LEST WE FORGET
Flight Sergeant John Joseph CHIGWIDDEN
Service No: 28155
Born: Broken Hill NSW, 23 February 1911
Enlisted in the RAAF: 10 July 1940 (at Broken Hill NSW)
Unit: No. 622 Squadron (RAF), RAF Mildenhall, Suffolk
Died: Air Operations (No. 622 Squadron Lancaster aircraft LL859), Netherlands, 21 July 1944, Aged 33 Years
Buried: Tilburg (Gilzerbaan) General Cemetery, Noord-Brabant, Netherlands
CWGC Additional Information: Son of Peter Bernard and Katherine Chigwidden; husband of Beatrice Chigwidden, of Merrylands, New South Wales, Australia.
Roll of Honour: Broken Hill NSW
Remembered: Panel 120, Commemorative Area, Australian War Memorial, Canberra ACT
Remembered: World War II Honour Roll, National War Memorial of SA, North Terrace, Adelaide
Remembered: Zinc Corporation Roll of Honour, Broken Hill NSW
On the night of 20/21st July 1944, Lancaster LL859 took off from RAF Mildenhall at 2310 hours, detailed to bomb Homberg, Germany. Nothing was heard from the aircraft after take off and it failed to return to base. The aircraft crashed at 0140 hours on the 21st July 1944, near the Canal Gates at Dongen (Noord-Brabant), 11 kms north west from the centre of Tilberg, and all the crew members were killed.
The crew members of LL859 were:
Flight Sergeant Francis Donald Brandon 91585663) (RAFVR) (Wireless Air Gunner)
Flight Sergeant John Joseph Chigwidden (28155) (Navigator)
Sergeant Reginald Ivon Lewis (1893209) (RAFVR) (Flight Engineer)
Flying Officer Frank Charles Montgomery (J/28240) (RCAF) (Air Bomber)
Sergeant Edward Albert O’Connor (1474265) (RAFVR) (Mid Upper Gunner)
Flight Lieutenant Alan Leslie Smith (150429) (RAFVR) (Pilot)
Sergeant Jack Spencer (1307935) (RAFVR) (Rear Gunner)
References:
Australian War Memorial Roll of Honour On-Line Records (RAAF Casualty Information compiled by Alan Storr (409804))
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, 166/7/571
Register of War Memorials in New South Wales On-Line