RUTTER, Vernon Temple
| Service Number: | 418182 |
|---|---|
| Enlisted: | 25 April 1942 |
| Last Rank: | Flying Officer |
| Last Unit: | No. 142 Squadron (RAF) |
| Born: | Richmond, Victoria, Australia, 10 March 1913 |
| Home Town: | Heidelberg, Banyule, Victoria |
| Schooling: | Unknown |
| Occupation: | Insurance Company Manager |
| Died: | Killed in Action (flyintg battle), Italy, 25 February 1944, aged 30 years |
| Cemetery: |
Bari War Cemetery Grave, XV. D. 31 |
| Memorials: | Australian War Memorial Roll of Honour |
World War 2 Service
| 25 Apr 1942: | Enlisted Royal Australian Air Force, 418182, Melbourne, Victoria | |
|---|---|---|
| 25 Apr 1942: | Enlisted Royal Australian Air Force, Flying Officer, 418182 | |
| 26 Apr 1942: | Involvement Royal Australian Air Force, 418182 | |
| 25 Feb 1944: | Involvement Royal Australian Air Force, Flying Officer, 418182, No. 142 Squadron (RAF), Air War NW Europe 1939-45 |
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24/25 Feb 1944: The night's target was the Daimer-Puch factory at Steyr, Austria. The route was base - Start Point - Bravigne East - end of Lake Grade - Lake Millstatter - Lake Traum - target and return by the same route. Wellington X HF537 Crashed at Castel Nuovo, Italy, returning from Steyr. F/O N H Koetsueld RAAF and Sgt R Foster were injured, but F/O V T Rutter RAAF, Sgt G D V Howard RAAF and Sgt F C Churcher were killed. F/O Koetsveld died of his injuries on 4 March 1944. All the fatalities were buried in Bari War Cemetery.
"Flying Officer Vernon Rutter of Claremont, WA, navigator, and Flying Officer Norman Koetsveld of Essendon, Vic, pilot, when flying a Wellington bomber aircraft from England to North Africa, the starboard engine overheated and blew the starboard tyre and tore the cowling and fabric of the mainplane. The engine then cut, but the pilot flew the bomber over several hundred miles of sea to make a safe landing on one engine and one wheel. Another RAAF member of the crew was Flight Sergeant Tim Howard of Subiaco, WA. Note the tree behind them."
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