Virtual
War Memorial
Australia

Wing Commander John Rowley PERRIN, DFC, Pilot, of South Yarra, Victoria was born October 9, 1916 in Melbourne and was educated at Melbourne High School.  After five years with the Atlas Assurance Co., he joined the RAAF on July 19, 1938.  Training in Australia at Point Cook, he embarked for Egypt in July 1940 as a flying officer, where he operated in Gladiators, Hurricanes and Kittyhawks.  He was awarded the DFC on April 1, 1941 and was mentioned in despatches in the following June and again in September.

Returning to Australia in September, 1941, Wing Commander Perrin left for New Guinea and the islands in May 1943 as squadron leader of a Kittyhawk squadron and there rose to wing commander in command of a mixed Spitfire and Kittyhawk wing.  He returned to Australia in January 1944, having then completed three tours of operational duty, and left for Britain in September 1944 to take up the appointment of Senior Air Staff Officer at RAAF Overseas Headquarters.

The citation to his DFC, announced when he was a flight lieutneant, stated :-

"In February 1941, while landing a formation of three Hurricanes on patrol, this officer observed nine Junkers 87's dive bombing and machine-gunning near Mersa El Berga.  He immediately called his flight by radio-telephone but, failing to make himself understood, dived to the attack accompanied by only one of his section.  They were immediately attacked by 15 Nesserschmitt 110s and in the ensuing combat Flight Lieutenant Perrin shot down a Junkers and a Messerschmitt before a cannon shell burst his petrol tank, covering him with petrol, setting his aircraft on fire, and slightly wounding his right eye.  Despite this, he continued to attack another Messerschmitt at a low level until his ammunition was expended.  He then crash landed his aircraft.  Throughout the engagement this officer displayed outstanding leadership and courage in the face of greatly superior numbers of enemy forces."