LEST WE FORGET
Pilot Officer Robert Bruce HUDSON
Service No: 409142
Born: Northcote VIC, 17 November 1921
Enlisted in the RAAF: 19 July 1941
Unit: No. 451 Squadron, Idku, Egypt
Died: Air Operations: (No. 451 Squadron Hurricane aircraft BN162), off the Egyptian Coast, 24 April 1943, Aged 21 Years
Buried: Unrecovered
CWGC Additional Information: Son of Robert Inglis Hudson and Rosa Kate Hudson, of Balwyn, Victoria, Australia
Roll of Honour: Camberwell VIC
Remembered: Column 277, Alamein Memorial, Egypt
Remembered: Panel 105, Commemorative Area, Australian War Memorial, Canberra ACT
On 24 April 1943, Hurricane BNI62 flown by Pilot Officer Hudson together with one other Hurricane flown by Pilot Officer Eric James Sidney (411078) (Discharged: 14 December 1945) as Yellow 1, scrambled as Yellow section to carry out a protection of a convoy on vector 360 degrees. Pilot Officer Sidney then later reported, as No 2 was right behind me on take-off, I did not see him I called “Sapling” notifying Sector we were airborne and then continued on vector 360 degrees at 500 feet. Later Sapling called me and asked if No. 2 was with me. I looked but could see nothing due to poor visibility and on Sector’s instruction called BN162 but received no reply. Due to my low altitude my radio was not working properly, but Sapling told me that No. 2 called two minutes after I first called and told them he was going to “belly land”. Sapling heard that No. 2 had crash landed 045 degrees from the north south runway. I returned to vector 180 degrees and Sapling instructed me to search for No. 2. An oil patch on the sea was found 045 degrees from the north south end of the runway, about two miles away, but there was no sign of the aircraft or Pilot Officer Hudson.
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 A705, 166/18/74