LEST WE FORGET
Major General George Alan VASEY CB CBE DSO and Bar MID
Service No: VX9 (Australian Army)
Born: Malvern VIC, 29 March 1895
Enlisted in the Army: 31 October 1939
Unit: Headquarters 7th Australian Division
Awarded the Mentioned in Despatches (MID)
Awarded the Distinguished Service Order (DSO), 3 June 1918 (Citation Title: AIF – Artillery)
Awarded the Order of the British Empire – Commander (Military) (CBE(M)), 1 April 1941 (Citation Title: Army Distinguished Service in the Middle East)
Awarded the Order of the Bath – Companion (Military) (CB(M)), 28 May 1943 (Citation Title: Australian Military Forces – South West Pacific)
Died: Aircraft Accident (No. 4 Communication Unit Hudson aircraft A16-118), off Cairns QLD, 5 March 1945, Aged 49 Years
Buried: Cairns Cemetery QLD
CWGC Additional Information: Son of George Brinsden Vasey and Alice Isabel Vasey, of Melbourne, Victoria; husband of Jessie Mary Vasey, of Wantirna, Victoria
Roll of Honour: Melbourne VIC
Remembered: Panel 12, Commemorative Area, Australian War Memorial, Canberra ACT
Major General Vasey’s biography is given in the Australian Dictionary of Biography.
While on approach to Cairns Airport, Hudson A16-118 crashed at 1620 hours about 500 meters off-shore in four metres of water and ended up resting on its back. Weather at the time was 9/10 cloud cover, no wind, ceiling 1,500 feet, visibility 8 kms, and no rain. There were no survivors and attempts were made to salvage the aircraft over several days. A Court of Inquiry was convened. Those on board A16-118 were:
Crew:
Flight Lieutenant Donald James Bassett (406465) (Pilot)
Warrant Officer Berrol Samuel Frieze (409400) (Navigator)
Leading Aircraftman John Dudley Moore (77157) (Radio Operator)
Flying Officer Gordon Thomson DFM (400573) (Second Pilot)
Passengers:
Lieutenant Colonel George Anthony Bertram OBE MID (NX324) (Australian Army) Advanced Land Headquarters
Major General Rupert Major Downes CMG VD (VX57673) (Australian Army) Medical Corps
Corporal Edward Lewis James (NX4011) (Australian Army) HQ 6th Division
Flight Lieutenant John William Newell (404543) (Pilot) No. 5 Operational Training Unit
Lieutenant William Rigall (VX80932) (Australian Army) HQ 6th Division
Colonel Robert Heathcote Russell DSO MID (NX168) (Australian Army) HQ 2nd Australian Army
Major General George Alan Vasey* CB CBE DSO and Bar MID (VX9) (Australian Army) HQ 7th Division
* As a result of the shared concern for the widows of soldiers under his command and then experiencing the loss of her husband, Mrs Jessie Vasey CBE OBE (1897-1966) founded the War Widows’ Guild of Australia in 1946.
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, 135
War Widows’ Guild of Australia Web Site