The Last Post Ceremony commemorating the service of (422326) Pilot Officer Roland Gilbert Ward, Royal Air Force, Second World War

The Last Post Ceremony is presented in the Commemorative area of the Australian War Memorial each day. The ceremony commemorates more than 102,000 Australians who have given their lives in war and other operations and whose names are recorded on the Roll of Honour. At each ceremony the story behind one of the names on the Roll of Honour is told. Hosted by Meredith Duncan, the story for this day was on 422326 Pilot Officer Roland Gilbert Ward, Royal Air Force, Second World War.

422326 Pilot Officer Roland Gilbert Ward, Royal Air Force.
KIA 6 June 1944
No photograph in collection

Story delivered 7 May 2015

Today we pay tribute to Flight Sergeant Roland Gilbert Ward, who was killed on active service with the Royal Air Force on D-Day, 6 June 1944.

D-Day has become an iconic event not only in the history of the Second World War but also in the history of the Western world. On this tumultuous day, a multi-national Allied force landed on the shores of Normandy. It was the first major step in the liberation of Western Europe from the tyranny of Nazism and fascism.

Born in Maryborough, Queensland, on 16 November 1915, Roland Gilbert Ward was the son of George and Nellie Ward.

Before his enlistment in the Royal Australian Air Force in April 1942, Ward worked as a foreman at a flour mill. He also served within his local Militia battalion. During this time he also became engaged to Miss B. Gaudry of Bathurst, though they would never marry.

Following enlistment Ward trained as a pilot, and in April 1943 he embarked for overseas service. As part of the Empire Air Training Scheme he was one of almost 16,000 RAAF pilots, navigators, wireless operators, gunners, and engineers who joined Royal Air Force squadrons throughout the course of the war.

Once in Britain he undertook further specialist training. On one training operation the Wellington bomber in which he was flying crash landed, but Ward escaped with only a few minor scratches.
Ward was posted to No. 50 Squadron, Royal Air Force, in May 1944. Flying the Avro Lancaster four-engine bomber, No. 50 Squadron was part of Bomber Command.

On the night of 6 June Ward’s Lancaster was part of a force bombing targets at St Pierre Du Mont in support of the American landings at nearby Omaha beach.

It was during this operation that Ward was killed in action, aged 28. His Lancaster was hit by flak and caught fire, and all except one of the crew was able to bail out of the stricken aircraft to safety. Ward and five of his British and Australian aircrew were killed. This was Ward’s sixth mission with the squadron.

Ward’s body was later recovered, and he is buried in the British Commonwealth War Commentary in Bayeux, France. His grave sits alongside that of his tail gunner, Australian Malcolm Burgess.

In a letter to Ward’s father the Squadron Leader wrote that Ward had had the complete confidence of his crew and was a popular member around the mess. He would be greatly missed by his numerous friends in the squadron.

Ward was one of thousands of Australians who served within the British and Commonwealth forces on D-Day and throughout the Normandy campaign. On this day of days, Roland Gilbert Ward made the ultimate sacrifice.

His name is listed on the Roll of Honour on my left, along with some 40,000 Australians who died in the Second World War.

This is but one of the many stories of service and sacrifice told here at the Australian War Memorial. We now remember Pilot Officer Roland Gilbert Ward, and all of those Australians – as well as our Allies and brothers in arms – who gave their lives in the hope for a better world.

Dr Lachlan Grant
Historian, Military History Section