LEST WE FORGET
Sergeant James Leslie WILSON
Service No: 405103
Born: Maryborough QLD, 31 January 1916
Enlisted in the RAAF: 6 January 1941
Unit: No. 108 Squadron (RAF)
Died: Air Operations: (No. 108 Squadron Wellington aircraft HF844), central Mediterranean, 25 July 1942, Aged 26 Years
Buried: Unrecovered
CWGC Additional Information: Son of Alexander Cumming Wilson and Elizabeth Ann Wilson, of Tiaro, Queensland, Australia
Roll of Honour: Tiaro QLD
Remembered: Column 266, Alamein Memorial, Egypt
Remembered: Panel 132, Commemorative Area, Australian War Memorial, Canberra ACT
At 1750 hours on 25 July 1942 Wellington HF 844 took off from Advanced Base LG 86. It later took off from an Advanced Landing Ground at 2152 hours to carry out a night raid on Heraklion, Greece. Nothing was heard from the aircraft after take off and it did not return to base. The opposition encountered at Heraklion was fairly severe. Certain lights were reported by other aircraft as being green verey lights fired up from the sea in a position 100 miles from the Egyptian coast and on track. It was considered unlikely that it would be from a crew in a dinghy. Air Sea Rescue searches failed to find any trace of the missing aircraft or crew.
The crew members of HF844 were:
Pilot Officer Oliver Hobgen Clement (120428) (RAFVR) (Pilot)
Sergeant Harold Condron (643301) (RAF) (Rear Gunner)
Sergeant Cameron Charles McPherson (403873) (Front Gunner)
Pilot Officer Henry Michael Russell (106247) (RAFVR) (Navigator)
Sergeant Daniel Smith (1310599) (RAFVR) (Second Pilot)
Sergeant James Leslie Wilson (405103) (Wireless Operator Air Gunner)
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, 163/178/371