LEST WE FORGET
Flight Sergeant Wallace George LEWIS
Service No: 404565
Born: Brisbane QLD, 7 August 1919
Enlisted in the RAAF: 11 October 1940
Unit: No. 264 Squadron (RAF)
Died: Aircraft Accident (No. 264 Squadron Defiant aircraft AA377), Kent, 26 April 1942, Aged 22 Years
Buried: Leysdown (St Clement) Churchyard, Kent
CWGC Additional Information: Son of Thomas Henry and Alice Lewis, of Bardon, Queensland, Australia
Roll of Honour: Brisbane QLD
Remembered: Panel 125, Commemorative Area, Australian War Memorial, Canberra ACT
On 26 April 1942, Defiant AA377 crashed at Sheerness and the crew was killed. The crew members were:
Flight Sergeant Wallace George Lewis 9404565) (Pilot)
Flight Sergeant William Mair (971422) (RAFVR) (Gunner)
Flight Sergeant Corser a witness to a Court of Inquiry into the accident stated: “on 26 April Warrant Officer Lauder, Flight Sergeant Lewis and I were detailed for air to sea firing at the Leysdown range. Lauder was firing and Lewis and I were orbiting the range at approximately 2,000 feet. Flight Sergeant Lewis was about 500 feet above me and half a mile in front when I observed that his port wing dropped, and he went into a vertical dive travelling in the opposite direction to his original course. It appeared that Lewis tried to pull out of this dive but only partially succeeded in doing so, when the machine turned to starboard and then hit the ground.” Flight Sergeant Rose, Flight Sergeant Corser’s Gunner stated: “we were at approximately 2,000 feet awaiting our turn to do our air firing practice. I saw a Defiant diving past us at a very steep angle about 50 feet away on our port side, this dive continued until 500 feet from the ground. The aircraft then went into a flat spin to starboard doing 3 or 4 slow turns before hitting the ground and bursting into flames “
The opinion of the Court was that: “the accident was due to loss of control by the Pilot, but we cannot determine what caused the loss of control.” The Wing Commander Commanding Officer RAF Station West Melling stated: “I concur with the findings. There is no evidence to show whether the loss of control was due to some structural failure or to some temporary physical failure on the part of the 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 A705, 163/137/144