SCANLAN, Robert Joseph
| Service Number: | 38163 |
|---|---|
| Enlisted: | 17 March 1941 |
| Last Rank: | Leading Aircraftman |
| Last Unit: | Not yet discovered |
| Born: | Narrogin, Western Australia, 24 October 1918 |
| Home Town: | Perth, Western Australia |
| Schooling: | Emu Hill School, Western Australia |
| Occupation: | Bus Driver |
| Died: | Illness, Adelaide, South Australia, 2 May 1944, aged 25 years |
| Cemetery: |
Centennial Park Cemetery, South Australia Plot C. Row A. Grave 2. |
| Memorials: | Australian War Memorial Roll of Honour, Kings Park Western Australia State War Memorial |
World War 2 Service
| 3 Sep 1939: | Involvement 38163 | |
|---|---|---|
| 17 Mar 1941: | Enlisted Royal Australian Air Force, Leading Aircraftman, 38163 |
Help us honour Robert Joseph Scanlan'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 Robert and Frances Scanlan
Husband of Thelma Kathleen Scanlan of Collingwood, Victoria
Biography contributed by Chris Buckley
Leading Aircraftman Robert Joseph Scanlan (Service No:38163) initially served in the Militia with 13th Field Engineers as a Sapper before enlisting in the RAAF as an Aircraftman I on 17 March 1941 at No 4 Recruiting Centre Perth - mustered as Trainee Mechanic. Promoted to Leading Aircraftman on 1 December 1942, LAC Scanlan was at No 6 Service Flying Training School (SFTS) Malalla, South Australia when 'On 23 April 1944, Leading Aircraftman Scanlan, a Fitter II Engines, attended sick parade and was admitted to Station Sick Quarters. He was transferred to No 7 RAAF Hospital, Adelaide on 25 April, and died on 30 April 1944 of a blood disorder, caused by general breakdown of the circulatory system. Following an investigation, it appeared that fatal illnesses were caused by poisonous benzol fumes' (RAAFA Aviation Heritage Museum).
Born in Narrogin, WA in 1918, Bob was youngest of three children of Robert Scanlan (b1865) and Frances (Fanny) Finn (b1880). Robert worked as a Gardener in Wanneroo before moving to the WA Goldfields in 1903, where he was working as a Miner when he and Fanny married in 1907 in Kalgoorlie. They lived in Kalgoorlie until 1913, when they moved to Perth and then to Emu Hill via Doodlakine where Robert was a Farmer.
Bob worked in Perth as a Boiler Attendant and Laundryman, and in 1941 when he enlisted in the RAAF, was a Bus Driver in Perth. In 1943 in Melbourne, Bob married Thelma Kathleen Tempest (b1918 in Melbourne, Victoria). Following Bob's death, Thelma remarried.
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