LEST WE FORGET
Pilot Officer John William MacDONALD
Service No: 404971
Born: Brisbane QLD, 1 August 1917
Enlisted in the RAAF: 5 January 1941
Unit: No. 72 Squadron (RAF)
Died: Air Operations: (No. 72 Squadron Spitfire aircraft VB3452), Tunisia, 5 December 1942, Aged 25 Years
Buried: Unrecovered
CWGC Additional Information: Son of Percy Malcolm Crookston Macdonald and Irene Constance Macdonald; husband of Hazel Constance Macdonald, of Moorooka, Queensland, Australia
Roll of Honour: Unknown
Remembered: Panel 5, Column 1, Malta Memorial, Malta
Remembered: Panel 126, Commemorative Area, Australian War Memorial, Canberra ACT
Spitfire VB 3452 flown by Pilot Officer MacDonald together with other Squadron aircraft was instructed to carry out a sweep over the Djedaida area. The formation broke up into pairs to attack an enemy target and VB3452 dived into attack. Nothing further was seen of the aircraft after this and it did not return to base. It was recorded in 1949 that Pilot Officer MacDonald was missing with no known grave.
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, 163/46/72