LEST WE FORGET
Warrant Officer Arthur BARNES
Service No: 404541
Born: Brisbane QLD, 21 February 1921
Enlisted in the RAAF: 14 August 1940
Unit: No. 215 Squadron (RAF)
Died: Air Operations: (No. 215 Squadron Wellington aircraft BB456), Myanmar, 17 May 1943, Aged 22 Years
Buried: Unrecovered
CWGC Additional Information: Son of Horsfall and Josephine Bridget Barnes, of Brisbane, Queensland, Australia
Roll of Honour: Brisbane QLD
Remembered: Column 430, Singapore Memorial, Singapore
Remembered: Panel 118, Commemorative Area, Australian War Memorial, Canberra ACT
At 1800 hours on 17 May 1943 Wellington BB456 left base to carry out bombing operations on a target at 20.52N 095.51E in the vicinity of Meiktila, Burma. The aircraft failed to return from this mission. The crew of other aircraft on the same mission reported seeing what they thought was an aircraft hit by anti-aircraft fire and crash. Following post war enquiries and investigations, the aircraft was discovered outside the village of Kyubobin. The headman indicated an open common grave. Villagers stated that they saw the plane approaching them unsteadily from the east of Meiktila near the airfield. They saw two descending by parachute, then the plane dived and hit a paddy field mound and exploded. In 1950, six unidentified bodies were found at Kalaw, but there was no evidence to link the bodies with the crew members of BB456. In 1954 it was recorded that after further searches the remains of the crew of BB456 were unlocated.
The crew members of BB456 were:
Warrant Officer Arthur Barnes (404541) (Wireless Operator/Air Gunner)
Flight Sergeant Robert Cross (1153491) (RAFVR) (Air Gunner)
Warrant Officer Christopher Lynton Edwards (404238) (Navigator)
Flight Lieutenant John Albert Guest (J/6499) (RCAF) (Pilot)
Flight Sergeant Jack Bernard Whyte (404473) (Wireless Operator/Air Gunner)
Flight Sergeant James Watson Wilmore (1071529) (RAFVR) (Pilot)
References:
Australian War Memorial Roll of Honour On-Line Records (RAAF Casualty Information compiled by Alan Storr (409804))
Commonwealth War Graves Commission On-Line Records
Department of Veterans’ Affairs On-Line WWII Nominal Roll
National Archives of Australia On-Line Record A705, 166/5/166