THORPE, Harold Elsdon
| Service Number: | 402419 |
|---|---|
| Enlisted: | 19 August 1940, Sydney, NSW |
| Last Rank: | Warrant Officer |
| Last Unit: | No. 110 Squadron (RAF) |
| Born: | Elwood, Victoria Australia, 27 January 1919 |
| Home Town: | Sydney, City of Sydney, New South Wales |
| Schooling: | Camberwell Grammar School, Telopea Park Primary School, Telopea Park Intermediate High School |
| Occupation: | Clerk - Department of Taxation, Canberra ACT |
| Died: | Accidental (Flying Accident), India, 21 April 1943, aged 24 years |
| Cemetery: |
Ranchi War Cemetery 1 E 12 |
| Memorials: | Australian War Memorial Roll of Honour, Barton St Andrew's Presbyterian Church Roll of Honour, Canberra ACT Memorial |
World War 2 Service
| 3 Sep 1939: | Involvement Warrant Officer, 402419 | |
|---|---|---|
| 19 Aug 1940: | Enlisted Royal Australian Air Force, Warrant Officer, 402419, No. 110 Squadron (RAF), Sydney, NSW |
Help us honour Harold Elsdon Thorpe's service by contributing information, stories, and images so that they can be preserved for future generations.
Add my storyBiography contributed by Faithe Jones
Son of Frank Gordon Thorpe and Elsie Rebecca Thorpe, of Canberra, Australian Capital Territory.
THEY SHALL GROW NOT OLD, AS WE THAT ARE LEFT GROW OLD
Commemorated on - St Andrew's Presbyterian Church, Forrest, Canberra. Screen in Warriors' Chapel.
Plaque on interior wall in foyer of Manuka Swimming Pool inscribed: "To honour the memory of Members of the Canberra Amateur Swimming Club who gave their lives in the 1939-45 War", listing 9 names.
Canberra High School Memorial Tablet
SGT.-PILOT HAROLD E. THORPE, 22, of the R.A.A.F., only son of the Commonwealth Public Service Commissioner (Mr. F. G. Thorpe) was killed in an air accident at Ranchi, Bengal, on April 21. Sgt.-Pilot Thorpe served in England, the Middle East, India and Burma.
Thorpe was the son of the Chairman of the Public Service Board and was educated at Camberwell Grammar School and Telopea Park (where he completed his intermediate certificate in 1933). Before the war he was a scout in the 3rd Canberra (St. John's) Troop. He was appointed to the Department of Trade and Customs in March 1936 but was studying economics part-time at the Canberra University College when he enlisted in August 1940. Thorpe trained at Bradfield Park and Mascot before qualifying as a pilot at Wagga Wagga. He embarked from Sydney on 8 April 1941, disembarking in England on 1 August 1941. He served in bomber squadrons in England and India. He joined 110 Squadron in the UK on 24 November 1941 based at RAF Station Aylshaw and proceeded to Ranchi in India on 21 April 1943.
Thorpe died on 21 April 1943 when his plane crashed after colliding with another plane while trying to get into formation over India. Thorpe is buried in Ranchi War Cemetery, in Bengal, India: grave 1.E.12.
Biography contributed by David Barlow
Warrant Officer Harold Elsdon Thorpe 402419 of 110 Squadron RAF was killed when Vultee Vengeance EZ804 crashed near Ranchi Bengal, India following a mid-air collision
Corporal Kay 927058 RAF // Corporal McKay 625522 RAF // Corporal Moseley 643677 RAF were also killed in this incident