| Accession Number | P07484.001 |
|---|---|
| Collection type | Photograph |
| Object type | Negative |
| Maker |
Unknown |
| Place made | United Kingdom: England |
| Date made | 1944 |
| Conflict |
Second World War, 1939-1945 |
| Copyright |
Item copyright: Copyright expired - public domain
|
Studio portrait of 427460 Flight Sergeant (Flt Sgt) William Gertzel of Perth, WA. Enlisting in ...
Description
Studio portrait of 427460 Flight Sergeant (Flt Sgt) William Gertzel of Perth, WA. Enlisting in the RAAF in July 1942, Flt Sgt Gertzel trained in Australia and Canada as a Wireless Air Gunner (WAG) under the Empire Air Training Scheme (EATS) and was posted to 466 Squadron RAAF at RAF Leconfield, Yorkshire, England. Flt Sgt Gertzel was listed as missing when his Halifax bomber, serial number LV919, radio call-sign HD-O (O-Oboe) failed to return from an operational sortie over the bomb marshalling yards at Hasselt, Germany on the night of 12/13th May 1944. It was determined after the war that LV919 was shot down by a German night-fighter and crashed at Zondereigen, Belgium. All seven crew members were killed, including Flt Sgt Gertzel, aged 21. Flt Sgt Gertzel's flight log books are held in the Memorial's collection at PR01299.