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Archive Report: Allied Forces

Compiled from official National Archive and Service sources, contemporary press reports, personal logbooks, diaries and correspondence, reference books, other sources, and interviews.
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21 Squadron, RAAF
27.07.1945 21 (City of Melbourne) Squadron, RAAF Liberator A72-92, Flt Lt. Kenneth J. Hanson

Operation: Photographic Reconnaissance

Date: 27th July 1945 (Friday)

Unit No: 21 (City of Melbourne) Squadron, 82th Wing, RAAF

Type: Liberator

Serial: A72-92

Code: MJ:D

Base: Squadron detachment on Morotai Island

Location: 2 miles SW of Tomohon in the Manado area, Northern Celebes

Pilot: Flt Lt. Kenneth John Hanson 403585 RAAF Age 27. KiA

Co-Pilot: Fg Off. John James Oliver Hume 427095 RAAF Age 28. KiA

Flt Eng: Flt Sgt. Arnold Alexander Lockyer 80471 RAAF Age 30. Murdered (1)

Nav(B): WO. Alfred Cook 419295 RAAF Age 30. KiA

Bomb Aimer: Flt Sgt. Charles Neville Nichol 440381 RAAF Age 20. KiA

WOp/Air Gnr: WO. George Grey Lindley 427712 RAAF Age 31. Murdered (1)

WOp/Air Gnr: Flt Sgt. John Victor Orgill 441469 RAAF Age 22. Murdered (2)

Air Gnr: Flt Sgt. Frank Grainger Vincent Hutton 437421 RAAF Age 23. KiA

Air Gnr: Flt Sgt. Stephen Patrick Cloake 441014 RAAF Age 20. KiA

Air Gnr: Flt Sgt. Brendan Michael Heslin 440787 RAAF Age 21. KiA

Air Gnr: Flt Sgt. William James Maxwell 435994 RAAF Age 20. KiA

Weather Observer: Cpl. John Robert Waite 36404344 USAAF Age 23. KiA (3)

Note: Liberator A72-92 was built as B-24L #44-41581.

Above left to right: Flt Lt. Hanson, Fg Off. Hume, WO. Cook, WO. Lindley from their Service Records.

Above left to right: Flt Sgt. Hutton, Flt Sgt. Cloake, Flt Sgt. Heslin, Flt Sgt. Maxwell from their Service Records.

REASON FOR LOSS:

On the 27th July 1945 Liberator A72-92 of 21 Squadron, RAAF took off from Morotai Island to undertake a photographic reconnaissance over Northern Celebes. The aircraft failed to return to base.

From July 1945, while the main force remained at Fenton airfield in the Northern Territory, Australia, the squadron sent a detachment to Morotai Island. The island is in the Halmahera group of eastern Indonesia's Maluku Islands and is one of Indonesia's northernmost islands.

Today the Northern Celebes island is know as North Sulawesi, which is part of the four Greater Sunda Islands to the east of what was known as Borneo, governed by Indonesia.

On the 28th July searching aircraft located the aircraft wreckage about 2 miles SW of Tomohon in the Manado area, Northern Celebes and within Japanese held territory. From the appearance of the wreck it seemed to have struck the ground in a shallow dive. There were no signs of survivors. As the aircraft was engaged on low-level photography, it was thought that the probability of any of the crew successfully abandoning the aircraft was slight.

On the 9th January 1946, a team from the Australian War Graves Unit (AWGU) found that a local official had witnessed three men jump from the aircraft before it crashed. One of the three died instantly either because he was not wearing his parachute or it failed to open in time. This airman was established from his identity discs as Flt Sgt. Nichol. His body was recovered by a Japanese soldier and buried near the crash site.

The evidence regarding the fate of the remaining crew was determined after a lengthy and complicated investigation which determined from local witnesses that the aircraft wreckage burned for two days after which the natives recovered what they believed to be the remains of eight airmen and buried them near the crash site in eight graves.

The AWGU exhumed the graves and determined that there was only sufficient evidence to establish the presence of seven bodies none of which could be individually identified. It was considered probable that the remains of one of the crew may have been completely incinerated in the fire leaving no trace. The remains were reburied in seven graves at Makassar.

Further investigations determined with some degree of certainty that only four members of the crew abandoned the aircraft before it crashed. In addition to Flt Sgt. Nichol, three successfully baled out and were captured by the Japanese.

From the names given by native and Japanese witnesses the three airmen were Flt Sgt. Lockyer, WO. Lindley and Flt Sgt. Orgill.

(1) The circumstances leading to the deaths of Sgt. Lockyer and WO. Lindley were determined by an Australian Military Tribunal convened at Moritomo on the 5th February 1946.

One member of the Imperial Japanese Army was charged with committing a war crime in that he, at the Kempmitai Headquarters (HQ) at Kaaten in or about the month of August 1945 murdered Flt Sgt. F.G.B. Hutton and Sgt. A.A. Lockyer both members of the RAAF and then PoWs held by the Japanese Armed Forces.

Note: The charge was amended to substitute the name of Flt Sgt. F.G.B. Hutton with the words “an unidentified member of the RAAF”. After the trial had concluded the unidentified airman was identified as WO. G.G. Lindley.

The Kempeitai were the military police of the Imperial Japanese Army and functioned much like the Gestapo in Nazi Germany.

The accused was Sgt Maj. (Rikugun-Sōchō) MORIMOTO, Kiyomitsu a former member of the 8th Field Military Police (MP) Unit.

The Japanese word Rikugun preceding a rank indicates that it relates to the army.

The court established that after the two airmen had been captured they were initially taken to the Tomohon HQ of the Katsura Unit then to Kakaskasen and finally to the Kempmitai HQ at Kaaten on the 28th July 1945.

The Commanding Officer (CO) of the HQ was a Capt. (Rikugun-Tai-i ) SAITO and a Warrant Officer (WO) (Junsikan-Jun-i) MATSUMOTO, who was the 2nd in command, ordered MORIMOTO to dispose of the two Allied prisoners. SAITO provided a bottle of chloroform which he told MORIMOTO was sufficient to kill both of the airmen. This was to be carried out secretly so that the Indonesians would not know what was taking place.

On the evening of the 21st August 1945, 6 days after the surrender of Japan, MORIMOTO commanded two squads of Japanese soldiers lead by Sgt. OKADA and Sgt. OKADO, took the two airmen one at a time from their cells to the site of two prepared graves in the backyard of the Kaaten jail near the stables. The first airman, believed to be Flt Sgt. Lockyer, was chloroformed and buried, the second WO. Lindley was also chloroformed but did not succumb so he was strangled with a length of rope and then buried. The prosecutor accused MORIMOTO of helping to administer the chloroform and assisted in the strangling. However, MORIMOTO claimed that it was Sgt. OKADA and Sgt. OKADO who carried out the executions.

MORIMOTO in his defence claimed that Military law in the Japanese Army requires absolute obedience to orders by superior officers, and teaches that such orders must be carried out without question as they are regarded as coming from the Emperor himself. However, he then claimed that he was only in charge of the party and that he, in contraction to the requirement to carry out orders without question, disapproved of the order and that he pointed out to his superior that it was wrong.

The court rejected his claim of following orders and he was found guilty of the charge and sentenced him to death by shooting. After confirmation of the sentence the execution was carried out at Morotai at 07:00 hrs on the 31st March 1946.

During the trial in became clear that it was probable that Capt. SAITO, Warrant Officer (WO) MATSUMOTO, Sgt. OKADA and Sgt. OKADO where complicit in the murders of the two airmen, however, it is not known if any of them were brought before a court in order for their roles to be examined.

The remains of the two airmen were recovered from the backyard of the Kaaten jail by the Australian War Graves Unit (AWGU). As no other PoWs were ever held in this jail the assumption was that the remains recovered were those of Sgt. Lockyer and WO. Lindley.

(2) The circumstances leading to the death of Flt Sgt. Orgill were determined by an Australian Military Tribunal convened at Morotei on the 6th and 7th February 1946.

One member of the Imperial Japanese Army was charged with committing a war crime in that he, at Tomoron, in or about the month of July or August 1945 murdered Flt Sgt. Orgill a member of the RAAF and then a PoW held by the Japanese Armed Forces.

The accused was Cpl. (Rikugun-Gochō) BABA Hidetoshi a former member of the 8th Field Military Police (MP) Unit and a member of the Kempeitai.

The only evidence presented by the prosecution which associated the BABA with the death of Flt Sgt. Orgill was contained in a written statement made by a Pvt 1st Class (Rikugun-Ittō-Hei) ICHIKAWA, Fumiaki. At the time of the alleged assault ICHIKAWA was serving a sentence of 18 months for desertion and theft.

ICHIKAWA stated that on the 27th July 1945 he was working in the garden at the Kakaskasen jail and saw an aircraft being shot down. Later he was back in his cell and claimed he saw BABA and a Sup Pte. (Rikugun-Jōtōhei) TAKEUCHI bring in a PoW whom he identified as an airman although he did not know his nationality.

He said BABA had a Type 95 sword and a Sgt. (Rikugun-Gunsō) KAWASE, a member of the Kempeitai, had a large and heavy stick. He claimed he saw BABA strike the airman with the sword in its scabbard between 7 and 10 times and KAWASE strike the airman a similar number of times. He also saw TAKEUCHI take the stick from KAWASE and strike the airman many more times about the head, back, chest, legs and arms. The prisoner was left bloodied and unconscious.

ICHIKAWA was ordered by KAWASE to wash the airman’s face and then put him in a cell. He saw the airman the next day still alive but semi-conscious and groaning. The following morning at about 06:00 hrs he saw the airman again and he thought that his condition was worsening with frothing from his mouth. At about 08:00 hrs or 09:00 hrs the guard outside of the airman’s cell told ICHIKAWA that he was dead.

In giving his own evidence to the court BABA stated that on the 27th July 1945 he was ordered by Capt. (Rikugun-Tai-i) SAITO to collect the Allied PoWs and four other prisoners from the Brigade HQ at Tomohon and bring them to Kakaskasen.

When they arrived at Kakaskasen BABA met Sgt. KAWASE who was accompanied by four other guards comprising Japanese and an Indonesian. KAWASE ordered that the prisoners be untied from their restraints upon which one of the prisoners seized the bayonet from the guard immediately in front of him and slashed at Sup Pte. (Rikugun-Jōtōhei) TAKEUCHI who drew back in surprise. The prisoner then ran away and was pursued by Cpl. (Rikugun-Gochō)AKIYAMA who caught up with him after about 10 metres and when the prisoner struck at him with the bayonet he seized him by the arm. In the struggle AKIYAMA was slightly wounded in the neck. KAWASE then arrived and angrily stuck the airman with his stick as did AKIYAMA.

BABA explained that he did not at any time strike the prisoner. He believed that because he and AKIYAMA where dressed alike it would have been easy for ICHIKAWA, who was in his cell, to be mistaken especially as it was after 18:00 hrs and getting dark.

He described that prisoner was then brought back to the entrance of the jail and BABA formally handed over the prisoners into the custody of KAWASE who was then responsible for them. He did not accompany the prisoners to the cells and returned to his office. He did not see anything more of the prisoners.

The court only needed about five minutes to consider the evidence and found Cpl. (Rikugun-Gochō) BABA not guilty of the charge. He was released by the court into his previous custody.

During the trial it became clear that it was possible that Sgt. KAWASE, Cpl. AKIYAMA and Sup Pte. TAKEUCHI may have been implicated in the death of Flt Sgt. Orgill, however, it is not known if any of them were brought before a court so their roles could be examined.

The Japanese buried Flt Sgt. Orgill behind the jail at Kakaskasen. Later they dis-interred and re-buried his remains in a mass grave off a road on Mt. Soepoetah. Fearing that his and the other remains might be discovered by Australian forces the Japanese dis-interred the mass grave and re-buried them in the same locality a little higher up the mountain. However, the gravesite was discovered and amongst the remains that were exhumed by the Australian War Graves Unit (AWGU) Flt Sgt. Orgill was identified from markings on his clothing.

(3) Cpl. John Robert Waite was a combat weather forecaster for the US Army Air Force, 15th Operational Weather Squadron. His last assignment was from Townsville, Queensland, in the Far East Air Force (FEAF) Regional Control and Weather Group (Provisional).

Burial details:

Above: Ambon War Cemetery, Kota Ambon, Indonesia (Courtesy of the Commonwealth War Graves Commission (CWGC))

Flt Lt. Kenneth John Hanson. Ambon War Cemetery, Kota Ambon, Indonesia, Collective grave 28.C.1-8. Born on the 27th January 1918 in Killara, New South Wales. Son of Arthur Cecil and Mildred Blanche. Husband of Betty Mosman Hanson of Roeville, New South Wales, Australia.

Fg Off. John James Oliver Hume. Ambon War Cemetery, Kota Ambon, Indonesia, Collective grave 28.C.1-8. Born on the 18th October 1916 in Freemantle, West Australia. Son of Andrew and Mildred Hume. Husband of Iris Winifred Hume of Hilton, South Australia.

Flt Sgt. Arnold Alexander Lockyer. Ambon War Cemetery, Kota Ambon, Indonesia, Grave 33.A.4. Born on the 4th May 1915 in Port Hedland, Western Australia. Son of Samuel and Sylvia Lockyer. Husband of Susanna Philomena Lockyer of Port Hedland, Western Australia.

The Last Post Ceremony commemorating the service of (80471) Flight Sergeant Arnold Lockyer, No. 24 Squadron RAAF, Second World War.

WO. Alfred Cook. Ambon War Cemetery, Kota Ambon, Indonesia, Collective grave 28.C.1-8. Born on the 21st May 1915 in North Melbourne, Victoria. Son of Alfred and Molly Cook. Husband of Mia Jean Cook of Spotswood, Victoria. Australia.

Flt Sgt. Charles Neville Nichol. Ambon War Cemetery, Kota Ambon, Indonesia, Grave 28.A.10. Born on the 12th October 1924 in Brisbane, Queensland. Son of James Murdoch and Elizabeth Doris Nichol of Sherwood, Queensland, Australia.

Plt Off. George Grey Lindsey. Ambon War Cemetery, Kota Ambon, Indonesia, Grave 33.A.3. Born on the 8th August 1924 in Pickering Brook, Western Australia. Son of George Thomas and Ethel Rose Lindley. Husband of Catherine Ann Lindley of Mandurah, Western Australia.

Above Ambon Memorial Kota Ambon, Indonesia, Column 5 (Courtesy of the Commonwealth War Graves Commission (CWGC))

Flt Sgt. John Victor Orgill. Ambon Memorial Kota Ambon, Indonesia, Column 5. Born on the 22nd January 1923 in Perth, Western Australia. Son of William Gladstone and Mary Louisa Albina Orgill of East Fremantle, Western Australia.

Flt Sgt. Frank Grainger Vincent Hutton. Ambon War Cemetery, Kota Ambon, Indonesia, Collective Grave 28.C.1-8. Born on the 25th April 1922 in Kew, Victoria. Son of Vincent and Edith Irene Hutton of Ascot Vale, Victoria, Australia.

Flt Sgt. Stephen Patrick Cloake. Ambon War Cemetery, Kota Ambon, Indonesia, Collective Grave 28.C.1-8. Born on the 7th July 1925 in Brisbane, Queensland. Son of John Edward and May Jane Cloake of Mitchelton, Queensland, Australia.

Flt Sgt. Brendan Michael Heslin. Ambon War Cemetery, Kota Ambon, Indonesia, Collective Grave 28.C.1-8. Born on the 23rd May 1924 in Newport Victoria. Son of Michael Anthony and Susan Heslin of Mendooran, New South Wales, Australia.

Flt Sgt. William James Maxwell. Ambon War Cemetery, Kota Ambon, Indonesia, Collective Grave 28.C.1-8. Born on the 24th September 1924 in Brisbane, Queensland. Son of Duncan James Forbes Maxwell and Vera Elizabeth Maxwell, of Windsor, Queensland, Australia.

Cpl. John Robert Waite. Air Medal, Purple Heart. Ambon War Cemetery, Kota Ambon, Indonesia, Collective Grave 28.C.1-8. Born on the 25th April 1922 in Albion, Michigan. Son of Clyde Wallace and Esther Julia (née Rowen) Waite of Albion, Michigan, USA.

He is also remembered by a Memorial stone at the Forest Hill Cemeter, Napoleon, Ohio, USA.

Researched by Ralph Snape for Aircrew Remembered and dedicated to the relatives of this crew (Oct 2024). Thanks to Chris Appleton for the link to the Last Post ceremony for Flt Sgt. Lockyer (Oct 2024).

Other sources listed below:

RS 10.10.2024 - Addition of link for last post to Flt Sgt. Lockyer

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Acknowledgements
Sources used by us in compiling Archive Reports include: Bill Chorley - 'Bomber Command Losses Vols. 1-9, plus ongoing revisions', Dr. Theo E.W. Boiten and Mr. Roderick J. Mackenzie - 'Nightfighter War Diaries Vols. 1 and 2', Martin Middlebrook and Chris Everitt - 'Bomber Command War Diaries', Commonwealth War Graves Commission, Tom Kracker - Kracker Luftwaffe Archives, Michel Beckers, Major Fred Paradie (RCAF) and MWO François Dutil (RCAF) - Paradie Archive (on this site), Jean Schadskaje, Major Jack O'Connor USAF (Retd.), Robert Gretzyngier, Wojtek Matusiak, Waldemar Wójcik and Józef Zieliński - 'Ku Czci Połeglyçh Lotnikow 1939-1945', Archiwum - Polish Air Force Archive (on this site), Anna Krzystek, Tadeusz Krzystek - 'Polskie Siły Powietrzne w Wielkiej Brytanii', Franek Grabowski, Norman L.R. Franks 'Fighter Command Losses', Stan D. Bishop, John A. Hey MBE, Gerrie Franken and Maco Cillessen - Losses of the US 8th and 9th Air Forces, Vols 1-6, Dr. Theo E.W. Boiton - Nachtjagd Combat Archives, Vols 1-13. Aircrew Remembered Databases and our own archives. We are grateful for the support and encouragement of CWGC, UK Imperial War Museum, Australian War Memorial, Australian National Archives, New Zealand National Archives, UK National Archives and Fold3 and countless dedicated friends and researchers across the world.
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