| Accession Number | P07478.001 |
|---|---|
| Collection type | Photograph |
| Object type | Black & white - Digital file JPEG |
| Maker |
Unknown |
| Date made | 1940 - 1941 |
| Conflict |
Second World War, 1939-1945 |
| Copyright |
Item copyright: Copyright expired - public domain
|
Portrait of 407142 Sergeant (Sgt) Robert Keith Swann, RAAF attached to No. 14 Squadron RAF, of ...
Description
Portrait of 407142 Sergeant (Sgt) Robert Keith Swann, RAAF attached to No. 14 Squadron RAF, of Henley Beach, SA. A watchmaker prior to the war, Swann enlisted with the RAAF on 22 June 1940. He embarked from Sydney to join No. 14 Squadron RAF in the Middle East in April 1941. On 23 February 1942, Sgt Swann was the observer in a Blenheim IV aircraft returning from an operation over Bir el Baheira when it was attacked by four Messerschmitt Me-109 aircraft. The pilot took normal evasive action but received direct hits from cannon shells in both engines and was shot down in flames. The four crew members were taken to the 17th Field Ambulance, where Sgt Swann died of injuries sustained during the crash on 24 February 1942, aged 21. He was buried at Halfaya Sollum War Cemetery, Egypt. The other three crew members survived.