LEST WE FORGET
Sergeant James Christopher WADE
Service No: 28053
Born: Burnside SA, 11 April 1917
Enlisted in the RAAF: 20 May 1940
Unit: No. 218 Squadron (RAF), RAF Downham Market, Norfolk
Died: Air Operations (No. 218 Squadron Stirling aircraft BF450), Germany, 25 February 1943, Aged 25 Years
Buried: Unrecovered
CWGC Additional Information: Son of William John and Linda Matilda Wade; husband of Ellen Wade, of Mannahill, South Australia
Roll of Honour: Norwood SA, Adelaide SA
Remembered: Panel 197, Runnymede Memorial, Surrey UK
Remembered: Panel 131, Commemorative Area, Australian War Memorial, Canberra ACT
Remembered: World War II Honour Roll, National War Memorial of SA, North Terrace, Adelaide
Stirling BF450 of No. 218 (Gold Coast) Squadron took off from RAF Station Downham Market at 1840 hours on 25 February 1943 to bomb the Rheinau Power Station at Nurnberg, Germany. Nothing was heard from the aircraft after take off and it did not return to base. Following post war investigations it was established that the aircraft was shot down by enemy aircraft and fell partly on the bank and in the river of the Rhine.
The crew members of BF450 were:
Sergeant John William Hearn (1339187) (RAFVR)
Flight George Sergeant Mathews (R/79239) (RCAF)
Sergeant Lloyd Lincoln Stuart (1385971) (RAFVR)
Sergeant James Christopher Wade (28053) (Flight Engineer)
Sergeant Harry Victor Werner (1188359) (RAFVR)
Sergeant Raymond William White (1331366) (RAFVR) (Pilot)
Sergeant Kenneth Ian Young (R/75118) (RCAF)
Captured German documents revealed that Flight Sergeant Mathews and Sergeant Young were buried in Mannheim Cemetery. They were later re-interred in Bad Toelz (Durnbach) War Cemetery, Germany. The documents also revealed that Sergeant Wade and Sergeant Stuart were buried in Ludwigshafen Cemetery, but their graves could not be identified and they are recorded as having no known grave.
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
National Archives of Australia On-Line Record A705, 166/43/74