WHIMPEY, Geoffrey Roy
| Service Numbers: | 434299, V21191 |
|---|---|
| Enlisted: | 2 June 1941 |
| Last Rank: | Flight Sergeant |
| Last Unit: | No. 463 Squadron (RAAF) |
| Born: | Brunswick, Victoria, Australia, 30 November 1920 |
| Home Town: | Heidelberg, Banyule, Victoria |
| Schooling: | Not yet discovered |
| Occupation: | Junior Clerk |
| Died: | Flying Battle, North West Europe, 5 July 1944, aged 23 years |
| Cemetery: |
Ellecourt Communal Cemetery, France |
| Memorials: | Australian War Memorial Roll of Honour, International Bomber Command Centre Memorial |
World War 2 Service
| 3 Sep 1939: | Involvement Flight Sergeant, 434299 | |
|---|---|---|
| 2 Jun 1941: | Enlisted Australian Military Forces (Army WW2), V21191, 21 Field Company RAE AMF | |
| 18 Nov 1942: | Discharged Australian Military Forces (Army WW2), Private, V21191, 21 Field Company RAE AMF | |
| 19 Nov 1942: | Enlisted Royal Australian Air Force, Flight Sergeant, 434299 | |
| 5 Jul 1944: | Involvement Royal Australian Air Force, Flight Sergeant, 434299, No. 463 Squadron (RAAF), Air War NW Europe 1939-45 | |
| 22 Aug 1944: | Honoured British Empire Medal, Air War NW Europe 1939-45, For brave conduct during the crash of a Stirling aircraft. |
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Add my storyBiography contributed by Michael Silver
Geoffrey Whimpey was born in November 1920 to World War 1 veteran, Albert Roy Whimpey (Sern. 5233) and his Yorkshire born wife, Phyllis Walsh. A clerk, Geoffrey Whimpey enlisted in the army on 2 June 1941 before transferring to the RAAF in November 1942.
Following training as an air gunner, he was attached to 463 Squadron based at Waddington in Lincolnshire, England.
Avro Lancaster I HK536 JO-H took off from RAF Waddington at 2321 hours on the night of 4/5th July 1944 to bomb flying bomb installations at St Leu D’Esserent, France. Intelligence reports indicated that limestone caverns and quarries were being used as stores for the FZG76s. The attack plan had as its object the collapse of the roofs of the caverns, estimated to be of an average thickness of 25 feet; a subsidiary aim was disruption of road and rail communications between the entrance to the caves and the near-by River Oise.
Nothing was heard from the aircraft after take off and it did not return to base. Fifteen aircraft from 463 Squadron took part in the raid and carried a total of 83 tons of bombs. Two of these aircraft including HK 536 failed to return. Post war it was established that the aircraft crashed at Ellecourt (Seine-Maritime) and all the crew members were killed.
The crew members of HK536 were:
Sergeant Arthur Charles Brown (1399195) (RAFVR) (Bomb Aimer)
Flying Officer Alfred Kyrwood Carter (421887) (Pilot)
Flight Sergeant George Edward Dowling (429881) (Air Gunner)
Flight Sergeant Thomas Francis Maher (421812) (Wireless Operator Air Gunner)
Flight Sergeant Robert Henry Norman (1394301) (RAFVR) (Navigator)
Sergeant Bernard John Watts (1653038) (RAFVR) (Flight Engineer)
Flight Sergeant Geoffrey Roy Whimpey BEM (434299) (Air Gunner)
Reference: https://aviationmuseumwa.org.au/afcraaf-roll/carter-alfred-kyrwood-421887/
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