RITCHIE, Lloyd Francis
| Service Number: | 426287 |
|---|---|
| Enlisted: | 19 June 1942 |
| Last Rank: | Flying Officer |
| Last Unit: | No. 31 Squadron (RAAF) |
| Born: | Brisbane, Queensland, Australia, 6 December 1922 |
| Home Town: | Nambour, Sunshine Coast, Queensland |
| Schooling: | Not yet discovered |
| Occupation: | Not yet discovered |
| Died: | Accidental (Flying Accident), Bracks Creek, Northern Territory, Australia, Darwin, Northern Territory, Australia, 24 September 1944, aged 21 years |
| Cemetery: | Not yet discovered |
| Memorials: | Adelaide River Northern Territory Memorial, Australian War Memorial Roll of Honour, Nambour Maroochy Shire War Dead Memorial |
World War 2 Service
| 3 Sep 1939: | Involvement Flying Officer, 426287 | |
|---|---|---|
| 19 Jun 1942: | Enlisted Royal Australian Air Force, No. 31 Squadron (RAAF) | |
| 19 Jun 1942: | Enlisted Royal Australian Air Force, Flying Officer, 426287, No. 31 Squadron (RAAF) |
Help us honour Lloyd Francis Ritchie's service by contributing information, stories, and images so that they can be preserved for future generations.
Add my storyBiography contributed by David Barlow
Son of Francis and Martha Ritchie of Nambour, Queensland
RAAF Beaufighter aircraft A19-192 & A19-208 of Number 31 Squadron were returning from escort duty over the Arafura Sea when they became lost over the Northern Territory at approximately 2000 hours.
The crew of A19-208 were never found with the crashed aircraft located near Goodparla / Kalpalga Station in the Kakadu region over 12 months later.
The crew of A19-192 bailed out and the aircraft crashed near Bracks Creek but the pilot was never found. The navigator was located the next day: Warrant Officer George Robert Warner 418028 survived the war and was discharged from the RAAF in 1946
The incident is the subject of a book in the RAAF Heritage series - “Lost Without Trace: Squadron Leader Wilbur Wackett (A Story of Bravery and Tragedy in the Pacific War)”
Commemorated on the Northern Territory Memorial to the Missing located at Adelaide River War Cemetery, NT are:
Flying Officer Lloyd Francis Ritchie 426287 Pilot of Beaufighter A19-192
Squadron Leader Wilbur Lawrence Wackett 588 Pilot of Beaufighter A19-208 and his Navigator Flying Officer Keith Eric William Noble 424052
Click images to start slideshow.