LEST WE FORGET
Sergeant William Ian CASS
Service No: 406432
Born: Busselton WA, 5 February 1922
Enlisted in the RAAF: 9 December 1940
Unit: No. 32 Squadron, Seven Mile Strip Port Moresby, PNG
Died: Air Operations: Assault on New Guinea (No. 32 Squadron Hudson aircraft A16-101), Gasmata Area, 3 March 1942, Aged 20 Years
Buried: Unrecovered
CWGC Additional Information: Son of Fred and Winifred Isabell Cass, of Kalgoorlie, Western Australia.
Roll of Honour: Perth WA
Remembered: Panel 36, Rabaul Memorial, PNG
Remembered: Panel 102, Commemorative Area, Australian War Memorial, Canberra ACT
Remembered: Cenotaph Undercroft, State War Memorial, Kings Park WA
Sergeant Cass (1935-7) and Flying Officer Nicolay (1937-8) both attended Perth Modern School.
A16-101 was one of four No. 32 Squadron Hudson aircraft operating from seven Mile airstrip, Port Moresby, tasked with a night bombing raid on Gasmata New Britain. On this operation, A16-101 and A16-165 went missing.
TThe crew members of A16-101 were:
Sergeant William Ian Cass (406432) (Wireless Air Gunner)
Sergeant William Hodgson Coppin (406773) (Wireless Air Gunner)
Sergeant Mark Richard Korbosky (406721) (Second Pilot)
Flying Officer Arthur Renfred Nicolay (406013) (Pilot)
No. 32 Squadron lost Hudson A16-165 (Flight Lieutenant Kenneth James Erwin (261863) (Pilot)) on 3 March 1942.
References:
Australian War Memorial Roll of Honour On-Line Records
Commonwealth War Graves Commission On-Line Records
Department of Veteran’s Affairs On-Line WWII Nominal Roll
National Archives of Australia On-Line Record A705, 165/95/233
Bibliography:
Wilson, S. (Stewart) Anson, Hudson and Sunderland in Australian Service, Aerospace Publications Weston Creek ACT 2611, 1992