BATTLE OF BRITAIN ‘LACE’
Efforts are underway to establish a memorial cairn and plaque at RAAF Park in Brighton, Queensland, to honour the six aircrew of No. 23 (City of Brisbane) Squadron’s Lockheed Hudson Bomber A16-27, which mysteriously vanished on 12 August 1940 during a navigational exercise off Brisbane’s coast.
Newly equipped with Hudson bombers just six days earlier at Archerfield Airfield, the squadron suffered its first WWII casualties when the aircraft departed at 1345 hours, made routine radio contact at 1413 hours, was observed circling Amity Point on North Stradbroke Island, then tracked east of Point Lookout before disappearing into clouds.
Last contact occurred at 1430 hours, with no further sightings; an oil slick was spotted 18 miles east during searches the next day, but no wreckage or bodies were ever recovered, leaving the fate a total mystery.
The memorial site, steeped in WWII RAAF history as a former radar station area, positions the cairn for visitors to gaze seaward over Moreton Bay along the flight’s approximate path, fostering reflection on the crew’s sacrifice: Pilot Officer Mervyn Stephen Matthews (382), Pilot Officer Walter Keith Beeston (615), Sergeant Hamilton James Gorman (2545), Sergeant Dudley Howard Downs (2464), Leading Aircraftman George Leslie Savage (3746) and Aircraftman Class 1 Francis John Starr (5085).
The memorial project team, led by George Hatchman (RAAF WOFF Rtd) of the No. 23 Squadron Association and Reverand Bob Heathwood (CHAP SQNLDR Rtd), is currently seeking official approval from Brisbane authorities and a future dedication ceremony to preserve this poignant chapter of local aviation history for generations.
If you are interested in supporting the project, please contact Mr Hatchman via his email on gehatch@bigpond.com or Rev. Heathwood on roberththwd9@gmail.com