Virtual
War Memorial
Australia

https://www.awm.gov.au/collection/MSS1514/

220913_Dernancourt_SA_Memorial_Opening.docx

Albert_Budd_CARTER_1877-1918_Ver_P2_FINAL_red_nP2.pdf

Cert_of_Service_-_Davies_T_W.pdf

Whilst on Malta We (Oxbury and Shipard) served as aircrew with 89 squadron's small detachment of Beaufighter Mk I's. This aircraft was a perfect flying platform for its fearsome armament which included four 20mm cannon and eight wing-mounted .303 machine guns. The punch from this monster could make short work of any enemy unfortunate enough to come within range of its devastating firepower. The Beaufighter's cannon were described by one pilot as being 'like hell's own hammers crashing upon some huge aerial anvil'. Suffice to say their cannon deafened our own crews - as well as silencing the enemy. On several occasions watching through the choking cordite fumes which quickly filled the fuselage - young Oxby would be horrified (but also secretly pleased) to see yet another enemy aircraft disintegrate in front of them. One time an enemy Junkers 88 just ahead exploded in a fireball - engulfing their own aircraft too. Now ablaze themselves Shipard saved the day - and their lives with some quick thinking. He put the Beau into a steep dive which quickly extinguished the 'flaming bonfire'. Merv wasn't too worried (or so he said at the time) because - 'it was just cheap 'n nasty German petrol'. At about this time Doug received his first DFM by selflessly giving up his oxygen supply to his pilot at 22000ft - knowing there was very little available left to him personally. Typically, Douggie made light of the episode and modestly denied his heroism. The truth was he had shown considerable courage on many occasions in life-threatening circumstances. There were often times he freely admitted to having been scared witless. One night Ship's airspeed indicator became u/s - the result of ice building-up in the wing pitot tube. Sensing the aircraft was flying too slowly and nearing a stall Ship pushed the stick forward to lower the nose and gain airspeed - but still, the knots indicated on the IAS dial remained static. Shipard pushed the control column further forward. The Beau responded dutifully and promptly entered a 'bunt' (a loop) before obliging Ship further by entering an uncontrollable inverted flat spin. Meanwhile, Oxby was being thrown about helplessly in the fuselage like a rag doll in a washing machine. He was terrified and not for the first time. In the end, Ship lost around 20,000ft of altitude before finally managing to regain control. Oxby had already been ordered to bail out. But somehow Doug had unintentionally caught his ripcord on an obstruction - causing his parachute to deploy whilst still inside the aircraft. Having struggled for several minutes now he was completely exhausted - and quite unable to effect an escape. Effectively trapped he lay back in the parachute silk - and prepared to meet his maker. In all, Merv and Doug walked away from no less than seven crashes - any one of which could easily have killed them. Several crashes resulted in the destruction of their aircraft. But they always seemed able to walk away from the wreckage - and the authorities in charge didn't seem to mind - so long as their tally of German aircraft remained greater than their losses of rather expensive Beaufighters. Whilst serving in the defence of Malta the squadron was re-equipped with new radar equipment. Doug explained 'Back then we were so short of juice that every operator was considered to be operational after just one twenty-minute practice'. Other crews spent weeks struggling with their unfamiliar equipment before becoming proficient. So it was surprising to find this crew seemed able to produce positive results after such a short practice period. Douggie laughed 'We did four sorties from Luqa (a key RAF airfield on Mata) on the same night' he said. Asked what luck he had had Doug replied 'One destroyed and one probable - both Heinkels. The probable was one of those annoying blighters that wouldn't burn. We chased it down from twelve to one thousand feet, and used all our ammo on it too'. It did not seem to strike him as anything of an achievement to get two visuals and combats straight off the reel with completely strange equipment. There was only a vague regret they hadn't properly fixed the probable. Doug Oxbury went on to fly with four more pilots and became the most successful radar operator / navigator of the war with a total of 22 confirmed kills; 13 with Merv Shipard. He was awarded the DSO, DFC and DFM. He passed away in 2009.

Alexandra_Seal_Loreto_College_Corporal_Hurtle_Samuel_Walker.pdf

Amelie_Martin_Mitcham_Girls_High_School_Captain_David_Leslie_Todd.pdf

Aston_Joshy_Aberfoyle_Park_High_School_Thomas_Charles_Richmond_Baker.pdf

Charlotte_Lockwood_Horizon_Christian_School_Sister_Clarissa_Marion.pdf

Desmond_George_Loxton___M_Wirth.pdf

Jack_Richard_Hopgood___B_Yates.pdf

John_Anthony_Howard_Wilkinson___S_Schultz.pdf

Lloyd_Evelyn_Wigg___J_Nguyen.pdf

Corp_Joseph_Alfred_William_Morgan___A_O_Donnell.pdf

Benjamin_Frank_Lovell___G_Mann.pdf

David_Charles_Palmer___O_Turner.pdf

https://www.cwgc.org/find-records/find-war-dead/casualty-details/1601979/williams,-george-henry/

2010_Govor_Latvian_Anzacs.pdf

https://recordsearch.naa.gov.au/SearchNRetrieve/Interface/DetailsReports/ItemDetail.aspx?Barcode=3025159&isAv=N

https://www.awm.gov.au/collection/R1562795

https://livesofthefirstworldwar.iwm.org.uk/lifestory/7339932

This list is a work in progress and is incomplete as it is being compiled from fragmentary records of individual airmen. No. !86 Squadron commenced operations as a Heavy Bomber Unit in October 1944 15 October 1944 First raid of the reformed 186 Squadron. Francis John COOK aircraft lost. 20 October 1944 John Robert FREERS AIrcraft shot down by night fighter on raid to Stuttgart Germany, over Luneville , NW France Wallace Patrick BURTON aircraft lost. Herbert Keith COOMBE aircraft lost Arthur Edward Jarvis STILES aircraft lost George Edward WILLIAMSON. DFC aircraft lost 11 January 1945 152 Lancasters of No 3 Group carried out a G-H raid on the railway yard in the Uerdingen suburb of Krefeld. No aircraft lost. 13 January 1945 158 Lancasters of No 3 Group attacked the railway yards at Saarbrücken. The bombing appeared to be accurate, though with some overshooting. 1 Lancaster crashed in France. 16 January 1945 1138 Lancasters of No 3 Group attacked the benzol plant at Wanne-Eickel. No results known. 1 Lancaster lost. 28 January 1945 153 Lancasters of No 3 Group attacked the railway yards at Cologne/Gremberg in conditions of good visibility. Some of the bombing fell on the target but some overshot. 3 Lancasters were lost and 1 crashed in France. 2/3 February 1945 495 Lancasters and 12 Mosquitos of Nos 1, 3, 6 and 8 Groups to Wiesbaden. 3 Lancasters crashed in France. This was Bomber Command's one and only large raid on Wiesbaden. There was complete cloud cover but most of the bombing hit the town. 5 important war industries along the banks of the Rhine were untouched but the railway station was damaged. 14 Febraury 1945 Dresden raid. 20/21 February 1945. William Charles JAMES aircraft lost. 514 Lancasters and 14 Mosquitos of Nos 1, 3, 6 and 8 Groups attacked Dortmund in Bomber Command's last large-scale raid on this target. 14 Lancasters lost. The intention of this raid was to destroy the southern half of Dortmund and Bomber Command claimed that this was achieved. 22 February 1945 167 Lancasters of No 3 Group in forces of 85 and 82 aircraft to oil refineries at Gelsenkirchen and Osterfeld. A Film Unit Lancaster of No 463 Squadron, No 5 Group, accompanied the Gelsenkirchen force. Both targets were accurately bombed in clear weather conditions. 1 Lancaster lost from the Gelsenkirchen raid. 25 February 1945 153 Lancasters of No 3 Group carried out a G-H attack on the synthetic-oil refinery at Kamen. 1 Lancaster lost. 26 February 1945 149 Lancasters of No 3 Group carried out a G-H attack on the Hoesch benzol-oil plant at Dortmund through cloud. No results were seen but the bombing appeared to be concentrated. No aircraft lost. 28 February 1945 156 Lancasters of No 3 Group in a G-H raid on the Nordstern synthetic-oil plant at Gelsenkirchen. No aircraft lost. 1 March 1945 151 Lancasters of No 3 Group attacked an oil plant at Kamen through cloud. 4 March 1945 128 Lancasters of No 3 Group carried out a G-H attack through cloud on Wanne-Eickel. No results were seen. 6 March 1945 119 Lancasters of No 3 Group carried out a G-H attack through cloud on the Wintershall oil refinery at Salzbergen. 1 lost. 7/8 March 1945 526 Lancasters and 5 Mosquitos of Nos 1, 3, 6 and 8 Groups raided Dessau. 18 Lancasters lost, 3.4 per cent of the force. This was another devastating raid on a new target in Eastern Germany with the usual town centre, residential, industrial and railway areas all being hit. 10 March 1945 155 Lancasters of No 3 Group carried out a G-H attack on the oil refinery at Scholven/Buer. Photographs taken later showed this to have been a very accurate and effective raid. No aircraft lost. 12 March 1945 1,108 aircraft - 748 Lancasters, 292 Halifaxes, 68 Mosquitos attacked Dortmund. This was another new record to a single target, a record which would stand to the end of the war. 2 Lancasters lost. Another record tonnage of bombs - 4,851 - was dropped through cloud on to this unfortunate city. The only details available from Dortmund state that the attack fell mainly in the centre and south of the city. A British team which investigated the effects of bombing in Dortmund after the war says that, 'The final raid … stopped production so effectively that it would have been many months before any substantial recovery could have occurred’. 14 March 1945 169 Lancasters of No 3 Group carried out G-H attacks through cloud on oil plants at Datteln and Hattingen (near Bochum). Both attacks appeared to be accurate but no results were seen. 1 Lancaster lost from the Hattingen raid. Kenneth Barry KEMMIS aircraft lost 4/5 April 1945 327 Lancasters and 14 Mosquitos of Nos 3, 6 and 8 Groups attacked the synthetic-oil plant at Leuna. The target was cloud-covered, the bombing was scattered and only minor damage was caused. 2 Lancasters lost. 186 Squadron lost FOff Beck's aircraft and crew. 9/10 April 1945 591 Lancasters and 8 Mosquitos of Nos 1, 3 and 8 Groups to Kiel. 3 Lancasters lost. This was an accurate raid, made in good visibility on two aiming points in the harbour area. Photographic reconnaissance showed that the Deutsche Werke U-boat yard was severely damaged, the pocket battleship Admiral Scheer was hit and capsized, the Admiral Hipper and the Emden were badly damaged. The local diary says that all 3 shipyards in the port were hit and that the nearby residential areas were severely damaged. 13/14 April 1945 377 Lancasters and 105 Halifaxes of Nos 3, 6 and 8 Groups to Kiel. 2 Lancasters lost. This raid was directed against the port area, with the U-boat yards as the main objective. Bomber Command rated this as 'a poor attack' with scattered bombing. 18 April 1945 969 aircraft - 617 Lancasters, 332 Halifaxes, 20 Mosquitos - of all groups attacked the naval base at Heligoland, the airfield and the town on this small island. The bombing was accurate and the target areas were turned almost into crater-pitted moonscapes. 3 Halifaxes were lost. 20 April 1945 100 Lancasters of No 3 Group bombed the fuel-storage depot at Regensburg accurately. 1 Lancaster lost. This was the last raid in the current campaign against German oil targets which had been waged since June 1944. Much of Bomber Command's effort during this period, sometimes at considerable loss, had been devoted to these oil operations, which had helped not only the Allied ground forces on the Western Front but also those fighting in Italy and on the Eastern Front.

https://docplayer.net/57197404-77-squadron-raf-raaf-airmen-killed-whilst-on-active-service-with-77-squadron-raf-world-war-ii.html

https://153squadronassociation.weebly.com/brief-history.html

http://www.cwgc.org/find-war-dead/casualty/1459085/CHERPITER,%20JOHN

http://recordsearch.naa.gov.au/scripts/Imagine.asp?B=3436898

https://recordsearch.naa.gov.au/SearchNRetrieve/Interface/ViewImage.aspx?B=3450918

https://trove.nla.gov.au/newspaper/article/232357820/24988054

https://www.findagrave.com/memorial/207998224/william-george-wright

https://watervalps.sa.edu.au/

https://boolarongpress.com.au/product/right-man-right-place-worst-time-commander-eric-feldt-and-his-coastwatchers/

https://www.penguin.com.au/books/the-coast-watchers-9780140149265

https://nominal-rolls.dva.gov.au/veteran?id=1013978&c=WW2

https://trove.nla.gov.au/newspaper/article/261157321

https://collections.slsa.sa.gov.au/resource/B+47837

https://www.awm.gov.au/collection/R2452981

https://www.findagrave.com/memorial/199087025/leslie-james-mills

https://www.abc.net.au/news/2022-06-18/sydney-kinsman-wwii-veteran-rat-of-tobruk-death/101164278

https://www.dva.gov.au/newsroom/latest-news-veterans/vale-rat-tobruk-sydney-kinsman

Pte_Leslie_Herbert_Lockwood_-_Yr_9_St_Francis_de_Sales_College.docx

https://www.findagrave.com/memorial/159554504/ernest-irvin

https://trove.nla.gov.au/newspaper/article/47385505

Details from his recommendation for the award of the Distinguished Conduct Medal at Bckingham Palace April 1917: "For conspicuous gallantry and devotion to duty.  He made a daring reconnaissance, and led raiding parties across "No Man's Land" to the point of assembly.  Later he carried five wounded men back to a place of safety". Extract from the History of the 43rd Battalion  by Capt E.J. Collyer, MC and Lieut BH. Richardson - P232 "To know him was to like and admire him.  His buoyant, sunny nature pulled the slow along in times of stress and hardship. As a scout and raid leader, he had no equal in the battalion Thus died one of the finest specimens of the Australian soldier ever to set foot in France". He was killed during the period of small scale raids seizing German forward posts and pushing their font line back in what was called 'Peaceful Penetration", for which the AIF became renowned, in the months preceding the great attack on the 8th August 1918. He was initially buried in the field "In the shadow of the Monastery in the heart of Bois l'Abbe, just west of Villers".  He was later re-interred at the Adelaide Cemetery, in Villers Bretonneux."

https://www.ancestry.com.au/sharing/27494347?h=6fa4a0&utm_campaign=bandido-webparts&utm_source=post-share-modal&utm_medium=copy-url

https://s3-ap-southeast-2.amazonaws.com/awm-media/collection/RCDIG1068891/document/5590280.PDF

https://www.aif.adfa.edu.au/showPerson?pid=54383

https://supremecourt.nt.gov.au/about/judges/former-judges/acting-judge/lawrence-eric-clarke

https://supremecourt.nt.gov.au/about/judges/former-judges/acting-judge/lawrence-eric-clarke

https://archives.sa.gov.au/sites/default/files/public/images/GRG24_157_index%20cards%20to%20recipients%20of%20coronation%20medals.pdf

https://www.centennialpark.org/memorial-search-list/wilfred-joseph-pearn-122693/