LEST WE FORGET
Sergeant Graham Burford PARKER
Service No: 400599
Born: Forbes NSW, 28 October 1918
Enlisted in the RAAF: 18 September 1940 (at Melbourne VIC)
Unit: No. 69 Squadron (RAF)
Died: Air Operations: (No. 69 Squadron Maryland aircraft 1639), off Malta, 18 March 1942, Aged 23 Years
Buried: Unrecovered
CWGC Additional Information: Son of Ernest William and Dorothy Parker, of Cremorne; also of Nedgera Station, Coonamble, New South Wales, Australia
Roll of Honour: Unknown
Remembered: Panel 5, Column 2, Malta Memorial, Malta
Remembered: Panel 128, Commemorative Area, Australian War Memorial, Canberra ACT
Brother of Pilot Officer Meredith Burford Parker (422680)
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 A705, 163/149/166