Virtual
War Memorial
Australia

Moheddeen Abhdul ‘Bob’ Ghias Howsan, (404247), of ‘dark complexion’, of Afghan ancestry, born in 1919 in Brisbane, Queensland. Moheddeen Abdul Ghias, was known as ‘Bob’ Howsan. He was educated at Buranda Boys’ School and Brisbane Boys’ Grammar School. At the school he was a talented and versatile student. English, mathematics, history, geography, chemistry and French were his interesting subjects, while cricket, football, tennis and rowing were his favourite sports. He worked as a salesman and was engaged to an Australian girl.

Bob served 205 days in the 43rd Battery 11th Brigade AFA [Royal Australian Artillery] from November 1939 until July 1940 when he enlisted in the RAAF, holding the rank of Flight Sergeant, leaving Australia in April 1941 for training in Canada, before going on to England. He was assessed as being above average in flying, navigation, bombing and also in growth subjects and linked training. He stated, ‘That was [indeed] one of my ambitions, to be above average in everything’. After finishing air training and visiting a number of places with the RAAF on the way to Europe, Bob arrived with his comrade, Alan Slaughter, in November 1941 in London where he wrote a letter about his exceptional experience there.

On Paddington Station, Bob and Alan met Lord Davies who took them to the Strand Palace Hotel where they were booked to stay – ‘it was pretty dear but it was worth it’, said Bob. Lord Davies invited them to lunch with him at the House of Lords. When they arrived there, Lord Davies introduced Bob and Alan to Lord Hare, Lord Simon and Lord Trenchard, founder of the RAF who had a ‘good chat to us about Australia’. After lunch, they went to a debate in the House of Commons. Then, they had a look at the bomb damage in the Commons. The Lord Davies took Bob and his comrades back to his flat where he gave them his book titled Foundation of Victory. He wrote and signed his dedication to Bob: ‘To my Australian friend [Bob Howsan], in recollection of his visit to the houses of Parliament in appreciation of his effort to lay the ‘foundation’ – with all good wishes for his success from the author’. Wherever Bob found time he wrote to his parents:

When he was not on a duty, Bob socialised with comrades playing ‘billiards, snooker, checkers, darts or singing songs’. Other activities in his spare time were philately, numismatics, visiting interesting places and listening to the radio. Wherever he previously travelled or stayed with the RAAF he collected stamps, including Australian, English, South African, West African, Greek, Egyptian, Palestinian and Italian stamps. He took another hobby too collecting Australian, English, South African, West African, Greek, Palestinian, Italian, Egyptian, Turkish and Indian coins. In London, Bob also saw Buckingham Palace, Westminster Abbey, Hyde Park, Marble Arch and Big Ben.

Bob went to the Sussex Hotel which was the meeting place for the Australian and New Zealand Army, Navy and Air Force in London. Before the raids, Bob also met some Aussie soldiers and Navy personnel in Edinburgh, chaps ‘we’d never seen before’. If anyone saw us how we cordially greet each other you would believe we were old friends – ‘that’s how it is with Aussies over here’. Thinking also about family, friends and homeland, he believed that they are all on a war footing out there now. ‘I wish we could get back to give a hand. Maybe someday we will’, he said. He didn’t think he would take to operations in Europe as he has done – ‘I’m enjoying it very much’.

Knowing that it is fatal to enter a war without the will to win it, Bob never worried about dying, rather he felt privileged to fly the RAAF planes. He maintained that ‘pilots are born not [only] made’ explaining that, ‘If it’s not in a man to be a pilot, he won’t be. It t just comes naturally’. Flying over enemy area is like ‘climbing over someone’s fence to steal oranges’. ‘It’s much the same feeling because I’ve done both’. Bob felt happy and confident about it all, ‘I have plenty of faith and love and that’s what we need in this game’, he said. Believing in himself, he felt how lucky and everything used to turn out okay and just the way he wanted it – ‘Well, that’s just how it is over here’, he said.

As an airman, Bob described himself as ‘a man in mind and a boy at heart’, being ready to take part in the theatres of war. There is no despondency here. Every pilot ‘clamours to go on the next raid’. Berlin is a popular one. When the boys hear Berlin is on again, they all hang around the flight office waiting for briefing. There was a lot of disappointment when briefing is over. ‘I’ve been disappointed a few times. It does one’s heart good going to briefing. If you saw the movie ‘Target for Tonight’ you would have the right idea. After various formalities were completed, Bob was posted to Wellesbourne, Warwickshire. The Commandeer Officer straightforwardly approached Bob and his comrades, commanding:

Pilots stand! So and so, you go in from this direction, and so and so you go in from that direction. Next, it’s such and such a height and then so and so you go in first and start the fires and then you, so and so, go in last and finish the job…’

Retrospectively, Bob had his first flight in a Wellington on 8th August, 1941. He flew as second pilot on raids over Europe and then on 22nd January, 1942, he was made Captain of his own aircraft. His operations included – Austend; Dunkirk; Emden; Bremmen; Le Havre; Cologne; Essen; Lubech; Wysse and Poissy. He described one of his raids in destroying enemy targets:

My crew raided a German Naval Base […] We were going over the North Sea and it was very cloudy and you could hear the exclamations of annoyance. You see, we do like to get a good view of the target. When we got near the German coast it was as clear as crystal and boy were we happy. We flew over the bay and saw the town and the docks all covered with snow and in the moonlight, it was a pretty sight. It was a shame to spoil a good picture but we were sent to bomb it and bomb it we did. We left some nice fires burning and we did a good bit of damage.

Bob Howsan also wrote to his parents that it may seem strange to other people but he had a strong feeling that he would come back to Australia safe and sound. It can be described in one word – ‘faith’. ‘I have it, so neither you nor I have any cause to worry’, he said. A cushion cover from Egypt was the last gift sent home to his mother in Brisbane, a few months before he died in action.

He served with No. 405 Squadron, RCAF. His last mission on April 1st, 1942 was a special operation and his Wellington aircraft Z. 8527 was hit and crashed in aerial combat in a field on the outskirts of the French village of Marly Le Roi. Bob had deliberately steered the plane away from the township.

The plane he piloted was shot down in aerial combat over France and he was killed. Before the plane crashed, Sergeant Howsan steered the stricken aircraft away from the French village of Marly-le-Roi, near Versailles, to avoid falling on the village and causing civilian casualties.

Captain Flight Sergeant Bob Howsan displayed the utmost fortitude, bravery and devotion to duty making the supreme sacrifice. The crew comprised other five members, of those only one survived. They were Second Pilot Sgt Howe (Canadian); Air Gunner Sgt Mackinnon (British); Air Gunner Sgt Ashun (British); Air Gunner Sgt Page (Canadian); Navigator F/O Burgoyne (Canadian) – solo survivor, who became a POW.

The Minister for Air and members of the Air Board gave formal expression of their profound sympathy to Bob Howsan’s family in their great loss. An acknowledgement letter also came from Buckingham Palace: ‘The Queen and I offer you our heartfelt sympathy in your great sorrow. We pray that your country’s gratitude for a life so nobly given in its service may bring you some measure of consolation’. The profound sympathy in the letter by Secretary of the RAAF. ‘Flight Sergeant Howsan was known to me personally and I know him as a man faithful in his duty’, wrote Canadian Flight Lieutenant among a number comrades and friends.

Bob Howsan was buried with full military honours. In the letter from the office of the Directorate of War Graves’ Service stated: His grave will be cared for by the Imperial War Graves Commission and you may be assured that everything possible will be done to ensure that it is maintained in a manner befitting one who has given his life in the service of his country. I trust this knowledge is some consolation to you on your loss.

Bob’s hope to fly home after the war, tragically ended. The life of the young fiancé was withered in the prime of youth. In the last words of his parents ‘death is but the gateway to eternal life’. In loving memory of their brother, his two loving sisters, Lucy and Muriel, dedicated the poem ‘High Flight’ by John Gillespie Magee of the Royal Canadian Air Force The poem concludes: ‘And while with silent, lifting mind, I've trod the high, untrespassed sanctity of space …’ Bob Howsan was laid to rest in Versailles (Les Gornada), France. On Remembrance Day, 1994 the townspeople of Marly Le Roi unveiled a monument to honour the crew. Bob Howsan’s name is also on the Roll of Honour in Brisbane.

From the book:

Dzavid Haveric, A History of Muslims in the Australian Military from 1885 to 1945: Loyalty, Patriotism, Contribution’, Cambridge Scholars Publishing, London, 2024.

Moheddeen Abhdul ‘Bob’ Ghias Howsan, (404247), of ‘dark complexion’, of Afghan ancestry, born in 1919 in Brisbane, Queensland. Moheddeen Abdul Ghias, was known as ‘Bob’ Howsan. He was educated at Buranda Boys’ School and Brisbane Boys’ Grammar School. At the school he was a talented and versatile student. English, mathematics, history, geography, chemistry and French were his interesting subjects, while cricket, football, tennis and rowing were his favourite sports. He worked as a salesman and was engaged to an Australian girl.

Bob served 205 days in the 43rd Battery 11th Brigade AFA [Royal Australian Artillery] from November 1939 until July 1940 when he enlisted in the RAAF, holding the rank of Flight Sergeant, leaving Australia in April 1941 for training in Canada, before going on to England. He was assessed as being above average in flying, navigation, bombing and also in growth subjects and linked training. He stated, ‘That was [indeed] one of my ambitions, to be above average in everything’. After finishing air training and visiting a number of places with the RAAF on the way to Europe, Bob arrived with his comrade, Alan Slaughter, in November 1941 in London where he wrote a letter about his exceptional experience there.

On Paddington Station, Bob and Alan met Lord Davies who took them to the Strand Palace Hotel where they were booked to stay – ‘it was pretty dear but it was worth it’, said Bob. Lord Davies invited them to lunch with him at the House of Lords. When they arrived there, Lord Davies introduced Bob and Alan to Lord Hare, Lord Simon and Lord Trenchard, founder of the RAF who had a ‘good chat to us about Australia’. After lunch, they went to a debate in the House of Commons. Then, they had a look at the bomb damage in the Commons. The Lord Davies took Bob and his comrades back to his flat where he gave them his book titled Foundation of Victory. He wrote and signed his dedication to Bob: ‘To my Australian friend [Bob Howsan], in recollection of his visit to the houses of Parliament in appreciation of his effort to lay the ‘foundation’ – with all good wishes for his success from the author’. Wherever Bob found time he wrote to his parents:

When he was not on a duty, Bob socialised with comrades playing ‘billiards, snooker, checkers, darts or singing songs’. Other activities in his spare time were philately, numismatics, visiting interesting places and listening to the radio. Wherever he previously travelled or stayed with the RAAF he collected stamps, including Australian, English, South African, West African, Greek, Egyptian, Palestinian and Italian stamps. He took another hobby too collecting Australian, English, South African, West African, Greek, Palestinian, Italian, Egyptian, Turkish and Indian coins. In London, Bob also saw Buckingham Palace, Westminster Abbey, Hyde Park, Marble Arch and Big Ben.

Bob went to the Sussex Hotel which was the meeting place for the Australian and New Zealand Army, Navy and Air Force in London. Before the raids, Bob also met some Aussie soldiers and Navy personnel in Edinburgh, chaps ‘we’d never seen before’. If anyone saw us how we cordially greet each other you would believe we were old friends – ‘that’s how it is with Aussies over here’. Thinking also about family, friends and homeland, he believed that they are all on a war footing out there now. ‘I wish we could get back to give a hand. Maybe someday we will’, he said. He didn’t think he would take to operations in Europe as he has done – ‘I’m enjoying it very much’.

Knowing that it is fatal to enter a war without the will to win it, Bob never worried about dying, rather he felt privileged to fly the RAAF planes. He maintained that ‘pilots are born not [only] made’ explaining that, ‘If it’s not in a man to be a pilot, he won’t be. It t just comes naturally’. Flying over enemy area is like ‘climbing over someone’s fence to steal oranges’. ‘It’s much the same feeling because I’ve done both’. Bob felt happy and confident about it all, ‘I have plenty of faith and love and that’s what we need in this game’, he said. Believing in himself, he felt how lucky and everything used to turn out okay and just the way he wanted it – ‘Well, that’s just how it is over here’, he said.

As an airman, Bob described himself as ‘a man in mind and a boy at heart’, being ready to take part in the theatres of war. There is no despondency here. Every pilot ‘clamours to go on the next raid’. Berlin is a popular one. When the boys hear Berlin is on again, they all hang around the flight office waiting for briefing. There was a lot of disappointment when briefing is over. ‘I’ve been disappointed a few times. It does one’s heart good going to briefing. If you saw the movie ‘Target for Tonight’ you would have the right idea. After various formalities were completed, Bob was posted to Wellesbourne, Warwickshire. The Commandeer Officer straightforwardly approached Bob and his comrades, commanding:

Pilots stand! So and so, you go in from this direction, and so and so you go in from that direction. Next, it’s such and such a height and then so and so you go in first and start the fires and then you, so and so, go in last and finish the job…’

Retrospectively, Bob had his first flight in a Wellington on 8th August, 1941. He flew as second pilot on raids over Europe and then on 22nd January, 1942, he was made Captain of his own aircraft. His operations included – Austend; Dunkirk; Emden; Bremmen; Le Havre; Cologne; Essen; Lubech; Wysse and Poissy. He described one of his raids in destroying enemy targets:

My crew raided a German Naval Base […] We were going over the North Sea and it was very cloudy and you could hear the exclamations of annoyance. You see, we do like to get a good view of the target. When we got near the German coast it was as clear as crystal and boy were we happy. We flew over the bay and saw the town and the docks all covered with snow and in the moonlight, it was a pretty sight. It was a shame to spoil a good picture but we were sent to bomb it and bomb it we did. We left some nice fires burning and we did a good bit of damage.

Bob Howsan also wrote to his parents that it may seem strange to other people but he had a strong feeling that he would come back to Australia safe and sound. It can be described in one word – ‘faith’. ‘I have it, so neither you nor I have any cause to worry’, he said. A cushion cover from Egypt was the last gift sent home to his mother in Brisbane, a few months before he died in action.

He served with No. 405 Squadron, RCAF. His last mission on April 1st, 1942 was a special operation and his Wellington aircraft Z. 8527 was hit and crashed in aerial combat in a field on the outskirts of the French village of Marly Le Roi. Bob had deliberately steered the plane away from the township.

The plane he piloted was shot down in aerial combat over France and he was killed. Before the plane crashed, Sergeant Howsan steered the stricken aircraft away from the French village of Marly-le-Roi, near Versailles, to avoid falling on the village and causing civilian casualties.

Captain Flight Sergeant Bob Howsan displayed the utmost fortitude, bravery and devotion to duty making the supreme sacrifice. The crew comprised other five members, of those only one survived. They were Second Pilot Sgt Howe (Canadian); Air Gunner Sgt Mackinnon (British); Air Gunner Sgt Ashun (British); Air Gunner Sgt Page (Canadian); Navigator F/O Burgoyne (Canadian) – solo survivor, who became a POW.

The Minister for Air and members of the Air Board gave formal expression of their profound sympathy to Bob Howsan’s family in their great loss. An acknowledgement letter also came from Buckingham Palace: ‘The Queen and I offer you our heartfelt sympathy in your great sorrow. We pray that your country’s gratitude for a life so nobly given in its service may bring you some measure of consolation’. The profound sympathy in the letter by Secretary of the RAAF. ‘Flight Sergeant Howsan was known to me personally and I know him as a man faithful in his duty’, wrote Canadian Flight Lieutenant among a number comrades and friends.

Bob Howsan was buried with full military honours. In the letter from the office of the Directorate of War Graves’ Service stated: His grave will be cared for by the Imperial War Graves Commission and you may be assured that everything possible will be done to ensure that it is maintained in a manner befitting one who has given his life in the service of his country. I trust this knowledge is some consolation to you on your loss.

Bob’s hope to fly home after the war, tragically ended. The life of the young fiancé was withered in the prime of youth. In the last words of his parents ‘death is but the gateway to eternal life’. In loving memory of their brother, his two loving sisters, Lucy and Muriel, dedicated the poem ‘High Flight’ by John Gillespie Magee of the Royal Canadian Air Force The poem concludes: ‘And while with silent, lifting mind, I've trod the high, untrespassed sanctity of space …’ Bob Howsan was laid to rest in Versailles (Les Gornada), France. On Remembrance Day, 1994 the townspeople of Marly Le Roi unveiled a monument to honour the crew. Bob Howsan’s name is also on the Roll of Honour in Brisbane.