LEST WE FORGET

Sergeant William Alan CATRON

Service No: 409080
Born: Armadale VIC, 5 March 1923
Enlisted in the RAAF: 19 July 1941
Unit: No. 27 Operational Training Unit (RAF)
Died: Aircraft Accident (No. 27 Operational Training Unit Wellington aircraft X3941), Derbyshire, 20 January 1943, Aged 19 Years
Buried: Scropton (St Paul) Churchyard and Extension, Derbyshire
CWGC Additional Information: Son of Joseph Edward Thomas Catron and Zoe Catron, of Seaford, Victoria, Australia.
Roll of Honour: Geelong VIC
Remembered: Panel 120, Commemorative Area, Australian War Memorial, Canberra ACT

On the night of the 19/20 January 1943, Wellington X3941 took off from Church Broughton for a Bullseye exercise. During the sortie, the weather around Church Broughton began to close in, and at 0059 hours a recall message was transmitted by wireless. This was not acknowledged. QDMs (magnetic headings to base) were also signalled, before and after 0132 hours. At about 0200 hours, reports came in to say that a Wellington had crashed on a hillside in Darley Dale about 4 miles from Matlock, Derbyshire.

The crew members of X3941 were:

Sergeant William Alan Catron (409080) (Pilot)
Sergeant Neil Charles Craigie (406993) (Wireless Air Gunner) Injured, Discharged from the RAAF: 22 October 1944
Sergeant Thomas Somerville Easton (409135) (Air Gunner) Injured, later PoW (24 May 1943), Discharged from the RAAF: 29 October 1945
Sergeant Kenneth Barton Killeen (413210) (Navigator)
Pilot Officer Neil Garratt Traylen (415367) (Navigator) Injured, Discharged from the RAAF: 31 May 1946

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, 166/7/19

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