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MELBOURNE, Thursday.
Two
Australian air-gunners serving in RAF squadrons in Great Britain
have been awarded the Distinguished Flying. Medal for gallantry
in air operations.
Announcing
this today, the Minister for Air (Mr Drakeford) said that the
recipients were
Sgt
John
Henry
Lovell (25, unmarried, of Smithton (T), and
Sgt
Norman Francis Williams (28), unmarried, of Leeton (NSW).
No citation
has been received for the award to Williams, but that dealing
with the exploit for which Lovell gained his award stated that
he was the wireless air-gunner of a bomber which set out to bomb
Le Crëusot on October 17. Soon after taking off engine trouble
developed and the pilot was obliged to turn back. Three enemy
float planes attacked, and the pilot displayed great airmanship
which, supported by accurate fire from the gunners, resulted in
two of the enemy planes being shot down and the other
breaking off the engagement. The
bomber
landed safely in England. The other members of the crew were not
Australians. All were awarded a similar decorátion.
Recipient
Missing
Three days
after Mr and Mrs E. C. Lovell, of Mella, had received word that
their son,
Sgt
J. Lovell, was missing after air operations on November 7 they
received a further communication from the Dept. of Air that he
had been awarded the DFM.
The Mercury
20 November 1942
Photo Courtesy: Brewer & Bertelson Connections
Ancestry Tree, orig. from S Lethborg
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