Operation: Bombing strike Tomahon, Northern Celebres

Date: 1st February 1945 (Thursday)

Unit No: 31 (City of Wagga Wagga) Sqn, RAAF, 77 Wing, 1st Tactical Air Force

Type: Beaufighter XXI

Serial: A8-10

Code: EH:T

Location: In the vicinity of Tomahon. Northern Celebes

Base: RAAF Wama strip, Morotai Island

Pilot: Flt Lt. Douglas Roy Taylor 416465 RAAF Age 25. KiA

Navigator: Fg Off. Keith Packham 436776 RAAF Age 21. Murdered

Above: Flt Lt. Douglas R. Taylor and Fg Off. Keith Packham from their Service Records.

REASON FOR LOSS:

On the 1st February 1945, eight Beaufighters were detailed to attack enemy emplacements at Tomahon. Northern Celebes. They took off from Wama Strip, Morotai Island, Sulawesi Island at 11:11 hrs.

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.

Morotai Island is in the Halmahera group of eastern Indonesia's Maluku Islands and is one of Indonesia's northernmost islands.

The Operational Record Book (ORB) reported that during the mission Beaufighter XXI A8-10 was hit by Japanese AA over the target and failed to return.

A second Beaufighter from the squadron,A8-32, flown by Plt Off. William Roderick McGuigan 427717 RAAF and Flt Sgt. Alan Edward Lewis 431362 RAAF with a passenger SBA. Alec Hill F4084 aboard failed to return and were posted Missing in Action. The aircraft was seen to crash on a nearby plateau and break up, with not the remotest chance of either the pilot, navigator or passenger being alive.

Two Beaufighters took off at 16:10 hrs that day to search for the missing Beaufighters but no trace of the aircraft were found and they returned to base at 19:45 hrs. The crew were posted Missing in Action.

In later evidence determined that Flt Lt. Taylor was KiA but Fg Off. Packham had survived and was captured by the Japanese.

The circumstances leading to the death of Fg Off. Packham were determined by an Australian Military Tribunal convened at Morotai on the 31st January and 1st February 1946.

Three members of the Imperial Japanese Army were charged jointly with committing a war crime in that they, at Kakaskasen, Northern Celebes on or about the 5th March 1945 murdered Fg Off. K. Packham, WO. D. Benson and Sgt. R.L.F. Jones all members of the RAAF and then PoWs held by Japanese Forces.

WO. David Bernard Benson 402487 RAAF and Sgt. Robert Leonard Frederick Jones 69985 RAAF were the Pilot and Navigator of 30 (City of Sale) Squadron, Beaufighter X A19-149 was reported missing in action on the 30th December 1944.

The accused, all members of the Kempeitai, were:

Sgt Maj. (Rikugun-Sōchō) ICHIHASHI Shigeo;
Sgt. (Rikugun-Gunsō) SOMA Takesaburo;
Sgt. (Rikugun-Gunsō) SASAKURA Rinji.

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

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

Each of the accused gave evidence in his defence. They claimed that they did so pursuant to the orders of Warrant Officer (WO) (Rikugun-Jun-i) MATSUMOTO Kunio who was the 2nd in Command of the Kempmitai HQ at Kaaten.

WO. MATSUMOTO was also implicated in the murder of two RAAF airmen from 21 (City of Melbourne) Squadron, RAAF Liberator A72-92.

In Court documents WO. MATSUMOTO was listed as being deceased.

ICHIHASHI stated that on the 24th February 1945 he escorted three Australian airmen PoWs from Tinoor Dua to Kakaskasen. One was a flying officer and the other two were NCOs who he recognised as Australians by their uniforms.

One day at the end of February at about 16:00 hrs MATSUMOTO told him that the three PoWs were to be executed and that he was to escort them from their cell to the cookhouse kitchen which was about 350 to 400 metres from the jail and hold them there. At about 21:00 hrs MATSUMOTO arrived and told him to carry out the executions next to the three prepared graves.

In his statement ICHIHASHI denied that he had executed one of the prisoners, however, when questioned by the Court he admitted that he had in fact executed the first prisoner. SOMA claimed that SASAKURA asked to borrow his sword which he then used to execute a second PoW. SOMA himself admitted to executing the third PoW.

However, SASAKURA denied SOMA’s assertion and claimed that on account of his late arrival at the place of execution another Japanese soldier had executed the 2nd PoW.

The Court found the three accused guilty of the charge. SOMA and ICHIHASHI were each sentenced to be imprisoned for 6 years and SASAKURA for 3 years.

The proceedings of the Court were reviewed by the Judge Advocate General of the confirming authority. He determined that it was perfectly clear from the evidence that the three men were purely acting under the commands of WO. (Rikugun-Jun-i) MATSUMOTO Kunio, who made all of the arrangements. The accused made it clear that they not approve of their actions but were bound to carry out the orders of their superior officer.

Each PoW was executed by a different member of the Kempeitai. SOMA and ICHIHASHI each beheaded a PoW and SASAKURA was ordered to behead the third, but arrived late and another guard actually did the beheading although SASAKURA was present.

He could see little difference in criminality between the 3 men and suggested that the sentences for SOMA and ICHIHASHI be mitigated to 3 years.

Burial Details:

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

Above Grave Marker for Flt Lt. Douglas R. Taylor (Courtesy of the TWGPP)

Flt Lt. Douglas Roy Taylor. Ambon War Cemetery 28.A.8. Grave Inscription: “HIS DUTY NOBLY DONE”. Born on the 13th January 1920 in Port Lincoln, South Australia. Son of Horace Philip and Edith Erna Taylor, of Medindie, South Australia.

Above Grave Marker for Flt Off. Keith Packham (Courtesy of the TWGPP)

Fg Off. Keith Packham. Ambon War Cemetery 33.A.2. Grave Inscription: “LOVED SON OF MR &MRS L PACKHAM OF SWANBOURNE, WEST AUSTRALIA”. Born on the 1st September 1923 in Perth, Western Australia. Son of Leonard and Ruth Eva Packham, of Swanbourne, Western Australia.

Researched by Ralph Snape for Aircrew Remembered and dedicated to the relatives of this crew (Oct 2024).

Thanks to The War Graves Photograph Project (TWGPP) for their great work.

Other sources listed below:

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