LEST WE FORGET
Flight Sergeant Sidney William BARTLETT
Service No: 405994
Born: Atherton QLD, 30 May 1923
Enlisted in the RAAF: 20 July 1941
Unit: No. 58 Operational Training Unit (RAF)
Died: Aircraft Accident (No. 58 Operational Training Unit Spitfire aircraft P8582), Scotland, 5 May 1943, Aged 19 Years
Buried: Unrecovered
CWGC Additional Information: Son of John Sidney and Winifred Mary Bartlett, of Townsville, Queensland, Australia
Roll of Honour: Townsville QLD
Remembered: Panel 192, Runnymede Memorial, Surrey UK
Remembered: Panel 118, Commemorative Area, Australian War Memorial, Canberra ACT
On 5 May 1943 Spitfire P8582 was detailed to carry out an air to sea firing exercise. P8582 was seen to fire its guns into the sea after a shallow dive, then pull out on a 360 degrees climbing turn, turn to port then straighten out, then make another shallow dive from which the aircraft did not pull out and it crashed into the sea. At 0951 hours the aircraft crashed into the Firth of Forth, 5 miles north east of Dunbar, Scotland and the pilot was not found. Following post war enquiries and investigations, it was recorded in 1948 that Flight Sergeant Bartlett had lost his life at sea.
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, 166/5/150