HYNES, John Patrick
| Service Number: | 421734 |
|---|---|
| Enlisted: | 28 March 1942 |
| Last Rank: | Flying Officer |
| Last Unit: | Not yet discovered |
| Born: | Kensington, Victoria, Australia, 13 April 1922 |
| Home Town: | Hurstville, Kogarah, New South Wales |
| Schooling: | Not yet discovered |
| Occupation: | Junior Clerk NSW Railways Stores Dept |
| Died: | Flying Accident, Ceylon, 9 June 1945, aged 23 years |
| Cemetery: |
Liveramentu Cemetery, Colombo, Sri Lanka |
| Memorials: | Australian War Memorial Roll of Honour, Haymarket Rozelle Railways and Tramways Stores Branch WW2 Honour Roll |
World War 2 Service
| 3 Sep 1939: | Involvement Flying Officer, 421734 | |
|---|---|---|
| 28 Mar 1942: | Enlisted Royal Australian Air Force, Flying Officer, 421734 |
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Add my storyBiography contributed by Anthony Vine
Flying Officer John Patrick Hynes 421734 RAAF
John Hynes was born in Kensington NSW in April 1922, the son of John and Kathleen Hynes of Hurstville NSW. He had one younger sibling, Thomas who was born in 1931. At the time of his enlistment John was a junior clerk in the NSW Government Railways Stores Department.
John enlisted in the RAAF in March 1942 and after training at Bradfield Park in Sydney he was selected for pilot training at Number 5 Elementary Flying School at Narromine NSW on Tiger Moths. He embarked for Canada in October 1942 completing his flying training at Number 15 Service Flying School at Claresholm in Albert, where he was awarded his “Wings” on the 2nd of April 1943. This was followed by training at Number 1 General Reconnaissance School at Summerside on Prince Edward Island and conversion training to the B24 Liberator at Number 111 Operational Training Unit (111 OTU) in the Bahamas. 111 OTU.
In early January 1944 John joined 160 Squadron RAF based in at RAF Sigiriya and later RAF Kankesanturai in Ceylon flying reconnaissance and minelaying missions. He was commissioned as a Pilot Officer in November 1944 and promoted to Flying Officer in May 1945. After ten months flying as a second pilot he returned to 111 OTU in November 1944 to form his own crew before returning to 160 Squadron.
On the 9th of June 1945 John was the captain of Liberator BX 950 tasked with conducting a photo reconnaissance of the Cocos Keeling Islands. Onboard were nine aircrew and ten ground crew and shortly after take off the aircrafts #1 engine failed and John requested an emergency landing. Approximately three miles from the airstrip, at 1000 to 1500 feet AGL the port wing dropped and the aircraft crashed killing all onboard. The crash was attributed to the inadvertent feathering of #2 propellor. John, his crew and the ten ground crew members are all buried in the Liveramenthu CWGC Plot in Colombo Sri Lanka.
Note: His Service Certificate incorrectly states he was posted to 354 Squadron, a Liberator Bomber Squadron, not 160 Squadron.
References NAA File JP Hynes
RAF Commands Database
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