LEST WE FORGET
Flying Officer Ronald Cave SCARLETT
Service No: 402763
Born: Armidale VIC, 30 May 1914
Enlisted in the RAAF: 14 October 1940 (at Sydney NSW)
Unit: No. 57 Squadron (RAF), RAF Station Feltwell
Died: Air Operations: (No. 57 Squadron Wellington aircraft Z1097), Netherlands, 27 December 1941, Aged 27 Years
Buried: Eindhoven (Woensel) General Cemetery, Noord-Brabant, Netherlands
CWGC Additional Information: Son of Frederick Harold and Alice Annie Scarlett, of Malvern, Victoria, Australia
Roll of Honour: Malvern VIC
Remembered: Panel 130, Commemorative Area, Australian War Memorial, Canberra ACT
At 1700 hours on the night of 27 December 1941 Wellington Z1097 took off from Feltwell detailed to bomb Dusseldorf, Germany. Nothing was heard from the aircraft after take-off and it failed to return to base. The aircraft was shot down by a night fighter and crashed at 2030 hours near Someren (Noord Brabant), 11 kms SSE of Helmond, Netherlands. Five of the crew members were killed and one became a Prisoner of War.
The crew members of Z1097 were:
Sergeant Robert Frederick Aldous (1254695) (RAFVR) (Second Wireless Operator)
Sergeant S Barraclough (1007462) (RAFVR) (First Wireless Operator) PoW
Sergeant Maxwell Joseph Cronin (404996) (RNZAF) (Second Pilot)
Sergeant Walter James Poulton (1378026) (RAFVR) (Air Gunner)
Warrant Officer Thomas Purdy DFM (564392) (RAF) (Pilot)
Flying Officer Ronald Cave Scarlett (402763) (Observer)
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, 163/56/99