LEST WE FORGET
Sergeant John Clayton SMITHSON
Service No: 6878
Born: White Cliffs NSW, 27 January 1917
Enlisted in the RAAF: 8 January 1940
Unit: No. 57 Squadron (RAF), RAF Station East Kirkby
Died: Air Operations: (No. 57 Squadron Lancaster aircraft W41890, Germany, 31 January 1943, Aged 26 Years
Buried: Hamburg War Cemetery, Germany
CWGC Additional Information: Son of Thomas Wright Smithson and Hanna Smithson, of Bexley, New South Wales, Australia
Roll of Honour: Unknown
Remembered: Panel 130, Commemorative Area, Australian War Memorial, Canberra ACT
Brother of Flying Officer William Thomas Wright Smithson (412730)
At 0012 hours on the morning 31 January 1943 Lancaster W4189 took off from East Kirkby detailed to bomb Hamburg, Germany. Nothing was heard from the aircraft after take-off and it failed to return to base. The aircraft crashed near Luneburg and all the crew members were killed.
The crew members of W4189 were:
Pilot Officer John Clifford Alfred Clarke (50666) (RAF) (Mid Upper Gunner)
Squadron Leader Donald George Long DFC AFC (40722) (RAF) (Pilot)
Sergeant George Edward Marwick (1365973) (RAFVR) (Air Bomber)
Sergeant Eric Louis Bowen Moore (1379514) (RAFVR) (Rear Gunner)
Flying Officer Frederick Charles Reed DFC (49649) (RAF) (Navigator)
Flying Officer Edward William George Rosam DFC DFM (113328) (RAFVR) (Wireless Air Gunner)
Sergeant John Clayton Smithson (6878) (Flight Engineer)
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, 166/38/31