LEST WE FORGET
Flight Sergeant Maxwell Bruce MAXWELL
Service No: 413131
Born: South Grafton NSW, 17 April 1920
Enlisted in the RAAF: 16 August 1941
Unit: No. 1 Operational Training Unit
Died: Aircraft Accident (No. 1 Operational Training Unit Beaufort aircraft A9-175), near East Sale, 22 August 1943, Aged 23 Years
Buried: Sale War Cemetery VIC
CWGC Additional Information: Son of Farquhar and Blance Adeline Maxwell, of South Grafton, New South Wales
Roll of Honour: Grafton NSW
Remembered: Panel 112, Commemorative Area, Australian War Memorial, Canberra ACT
During a solo non-operational flight from East Sale on 22 August 1943, at 1500 hours Beaufort A9-175 flown solo by Flight Sergeant Maxwell was seen by civilian witnesses to bank sharply, turn and dive towards the earth from approximately 2,000 feet at an angle of 80 degrees. The engines were still running at the time the aircraft struck the Maffra-Tinamba roadway and the aircraft was completely destroyed by the impact and fire, killing Flight Sergeant Maxwell.
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, 166/27/204