Studio portrait of 412788 Flight Lieutenant (Flt Lt) John Leslie Wilson RAAF, 77 Squadron RAF. ...

Studio portrait of 412788 Flight Lieutenant (Flt Lt) John Leslie Wilson RAAF, 77 Squadron RAF. Flt Lt Wilson of Ganmain, NSW, was piloting a Halifax II (JD413), one of 622 bombers taking part in a raid on Berlin on the night of 31 August/1 September 1943. On the return journey, the aircraft was off course and losing altitude when it was detected over Datteln in the Ruhr valley. The aircraft was shot down by members of the 3rd Battery, 534th Flak Battalion. Of the eight crew members (one crew member was a supernumery pilot on a familiarisation flight), five perished, including Flt Lt Wilson. Three bailed out and one later died of his wounds, the two survivors became prisoners of war. In 2005 the wreck of the aircraft was discovered along with the remains of the five crew. A funeral and reburial at the Reichswald Forest War Cemetery was held in March 2006 once the forensic examination of the remains had taken place.

• Group portrait of pilots on course 34 of Blind Approach Training (BAT). Identified is 412788 ...