KIRKWOOD, Donald Clarence
| Service Number: | 21714 |
|---|---|
| Enlisted: | 5 February 1941 |
| Last Rank: | Flight Sergeant |
| Last Unit: | No. 30 Squadron (RAAF) |
| Born: | Gladesville, New South Wales, Australia , 24 July 1920 |
| Home Town: | Smithfield, Fairfield, New South Wales |
| Schooling: | Not yet discovered |
| Occupation: | Dispatch Clerk, A.W. A. Ltd, York St, Sydney |
| Died: | Executed whilst a prisoner of the Japanese, Rabaul, New Britain, Pacific Islands, 5 March 1944, aged 23 years |
| Cemetery: |
Rabaul (Bita Paka) War Cemetery, Papua New Guinea (CWGC) Grave Reference, Location ~ Plot E, Row C, Collective Graves 5-11. Personal Inscription ~ "DEARLY LOVED HUSBAND OF MARY DEAR DADDY OF ELAINE (DEC'D) & YVONNE". |
| Memorials: | Australian War Memorial Roll of Honour, Ballarat Australian Ex-Prisoners of War Memorial |
World War 2 Service
| 3 Sep 1939: | Involvement Flight Sergeant, 21714 | |
|---|---|---|
| 5 Feb 1941: | Enlisted Royal Australian Air Force, Flight Sergeant, 21714, No. 30 Squadron (RAAF) |
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Add my storyBiography contributed by Stephen Bonald
Donald Clarence Kirkwood was born in Gladesville, New South Wales, on July 24, 1920. He enlisted in the RAAF on February 5, 1941, and served as a Flight Sergeant in the 30th Squadron, which flew British Beaufighters. On March 5, 1944, during a mission over New Britain in Papua New Guinea, he was captured by the Japanese and executed as a Prisoner of War. After the war, his remains were recovered and reburied at the Rabaul (Bita Paka) War Cemetery, New Guinea. Donald's medals were given to his father, Walter Kirkwood Sr. He is commemorated at the Honour Avenue War Memorial in Fairfield and the Australian War Memorial, Panel 102.
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