LEST WE FORGET
Warrant Officer Ernest Andrew THOMPSON
Service No: 408889
Born: Edinburgh Scotland, 1 December 1916
Enlisted in the RAAF: 20 June 1941 (at Melbourne VIC)
Unit: No. 15 Squadron, Camden, NSW
Died: Aircraft Accident (No. 15 Squadron Beaufort aircraft A9-566), off QLD Coast, 11 March 1945, Aged 28 Years
Buried: Unrecovered
CWGC Additional Information: Son of Mr. and Mrs. E. Thompson; husband of Noela Mary Thompson, of Bondi Junction, New South Wales.
Roll of Honour: Unknown
Remembered: Panel 5, Sydney Memorial, Rookwood NSW
Remembered: Panel 101, Commemorative Area, Australian War Memorial, Canberra ACT
Beaufort aircraft A9-566 went missing on 11 March 1945 on a flight from Camden NSW to Madang PNG and was last reported over Bowen QLD. Despite extensive searches, no trace was found of the aircraft or the crew.
The crew members of A9-566 were:
Leading Aircraftman Douglas Milne Finley (72896) (Fitter IIE, Supernumerary)
Warrant Officer John Norton Mossop (407846) (Wireless Air Gunner)
Squadron Leader Arthur John Sharp (402140) (Pilot)
Warrant Officer Ernest Andrew Thompson (408889) (Navigator Bomb Aimer)
Flight Lieutenant Tristam Wilfred Pascoe Williams (26792) (Wireless Air Gunner)
References:
Australian War Memorial Roll of Honour On-Line Records
Commonwealth War Graves Commission On-Line Records
Department of Veteran’s Affairs On-Line WWII Nominal Roll
National Archives of Australia On-Line Record A9845, 252
Bibliography:
Wilson, S. (Stewart) Beaufort, Beaufighter and Mosquito in Australian Service, Aerospace Publications Weston Creek ACT 2611, 1990