LEST WE FORGET
Flight Sergeant John MARSH
Service No: 414359
Born: Rockhampton QLD, 4 October1921
Enlisted in the RAAF: 13 September 1941
Unit: No. 460 Squadron, RAF Binbrook, Lincolnshire
Died: Air Operations: (No. 460 Squadron Lancaster aircraft ED421), Germany, 23 August 1943, Aged 21 Years
Buried: Berlin 1939-1945 War Cemetery, Germany
CWGC Additional Information: Son of John James Marsh and Winifred Teresa Marsh, of Rockhampton, Queensland, Australia
Roll of Honour: Rockhampton QLD
Remembered: Panel 108, Commemorative Area, Australian War Memorial, Canberra ACT
Date: 23-24 August 1943
Target: Berlin
Total Force: Dispatched – 719, Attacking – 625
RAAF Force: No. 460 Dispatched – 24, Attacking – 24; No. 467 Dispatched – 15, Attacking – 15
Tons of Bombs Dropped: 1,765
Total Aircraft Lost: 57
RAAF Aircraft Lost: No. 460 – 1; No. 467 – 1
During the 23-24 August raid German aircraft dropped dummy target indicators well clear of vital areas, but Australian pilots reported that these imitation markers lacked brilliance and did not cascade; however, they did attract many bombs. The main weight of effective attack fell in south and south west suburbs despite the attempts of a large force of free-lance fighters to disrupt the timing and concentration of the raid. Pilot Officer Whiting (1) was attacked three times in the target area and finally had to jettison his bombs without precise aiming in order to withdraw his damaged aircraft. Other Australians encountered fighters over all stages of the route, though these were mostly evaded by good crew cooperation.
(1) Flight Lieutenant John Harold Whiting DFC (407853) was discharged from the RAAF on 1 July 1947.
Extracts from Herington, J. (John) (406545) Air War Against Germany and Italy 1939-1943, Australian War Memorial, Canberra, 1954 – Page 601
Lancaster ED 421 took off from RAF Binbrook at 2055 hours on 23 August 1943 to attack Berlin. The bomb load was I x 4000 lb (pound) (1,800 kg) and 2 x 1000 lb (450 kg) bombs, 48 x 30 lb (14 kg) and 690 x 4 lb (2 kg) incendiaries. Nothing was heard from the aircraft after take off and it did not return to base. It was later discovered that four crew members had been killed and here were Prisoners of War.
The crew members of ED421 were:
Flight Sergeant James Geoffrey Collins (404749) (Wireless Operator Air Gunner)
Sergeant William Armstrong Finlay (1686496) (RAFVR) (Flight Engineer)
Flight Sergeant Kevin Gay (413574) (Navigator) PoW, Discharged from the RAAF: 9 August 1946
Flight Sergeant James Clarence Munro (412175) (Bomb Aimer) PoW, Discharged from the RAAF: 7 March 1946
Flight Sergeant John Marsh (414359) (Air Gunner)
Flight Sergeant Alexis Townsend Richards (413796) (Pilot) PoW, Discharged from the RAAF: 1 November 1945
Sergeant Thomas Smale (1812351) (RAFVR) (Air Gunner)
In a later statement by Flight Sergeant Gay he said “We were attacked and blown up in mid-air. Richards, Munro and I were hurled clear, but the other lads in the crew were killed. I lost consciousness, came too with both legs broken. Landed OK and then received the best possible treatment.”
No. 467 Squadron lost Lancaster JB124 (Pilot Officer Howard Russell Vincent (416635) (Pilot)) on 23 August 1943.
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, 166/27/207
Bibliography:
Firkins, P. C. (Peter Charles) (441386) Strike and Return, Westward Ho Publishing City Beach WA, 1985