LEST WE FORGET
Flying Officer Robert Keep DURBRIDGE
Service No: 404453
Born: Cloncurry QLD, 6 May 1915
Enlisted in the RAAF: 19 August 1940
Unit: No. 405 (Vancouver) Squadron (RCAF), RAF Station Pocklington
Died: Air Operations: (No. 405 Squadron Wellington aircraft Z8428), North Sea, 10 March 1942, Aged 26 Years
Buried: Unrecovered
CWGC Additional Information: Son of Charles Thomas Durbridge and Lydia Keep Durbridge, of Brisbane, Queensland, Australia. Rowed in Championship Eight Boat Crew, Brisbane, 1936
Roll of Honour: Brisbane QLD
Remembered: Panel 109, Runnymede Memorial, Surrey UK
Remembered: Panel 133, Commemorative Area, Australian War Memorial, Canberra ACT
Wellington Z8428 took off from Pocklington at 1945 hours on 10 March 1942 to carry out operations over Essen, Germany. At 2325 hours a distress message was received from the aircraft and the Air Sea Rescue service was called out to carry out a search that was not successful.
The crew members of Z8428 were:
Sergeant James Morley Broddy (R/64409) (RCAF)
Flying Officer Robert Keep Durbridge (404453) (Pilot)
Sergeant Francis Campbell Garnett (R/78216) (RCAF)
Sergeant Robert Neville Lonergan (404550) (Second Pilot)
Sergeant George Albert Tilley (RAFVR) (1378541)
Sergeant William Wright (1164158) (RAFVR)
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, 163/28/78