LEST WE FORGET
Sergeant Robert Keith GRIMLEY
Service No: 402275
Born: Brisbane QLD, 12 May 1920
Enlisted in the RAAF: 22 July 1940 (at Sydney NSW)
Unit: No. 69 Squadron (RAF)
Died: Air Operations: (No. 69 Squadron Maryland aircraft 1639), off Malta, 18 March 1942, Aged 21 Years
Buried: Unrecovered
CWGC Additional Information: Son of Charles Cecil and Lilian Olive Grimley, of Hawthorne, Queensland, Australia
Roll of Honour: Unknown
Remembered: Panel 5, Column 2, Malta Memorial, Malta
Remembered: Panel 123, Commemorative Area, Australian War Memorial, Canberra ACT
Sergeant Grimley was a QANTAS staff member serving with the RAAF.
On 18 March 1942 Maryland 1639 was returning to Malta from a reconnaissance patrol. About 4 miles southwest of Filfola in the Malta area, it was attacked by enemy fighters and shot sown into the sea. Air Sea Rescue searches were carried out but no trace of the aircraft or crew was found. Following post war enquiries and investigations, it was recorded in 1948 that the missing crew members had lost their lives at sea.
The crew members of 1639 were:
Sergeant William Edward Anderson (402196) (Wireless Operator/Air Gunner)
Sergeant Arthur George James Delehaunt (770799) (RAFVR) (Wireless Operator/Air Gunner)
Sergeant Robert Keith Grimley (402275) (Observer)
Sergeant Graham Burford Parker (400599) (Pilot)
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 Veterans’ Affairs On-Line WWII Nominal Roll
National Archives of Australia On-Line Record A9301, 402275