LEST WE FORGET
Sergeant Allan John BROWNE
Service No: 400516
Born: Hay NSW, 3 September 1916
Enlisted in the RAAF: 15 September 1940 (at Melbourne VIC)
Unit: No. 30 Squadron (RAF)
Died: Air Operations: (No. 30 Squadron Hurricane aircraft 25447), Sri Lanka, 5 April 1942, Aged 25 Years
Buried: Colombo (Kanatte) General Cemetery Sri Lanka
CWGC Additional Information: Son of Geoffrey Keith and Charlotte Hunter Browne; husband of Phyllis Mary Browne, of Elwood, Victoria, Australia.
Roll of Honour: Deniliquin NSW
Remembered: Panel 119, Commemorative Area, Australian War Memorial, Canberra ACT
Remembered: Hay War Memorial High School World War 2 Honor Roll, Hay NSW
Hurricane 25447 flown by Sergeant Browne took off on 5 April 1942 to engage Japanese fighters attacking Colombo. He succeeded in shooting down one enemy fighter, but was then attacked from behind and was shot down 8 miles north east of Ratmalana. The aircraft crashed and burst into flames and Sergeant Browne was killed. The engagement was seen by members of the Ceylon Light Infantry, who rushed to the crash and extricated the pilot from the burning wreck but he was dead.
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, 163/93/477
Bibliography:
Ilbery, P.L.T. (Peter Leslie Thomas) (422957) Hatching an Air Force: 2SFTS, 5SFTS, 1BFTS Uranquinty and Wagga Wagga, Banner Books Maryborough QLD 4650, 2002