LEST WE FORGET
Flight Sergeant Robert George PRYOR
Service No: 437058
Born: Broken Hill NSW, 10 January 1924
Enlisted in the RAAF: 15 October 1942 (at Adelaide SA)
Unit: No. 358 Squadron (RAF), Jessore, India
Died: Air Operations (No. 358 Squadron Liberator aircraft EW188), Vietnam, 25 February 1945, Aged 21 Years
Buried: Sai Wan War Cemetery, Hong Kong
CWGC Additional Information: Son of Harold Rupert Torr Pryor and Florence Maud Pryor, of Broken Hill, New South Wales, Australia
Roll of Honour: Broken Hill NSW
Remembered: Panel 129, Commemorative Area, Australian War Memorial, Canberra ACT
Remembered: World War II Honour Roll, National War Memorial of SA, North Terrace, Adelaide
On the 25th February 1945, Liberator EW188 was reported missing on a special operation into Indo-China. The aircraft took off at 1044Z hours and was last seen at base 23.11 North 089.11 East when setting course. Nothing was heard from the aircraft and it failed to return from the mission.
Later No 8 Searcher Team under the command of the US Army HQ China Theatre located the crashed aircraft 40 kms west of the village of Phu-Loc which is 25 kms south of Hue. All the crew members had been killed.
The crew members of EW188 were:
Flying Officer Dennis Joseph Boston (164443) (RAFVR) (Air Bomber)
Flying Officer Louise Philippe Cloutier (J/24817) (RCAF) (Pilot)
Warrant Officer George Ernest Foster (657237) (RAFVR) (Navigator)
Sergeant George Walter Mount (934689) (RAFVR) (Air Gunner)
Sergeant James Patrick Joseph Power (1796476) (RAFVR) (Air Gunner)
Flight Sergeant Robert George Pryor (437058) (Second Pilot)
Flight Sergeant Mervyn Rex Vagg (430230) (Wireless Air Gunner)
Flight Sergeant Eric Francis Warmer (419146) (Wireless Air Gunner)
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 Veteran’s Affairs On-Line WWII Nominal Roll
National Archives of Australia On-Line Record A705, 166/33/319