RAAF Fairey Battles K9380 and L5654
RSL (Port Pirie Sub Branch) Inc.On Friday 27th August 1943 at 1430 hours, two Fairey Battles K9380 and L5654 from No2 Bombing and Gunnery School collided in mid-air 10 miles west of Port Pirie.
Killed were:
428024 Sergeant Robert Henry Johns - Pilot K9380
432506 Leading Aircraftman Reginald David Griffith -Trainee Wireless Air Gunner
432548 Leading Aircraftman John Douglas Gardiner - Trainee Wireless Air Gunner
419616 Leading Aircraftman Lewis Grant - Trainee Wireless Air Gunner
423173 Sergeant Gordon Norman Ninness - Pilot L5654
122151 Aircraftman 1 Cyril Albert Venables – Armament Assistant, Drogue Operator
The probable cause was “lack of vigilance.”
Official Summary:
The two aircraft collided in mid-air during a gunnery exercise. The crews were killed instantly, cause of the crash unknown.
Sergeant Robert Henry Johns, 19, Hobart, Tasmania; Leading Aircraftman Reginald David Griffith, 18, Earlwood, New South Wales; John Douglas Gardiner, 18, Baradine, New South Wales; Lewis Grant, 19, Saint Kilda, Victoria; Gordon Norman Ninness, 19, Cessnock, New South Wales and Cyril Albert Venables, 18, Laura, South Australia were buried in the Commonwealth War Graves section of the Port Pirie Cemetery with full military honours.
- National Archives of Australia https://recordsearch.naa.gov.au/SearchNRetrieve/Interface/ViewImage.aspx?B=6950…