MCLEAN, George Gordon
| Service Number: | 401996 |
|---|---|
| Enlisted: | 26 April 1941 |
| Last Rank: | Warrant Officer |
| Last Unit: | Not yet discovered |
| Born: | Melbourne, Victoria, Australia , 1 September 1918 |
| Home Town: | Brunswick East, Moreland, Victoria |
| Schooling: | Not yet discovered |
| Occupation: | Not yet discovered |
| Died: | Flying Battle, Mira, Portugal, 6 March 1944, aged 25 years |
| Cemetery: |
Oporto St. James British Churchyard, Porto, Portugal |
| Memorials: | Australian War Memorial Roll of Honour, Piangil War Memorial |
World War 2 Service
| 3 Sep 1939: | Involvement Warrant Officer, 401996 | |
|---|---|---|
| 26 Apr 1941: | Enlisted Royal Australian Air Force, Warrant Officer, 401996 |
George McLean
Warrant Officer George Gordon McLean 401996 lies in the St James Church Cemetery, Porto Portugal. His grave is the only Australian War Grave in Portugal.
George was born in Melbourne in 1918 and at the time of his enlistment in April 1941 he was a teacher at the Tyabb State School. He was the son of Frederick and the late Caroline McLean and had at least one sibling, a elder brother Henry McLean who later claimed his service medals.
George completed his initial training at 1 Initial Training School Somers where he was selected for pilot training and posted to 28 Elementary Flying Training School in Rhodesia. Whilst on pilot’s training he had medical issues which saw him remustered as a trainee observer and transferred to an observers course. He was awarded his “O”brevet on the 5th of June 1942. George believed he had been recommended for a commission on completion of his observer’s course and had a running battle with the RAAF for the next year as to why he hadn’t been commissioned.
George trained at numbers 5 and 1 (Coastal) Operational Training Units in the UK. Whilst at 1 OTU he was involved in a accident when his aircraft conducted a forced landing – George received lacerations to his scalp and experienced bouts of dizziness for some weeks. He eventually returned to training and joined 269 Squadron RAF on the 31st of August 1943.
At the time George joined the squadron it was operating from Reykjavik in Iceland and a satellite base in Greenland conducting ASW patrols utilising Hudson bombers. During this period he flew on a number of operations in a crew lead by PO WG McNeill. 269 Squadron returned to the UK in December 1943 in preparation to being based in the Azores. He was one of only three RAAF NCOs on the squadron.
On the 6th of March 1944 George was the navigator of a Hudson bomber captained by Squadron Leader David McPetrie RAF, along with two Canadian Airmen, Wireless Operator Air Gunners, WO Phillip Gallop and WO H Potwahka. McPetrie, Gallop and Potwahka appear to have recently joined the squadron as they do not appear in the squadron’s ORBs before that date.
Their aircraft left the UK for the Azores via Gibraltar and over the Bay of Biscay encountered a severe electrical storm. David McPetrie diverted to neutral Portugal making a landfall near Figueroa da Foz, however at 0600 the port engine failed and the aircraft went out of control.
George, Gallop and Potwahka were able to parachute from the crippled aircraft before it crashed into the sea. Potwahka was rescued by a Portuguese fishing boat, however George, David McPetrie and Phillip Gallop were all drowned and their bodies recovered by the Portuguese. The three men lie in the Anglican St James Church Cemetery in Orporto Portugal, alongside seven other Commonwealth Airmen.
The graves are s
Submitted 1 August 2022 by Anthony Vine
Biography contributed by Joao Alcaide
Biography contributed by Anthony Vine
WARRANT OFFICER GEORGE GORDON MCLEAN 401996 RAAF
George McLean who lies in the St James Church Cemetery, Porto Portugal, has the dubious distinction of being the only Australian buried in a War Grave in Portugal.
George was born in Melbourne in 1918 and at the time of his enlistment in April 1941 he was a teacher at the Tyabb State School in Victoria. He was the son of Frederick and the late Caroline McLean and had at least one sibling, an elder brother Henry McLean who later claimed his service medals.
George completed his initial training at 1 Initial Training School Somers where he was selected for pilot training and posted to Number 28 Elementary Flying Training School in Rhodesia. Whilst on pilot’s training he had medical issues which saw him re-mustered as a trainee observer and transferred to an observer’s course. He was awarded his “O” Brevet (Half Wing) on the 5th of June 1942. George believed he had been recommended for a commission on completion of his observer’s course and had a running battle with the RAAF for the next year as to why he hadn’t been commissioned.
George trained at numbers 5 and 1 (Coastal) Operational Training Units in the UK. Whilst at 1 OTU he was involved in an accident when his aircraft conducted a forced landing – George received lacerations to his scalp and experienced bouts of dizziness for some weeks. He eventually returned to training and joined 269 Squadron RAF on the 31st of August 1943.
At the time George joined the squadron it was operating from Reykjavik in Iceland and a satellite base in Greenland conducting ASW patrols utilising Hudson bombers. During this period, he flew on several operations in a crew led by PO WG McNeill. 269 Squadron returned to the UK in December 1943 in preparation to being based in the Azores. He was one of only three RAAF NCOs on the squadron.
On the 6th of March 1944 George was the navigator of a Hudson bomber captained by Squadron Leader David McPetrie RAF, along with two Canadian Airmen, Wireless Operator Air Gunners, WO Phillip Gallop and WO H Potwahka. McPetrie, Gallop and Potwahka appear to have recently joined the squadron as they do not appear in the squadron’s ORBs before that date.
Their aircraft left the UK for the Azores via Gibraltar and over the Bay of Biscay encountered a severe electrical storm. David McPetrie diverted to neutral Portugal making a landfall near Figueroa da Foz, however at 0600 the port engine failed and the aircraft went out of control.
George, Gallop and Potwahka were able to parachute from the crippled aircraft before it crashed into the sea. Potwahka was rescued by a Portuguese fishing boat, however George, David McPetrie and Phillip Gallop were all drowned and their bodies recovered by the Portuguese. The three men lie in the Anglican St James Church Cemetery in Orporto Portugal, alongside seven other Commonwealth Airmen.
Reference:
NAA: A9301, 401996 George Gordon McLean
NAA A705, 166/26/392
McLEAN, George Gordon - (Warrant Officer); Service Number - 401996; File type - Casualty - Repatriation; Aircraft - Hudson FK2791; Place - Figuera da Foz, Portugal; Date - 6 March 1944
UK Archives 259 Squadron ORBs
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