LEST WE FORGET

Flight Sergeant Gilbert Carrington KEATS

Service No: 407794
Born: Orroroo SA, 3 March 1917
Enlisted in the RAAF: 6 January 1941
Unit: No. 12 Squadron (RAF), RAF Binbrook, Lincolnshire
Died: Air Operations (No. 12 Squadron Wellington aircraft Z8585), Netherlands, 7 August 1942, Aged 25 Years
Buried: Uden War Cemetery, Noord-Brabant, Netherlands
CWGC Additional Information: Son of Frederick Phillips Keats and Abi Olive Dunn Keats, of Orroroo, South Australia
Roll of Honour: Orroroo SA
Remembered: Panel 125, Commemorative Area, Australian War Memorial, Canberra ACT
Remembered: World War II Honour Roll, National War Memorial of SA, North Terrace, Adelaide

Wellington Z8585 took off from RAF Binbrook at 0043 hours on morning 7 August 1942 to bomb Duisberg, Germany. Nothing was heard from the aircraft after take off and it failed to return to base. It was established post war that the aircraft was shot down by a night fighter and crashed at 0255 hours on 7 August 1942 near Rosmalen (Noord-Brabant), 5 kms north east of ‘sHertogensbosch, Holland and all the crew members were killed.

The crew members of Z8585 were:

Flight Sergeant Gilbert Carrington Keats (407794) (Pilot)
Sergeant Bernard John Miller (1379181) (RAFVR) (Rear Gunner)
Pilot Officer Harold Shaw (121375) (RAFVR) (Observer)
Sergeant Peter MacDougall Spence (1310195) (RAFVR) (Bomb Aimer)
Sergeant Douglas Ernest Williams (960375) (RAFVR) (Wireless Air Gunner)

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 Veteran’s Affairs On-Line WWII Nominal Roll
National Archives of Australia On-Line Record A705, 163/132/186

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