LEST WE FORGET
Warrant Officer John Leonard MULHALL
Service No: 410361
Born: Prahran VIC, 19 July 1923
Enlisted in the RAAF: 6 December 1941
Unit: No. 456 Squadron
Died: Air Operations: (No. 456 Squadron Mosquito aircraft HK317), North Sea, 24 November 1944, Aged 21 Years
Buried: Unrecovered
CWGC Additional Information: Son of Harold Bruno and Ada Mildred Mulhall, of Caulfield, Victoria, Australia
Roll of Honour: Caulfield VIC
Remembered: Panel 259, Runnymede Memorial, Surrey UK
Remembered: Panel 106, Commemorative Area, Australian War Memorial, Canberra ACT
At 0300 hours on 24 November 1944, Mosquito HK317 took off from RAF Station Ford, Sussex, detailed to carry out a patrol over the North Sea and under the control of Bawdsey Ground Control Intercept Station. The patrol was to intercept and destroy Heinkel bomber aircraft that were launching flying bombs against targets in southern England at night. The patrol continued uneventfully until 0557 hours while on a bearing of 360 degrees, Warrant Officer Mulhall called to say he had a contact and was going down to investigate. At that time he was at 6,500 feet. Nothing further was heard from the aircraft which failed to return to base. Air Sea Rescue searches failed to find any trace of the aircraft.
The crew members of HK317 were:
Flying Officer James Douglas Jones (53112) (RAF) (Navigator Radio)
Warrant Officer John Leonard Mulhall (410361) (Pilot)
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, 166/28/463