LEST WE FORGET
Flight Sergeant Charles Wilson TRINDER
Service No: 411970
Born: Toowoomba QLD, 10 May 1914
Enlisted in the RAAF: 21 June 1941 (at Sydney NSW)
Unit: No. 466 Squadron, RAF Station Leconfield, Yorkshire
Died: Air Operations: (No. 466 Squadron Wellington aircraft HE530), Yorkshire, 13 May 1943, Aged 29 Years
Buried: Driffield Cemetery, Yorkshire
CWGC Additional Information: Son of Robert Charles and Mary Trinder; husband of Florence Trinder, of Paddington, New South Wales. Australia
Roll of Honour: Auburn NSW
Remembered: Panel 110, Commemorative Area, Australian War Memorial, Canberra ACT
Remembered: Auburn District Memorial, Auburn NSW
Date: 12-13 May 1943
Target: Duisburg
Total Force: Dispatched – 572, Attacking – 517
RAAF Force: No. 460 Dispatched – 12, Attacking –1; No. 466 Dispatched – 15, Attacking – 15; No. 467 Dispatched – 19, Attacking – 19
Tons of Bombs Dropped: 1,599
Total Aircraft Lost: 35
RAAF Aircraft Lost: –
The table does not account for the loss of No. 466 Squadron Wellington aircraft HE530 on return to the UK.
On 12th-13th May weather was ideal and the raid centred squarely on Duisburg itself where forty-eight acres were entirely burnt out and many munitions factories, chemical works and a tar distillation plant were severely hit. This outstanding raid was fairly costly, but the Australian squadrons had no casualties, although as on all this series of attacks several aircraft were damaged by gun fire, and Squadron Leader Thiele (1) of No. 467 for the second time within four weeks had to return with only his two port engines in action. This difficult feat which succeeded only because of Thiele ‘s cool airmanship and the engine power, manoeuvrability and rugged construction of the Lancaster aircraft gave new confidence to crews of his own and other squadrons facing the ever-increasing gun defences of the Ruhr.
(1) Squadron Leader K F Thiele DFC DSO (RNZAF)
Extracts from Herington, J. (John) (406545) Air War Against Germany and Italy 1939-1943, Australian War Memorial, Canberra, 1954 – Page 483-4
Wellington HE530 took off from RAF Leconfield at 2233 hours on the night of 12/13th May 1943 to bomb Duisberg, Germany. Fifteen aircraft from the Squadron took part in the raid and one of these HE530 crashed on return at Towthorpe Wold, an area of high ground, 10kms north west of Driffield, Yorkshire All the crew members were killed.
The crew members of HE530 were:
Sergeant Douglas Arthur Mark Davidson (411865) (RNZAF) (Navigator)
Sergeant Ernest Gordon Leonard Giggs (1323461) (RAFVR) (Rear Gunner)
Sergeant Harry Russell (1320125) (RAFVR) (Bomb Aimer)
Sergeant Daniel Anthony Traill (657397) (RAF) (Wireless Operator Air Gunner)
Sergeant Charles William Trinder (411970) (Pilot)
A report on the accident on the above Casualty file at Archives stated “The aircraft returned from the operational sortie and after contact on R/T it was given instructions to land at Leconfield. About 20 minutes later the aircraft crashed 15 miles north-west from the airfield while flying in a south easterly direction. The height of the ground was 450 feet and the cloud base probably close to that height. The aircraft hit the hillside and was scattered over a large area completely wrecking it. The port wing was burnt. The accident occurred in conditions of low cloud and very poor visibility. The aircraft was given a diversion to Linton but this was rejected as the Aircraft was unable to get there due to shortage of fuel. Between 0441 and 0531hours 11QDMs were passed to the Aircraft. Also the aircraft had not positioned itself on either of the two beams (Driffield and Breighton) that were available in the Leconfield area.
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 Veteran’s Affairs On-Line WWII Nominal Roll
Register of War Memorials in New South Wales On-Line