LEST WE FORGET
Flight Lieutenant James Knox WOOD
Service No: 410777
Born: Armadale VIC, 2 January 1922
Enlisted in the RAAF: 31 January 1942
Unit: No. 128 Squadron (RAF), RAF Station Wyton
Died: Air Operations: (No. 128 Squadron Mosquito aircraft MM199), Germany, 4 February 1945, Aged 23 Years
Buried: Hanover War Cemetery, Niedersachsen, Germany
CWGC Additional Information: Son of George Ernest and Mona Gertrude Wood, of Deepdene, Victoria, Australia
Roll of Honour: Camberwell VIC
Remembered: Panel 132, Commemorative Area, Australian War Memorial, Canberra ACT
At 1800 hours on 4 February 1945 Mosquito MM199 took off from Wyton detailed to bomb Hanover, Germany. Nothing was heard from the aircraft after take-off and it failed to return to base. A later report by a Missing Research and Enquiry team stated “the aircraft was hit by anti-aircraft fire and crashed half a mile south of the village of Benthe on 4 February 1945.” Benthe is about 6 miles south west of Hanover. Both the crew members had been killed.
The crew members of MM199 were:
Flying Officer Raymond Poole (162285) (RAFVR) (Navigator)
Flight Lieutenant James Knox Wood (410777) (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, 166/44/229