B-24M-10-CO Liberator Serial Number A72-160

RAAF
12 Squadron

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Stan Gajda 1980

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Rob Lalumiere 2005

Pilot  FLTLT F. L. Simsey, 402764
Crew  FLGOFF William Samuel Bell, 417693
Crew  WOFF Thomas Nathan Rust, 408348
Crew  WOFF Bernard Leslie Cox, 412402
Crew  FSGT Leonard Duncanson, 59752
Crew  FSGT Lester Maxwell Bailey, 443477
Crew  FSGT I N L Easton
Crew  FSGT Thomas Walter Allen, 440166
Crew  FSGT Donald Douglas Benson, 435604
Crew  FSGT John Austin Hollis, 445226
Crew  FSGT John Raymond Wilbur Herps, 440858
Crashed  May 20, 1945

Aircraft History
Previously served with the USAAF as 44-41949. Delivered to the RAAF in December 1944.

Mission History
Crashed soon after take off just off from Truscott Airfield off the NW end of runway, bound for Balikpapan. The bomber was destroyed by its depth charges exploding. All crew members were killed.

Wreckage
Stan Gajda adds:
"In 1979, John Hardie recovered one of the .50 caliber machine gun from the Motor Products tail turret. It was the right side gun and now I have it in a waist gun hand-held mounting. Hardie has the other.

In 1980 I was there with Hardie and spent a very interesting time going over the wreckage. There was no memorial there then and nobody cared much about it. We pulled another gun from the wreckage which was one of the Martin upper turret guns with its mounts and a spare barrel that was bent. The radar equipment was still there with its gold-plated circuits which Hardie souvenired. I kept the twin ammo feed motors from one of the turrets which I restored and got working again. Putting power on and tripping the micro switch had the motors running, turning the belt feed sprockets. The engines looked real good but had broken reduction casings. Most of the plane had burnt because it had cartwheeled through the sparse bush and sections that came off were not burnt, for example like the cockpit area was smashed but not burnt."

References
Thanks to Daniel Leahey for this information

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Tech Information
B-24

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