LEST WE FORGET
Flight Sergeant John Robert TREE
Service No: 425781
Born: Brisbane QLD, 9 December 1922
Enlisted in the RAAF: 26 April 1942
Unit: No. 83 Squadron (RAF), RAF Station Wyton
Died: Air Operations: (No. 83 Squadron Lancaster aircraft JB412), Denmark, 29 January 1944, Aged 21 Years
Buried: Aabenraa Cemetery, Denmark
CWGC Additional Information: Son of Mr. and Mrs. A. W. Tree, of Mitchelton, Queensland, Australia
Roll of Honour: Unknown
Remembered: Panel 131, Commemorative Area, Australian War Memorial, Canberra ACT
At 0019 hours on the morning of 29 January 1944 Lancaster JB412 took off from Wyton detailed to bomb Berlin. Nothing was heard from the aircraft after take-off and it failed to return to base. It was later reported that the aircraft was shot down by a night fighter and crashed at 0220 hours at Varnaes, 10 kms east south east of Aabenraa, Denmark. Three crew members were killed and four became Prisoners of War.
The crew members of JB412 were:
Flight Sergeant J A Fell (857605) (RAF (Auxiliary Air Force)) (Rear Gunner) PoW
Sergeant W Livesey (1082212) (RAFVR) (Wireless Air Gunner) PoW
Flight Sergeant John James Martin (1040315) (RAFVR) (Navigator)
Sergeant Thomas Kinnock McCash (1568681) (RAFVR) (Flight Engineer)
Pilot Officer R Pilgrim (159511) (RAFVR) (Air Bomber) PoW
Pilot Officer W Simpson (149618) (RAFVR) (Pilot) PoW
Flight Sergeant John Robert Tree (425781) (Mid Upper Gunner)
Flight Sergeant Tree had baled out over the sea and was drowned. His body was later washed ashore at Sonderborg and buried on 22 June1944.
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, 166/40/134