LEST WE FORGET
Air Operations (No. 455 Squadron Hampden I aircraft AE146, X3150), North Sea, 16 July 1943
A routine rover patrol on July 16 brought about the “ditching” of Flight Sergeant McDonald and crew in Hampden AE146, who all survived as prisoners of war; and a crash of Hampden X3150 which resulted in the deaths of Flying Officer W. F. Bradshaw (RNZAF), Sergeant R B. M. Gemmell (RAF) and Sergeant A. N. Owen (RAF).
The crew members of Hampden AE146 were:
Flying Officer John Douglas Arthurell (129410) (RAFVR) PoW
Flight Sergeant John Alistair Romer McDonald (1388758) (RAFVR) (Pilot) PoW
Sergeant William Edwards Ramsay (R/121360) (RCAF) PoW
Sergeant Lionel Francis Clarence Stewart (R/109240) (RCAF) PoW
The crew members of Hampden X3150 were:
Flying Officer Winston Francis Bradshaw (412649) (RNZAF) (Wireless Operator / Air Gunner)
Sergeant Robert Brown Mack Gemmel (1343179) (RAFVR) (Pilot)
Sergeant Arthur Neville Owen (1334766) (RAFVR) (Navigator)
References:
Commonwealth War Graves Commission On-Line Records
Lawson, John Horwood Wightman (251634) The Story of No. 455 Squadron (RAAF), Wilke and Company, Melbourne VIC, 1951
National Archives of Australia On-Line Records A11271, 140/85/P1: A11271, 140/86/P1; A9186, 141