not yet discovered |
| Occupation: | Not yet discovered |
| Died: | Prisoner of War - Executed by the Gestapo, Germany, 29 March 1944, aged 22 years |
| Cemetery: |
Poznan Old Garrison Cemetery |
| Memorials: | Australian War Memorial Roll of Honour |
World War 2 Service
| 3 Sep 1939: | Involvement Squadron Leader, SN 400364 |
|---|
Help us honour James Catanach's service by contributing information, stories, and images so that they can be preserved for future generations.
Add my storyBiography contributed by Geoffrey Gillon
Squadron Leader Catanach- Service Number 400364, served with 455 Squadron- Royal Australian Air Force.
He was awarded the Distinguished Flying Cross and was Mentioned in Despatches.
He was 22 and the son of William Mercer Catanach and Ruby Catanach, of Malvern, Victoria, Australia.
INSCRIPTION on his wargrave
HIS DUTY FEARLESSLY AND NOBLY DONE. EVER REMEMBERED
Biography contributed by David Barlow
Squadron Leader James Catanach DFC 400364 was one of the three RAAF members that were executed following their participation in the "Great Escape" and their subsequent recapture by German forces - the other two were Warrant Officer Albert Horace Hake 403218 and Flight Lieutenant Reginald Victor Kierath 402364
SQNLDR Catanach was shot down in Hampden AT109 of 455SQN RAAF and became a PoW; another member of his crew - Flight Sergeant John Donald Davidson 5372 - also died while held as a PoW (March 1945)
Three crewmen survived the war: Flight Lieutenant George Robert Anderson 400316 / Flight Sergeant Cecil William Francis Cameron 404632 / Sergeant John Richard Hayes 404462
Click images to start slideshow.