LEST WE FORGET
Sergeant John Marsh EMERY
Service No: 407116
Born: North Adelaide SA, 8 March 1914
Enlisted in the RAAF: 22 June 1940
Unit: No. 452 Squadron, RAF Station Redhill, Surrey
Died: Air Operations (No. 452 Squadron Spitfire aircraft AB966), English Channel, 8 December 1941, Aged 27 Years
Buried: Unrecovered
CWGC Additional Information: Son of Charles Holland Emery and Edith Emery, of Bowden, South Australia.
Roll of Honour: Hindmarsh SA
Remembered: Panel 62, Runnymede Memorial, Surrey UK
Remembered: Panel 105, Commemorative Area, Australian War Memorial, Canberra ACT
Remembered: World War II Honour Roll, National War Memorial of SA, North Terrace, Adelaide
No large-scale operations of any kind occurred during December, a bitter disappointment to the Australians whose natural anxiety concerning the extension of war to the Pacific needed to be sublimated in action. Protection of mine-layers, convoy escort and one uneventful sweep accounted for most of the 82 operational hours flown, a severe reduction from 137 in November and but a fraction of the 445 during the preceding August. Only one fight resulted, when thirteen Spitfires which were escorting two rescue launches south of Dungeness were engaged shortly after midday on 8th December by FW-190’s ; while preoccupied with these, a further three Focke-Wulfs dived down to attack, scattering the Spitfires. In the resultant melee four of the Australians fired at enemy aircraft without being able to observe results, but Emery failed to return, being last seen chasing an FW-190 with two enemy aircraft on his tail. Although getting somewhat the worse of this fight No. 452 profited from an early encounter with the new enemy fighter which appeared faster both in diving and climbing than the Spitfire, which had hitherto maintained progressive superiority over the various types of Me-109.
Extract from Herington, J. (John) (406545) Air War Against Germany and Italy 1939-1943, Australian War Memorial, Canberra, 1954 – Page 144
At 1330 hours on 8 December 1941, Spitfire AB966 crashed into the English Channel during an operational flight and Sergeant Emery was lost at sea.
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, 163/107/109