BURKETT , George Thomas William
| Service Numbers: | 4346, V148131 |
|---|---|
| Enlisted: | 20 February 1915 |
| Last Rank: | Sergeant |
| Last Unit: | HQ Base Ordnance Depots |
| Born: | Warragul, Victoria, Australia, 16 June 1896 |
| Home Town: | South Melbourne, Port Phillip, Victoria |
| Schooling: | Not yet discovered |
| Occupation: | Electrical engineer |
| Memorials: | South Melbourne Great War Roll of Honor, St Leonards Great War Honor Roll, St Leonards St Paul's Anglican Church Honor Roll |
World War 1 Service
| 20 Feb 1915: | Enlisted AIF WW1, Gunner, 4346, 1st Divisional Ammunition Column | |
|---|---|---|
| 17 Apr 1915: | Involvement Gunner, 4346, 1st Divisional Ammunition Column, --- :embarkation_roll: roll_number: '22' embarkation_place: Melbourne embarkation_ship: HMAT Hororata embarkation_ship_number: A20 public_note: '' | |
| 17 Apr 1915: | Embarked Gunner, 4346, 1st Divisional Ammunition Column, HMAT Hororata, Melbourne | |
| 21 Aug 1915: | Transferred AIF WW1, Gunner, 2nd Field Artillery Brigade | |
| 27 Feb 1916: | Transferred AIF WW1, Gunner, 4th Division Artillery | |
| 7 Mar 1916: | Transferred AIF WW1, Gunner, 12th Field Artillery Brigade | |
| 12 Mar 1916: | Promoted AIF WW1, Sergeant, 12th Field Artillery Brigade , France | |
| 12 Nov 1916: | Transferred Royal Flying Corps, To RFC cadet training school England | |
| 16 Mar 1917: | Discharged AIF WW1, Sergeant, 4346, 12th Field Artillery Brigade , Appointed to a commission in the RFC (2nd Lieutenant) as of same date. | |
| 17 Mar 1917: | Involvement Royal Flying Corps | |
| 27 Jul 1917: | Wounded British Forces (All Conflicts), Royal Flying Corps, GSW to leg during aerial combat. | |
| 26 Sep 1917: | Honoured Military Cross, While serving with RFC. For conspicuous gallantry and devotion to duty. With his patrol he engaged a superior force of enemy machines, and although wounded early in the engagement, continued to fight. He brought down two hostile machines and drove off two more whilst returning to our lines with his own machine badly damaged. In spite of this, however, he succeeded in making a good landing. He displayed splendid dash and coolness under very trying circumstances. London Gazette 26th September 1917 |
World War 2 Service
| 7 May 1942: | Enlisted V148131 | |
|---|---|---|
| 31 Aug 1942: | Involvement Australian Military Forces (Army WW2), V148131, HQ Base Ordnance Depots, Captain |
Help us honour George Thomas William Burkett 's service by contributing information, stories, and images so that they can be preserved for future generations.
Add my storyBiography contributed by Robert Wight
George Thomas William Burkett was discharged from the AIF on 16 March 1917 and was commissioned as 2nd Lt in the Royal Flying Corps on the same date.
Biography contributed by Stephen Brooks
George Thomas William Burkett M.C. Royal Flying Corps was only 18 years of age when he enlisted in Melbourne in February 1915. He was an electrical engineer and was posted to the Heavy battery of the Anzac Divisional Artillery on Gallipoli from July 1915 and was there until the evacuation. He transferred to the 12th FAB in 1916 and was promoted to Sergeant and served at Pozieres. He sent by mail a captured Turkish rifle to his father in South Melbourne during March 1916.
After transferring to the RFC, he is known to have served with 20th Squadron and was awarded the Military Cross “for conspicuous gallantry and devotion to duty. With his patrol he engaged a superior force of enemy machines, and although wounded early in the engagement, continued to fight. He brought down two hostile machines and drove off two more whilst returning to our lines with his own machine badly damaged. In spite of this, however, he succeeded in making a good landing. He displayed splendid dash and coolness under very trying circumstances.”
Burkett was wounded in the leg on the 27 July 1917, probably in the above action, and was rendered permanently unfit for flying until he was transferred to the unemployed list in November 1919. George Burkett also served in Australian Army as a Captain during the Second World War.
Click images to start slideshow.