LEST WE FORGET
Flying Officer Colin James STOWER
Service No: 404369
Born: Roma QLD, 9 December 1913
Enlisted in the RAAF: 16 August 1940
Unit: No. 82 Squadron (RAF)
Died: Aircraft Accident (No. 82 Squadron Vengeance aircraft AN942), India, 21 November 1942, Aged 28 Years
Buried: Madras War Cemetery, Chennai, India
CWGC Additional Information: Son of James and Rose Mary Ann Kathleen Stower, of Wallumbilla, Queensland, Australia
Roll of Honour: Unknown
Remembered: Panel 130, Commemorative Area, Australian War Memorial, Canberra ACT
On 21 November 1942 Vultee Vengeance AN942 when flying from Cholavaram to Bangalore, crashed at about 1215 hours between the Devangenthi and Malur railway stations when carrying out an emergency forced landing and both crew members were killed. A Court of Inquiry was appointed to investigate: – the seizure of the front connecting rod due to lack of oil; the hitting of a high bank in an attempted forced landing and owing to the very high stalling speed of Vengeance aircraft with the airscrew stopped and the steep attitude of the descent to keep above this stalling speed, that unless there is a particularly good area to force land baling out of the aircraft should be attempted.
The crew members of AN942 were:
Flight Lieutenant Arthur Stephenson DFM (115316) (RAFVR) (Observer)
Flying Officer Colin James Stower (404369) (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, 163/57/241