LEST WE FORGET
Flying Officer Edwin Sautelle HAYES
Service No: 405178
Born: Toowoomba QLD, 10 August 1911
Enlisted in the RAAF: 2 February 1941
Unit: No. 2 Aircraft Delivery Unit (RAF)
Died: Air Operations (No. 2 Aircraft Delivery Unit Kittyhawk aircraft FR316), Libya, 12 January 1943, Aged 31 Years
Buried: Unrecovered
CWGC Additional Information: Son of William George and Jane Caroline Hayes; husband of Jacqueline Morgan Hayes, of Toowoomba, Queensland, Australia
Roll of Honour: Toowoomba QLD
Remembered: Column 277, Alamein Memorial, Egypt
Remembered: Panel 123, Commemorative Area, Australian War Memorial, Canberra ACT
On 29 October 1942 Flying Officer Haynes survived a mid-air collision in which Flying Officer Raymond Edgar Holgate (403338) was killed.
On 12 January 1943 Flying Officer Hayes was detailed to fly Kittyhawk FR316 from No 1 Aircraft
Replacement Pool at Landing Ground 209 to No 53 Repair and Servicing Unit, then located at or in the Magrum area in Libya. The aircraft was being delivered to the RSU for reinforcement purposes.
Flying Officer Hayes last touched down at El Aden on his way to Chel and was last seen by accompanying aircraft about 30 miles south east of Barce, Libya. Very bad visibility prevented the other aircraft from seeing FR316 after this, which was at about 1400 hours. A request for news signal from this unit received a negative reply from all units and the aircraft was presumed missing on 12 January.
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, 166/17/28
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