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| USAAF 5th AF 35th FG 41st FS  USAAF c1942  Jessie Hague June 1942 |
Pilot 1st Lt George Leo Cantello, O-388884 (KIA, BR) Calumet, WI Crashed June 8, 1942 at 12:15am MACR none Aircraft History Built by Bell in Buffalo, New York. Assigned Royal Air Force (RAF) serial number unknown and painted in a three-color camouflage scheme. Instead, delivered to the U.S. Army Air Force (USAAF). Disassembled and shipped overseas to Australia and reassembled. Wartime History Assigned to the 5th Air Force (5th AF), 35th Fighter Group (35th FG), 41st Fighter Squadron (41st FS). No known nose art or nickname. Mission History On June 8, 1942 at 12:15am, Japanese submarine I-24 surfaced about four miles off the coast of Sydney and fired ten shells at 30 second intervals towards Sydney. Six failed to explode and the other four caused minor damage to houses and one indirect casualty. For the second time in a week, Sydney was under direct attack by the enemy causing panic. Meanwhile, at Bankstown Airfield, pilot 1st Lt George Leo Cantello received a phone call saying that Sydney was being shelled. At that moment, he was the only pilot available and immediately took off at night and climbed to 1,000' to intercept. Shortly after take off, his engine failed and his Airacobra hit the ground north of Hammondville. On impact, the plane exploded in flames and Cantello was killed. Wreckage This Airacobra crashed north of Hammondville in a small farming community (today Hammondville is a suburb of Sydney). Recovery of Remains After the crash, the remains of Cantello were recovered and buried in Australia. Postwar, his remains were transported to Hawaii for permanent burial. Memorial Cantello was officially declared dead the day of the mission. Afterwards, a public memorial service was held for Cantello in Sydney. Postwar, his remains were permanently buried at Honolulu Cemetery (Punchbowl) at plot C, row 640. John Jewell, then a very young boy, witnessed the crash of the Airacobra and tried over many years to raise interest with American authorities about the crash. During the 1980's, the US Consul in Sydney started an investigation involving the United States Air Force Historical Research Centre, American Battle Monuments Commission, Washington National Records Centre and members of the 41st Fighter Squadron. On June 12, 1988, the citizens of Bankstown unveiled a memorial in what was dubbed the Lieutenant Cantello Reserve in the memory of 1st Lt Cantello as part of a Bicentennial project. The plaque reads:
Relatives Don Cantello (son of George Cantello) References Joe Baugher "Airacobra I for RAF, P-400" FindAGrave - George Cantello (photo, grave photo, memorial photo) Australian War Memorial Collection Database - Item P05600.002 Contribute Information Are you a relative or associated with any person mentioned? Do you have photos or additional information to add? Last Updated
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