USAAF
5th AF
317th TCG
40th TCS
Crew 27 crew & passengers
Crashed August 7, 1943
Mission History
Piloted by H. Wilson. Took off from Garbutt
Airfield shortly
after take-off at 5.00 am. Their
next destination was Archerfield
Airfield. Crashed into Cleveland
Bay south east of Townsville at 5.20 am.
Memorial Service
62 years & 1 week after the crash, those 27 who paid the ultimate sacrifice in this
disaster, will be finally remembered with the unveiling and dedication
of a Memorial in their honour, officially timed to happen at 10.30am,
Sunday 14th August 2005. The Memorial will be situated on Kissing Point
in Townsville, adjacent to the existing US WW2 Memorial. The dedication
will run in conjunction with a Remembrance Service for all US Military
Personnel who gave their lives in the Townsville area during WW2. It has
been confirmed that the current head of the US 5th Air Force, Lt Gen
Bruce Wright will be attending this event, along with performing other
duties during the whole 4 day VP60 Program.
C-47
