5/09/1939 - First Commonwealth Air Forces Deaths after the Declaration of War

Thought I would add these two RAAF lads who were both killed on 5/09/1939.

Probably the first Australian casualties after the declaration of war on 3 September 1939 were serving members of the Royal Australian Air Force (RAAF). A pilot and his observer were killed in a flying accident while ferrying a Wirraway to Darwin, where 12 Squadron RAAF was based for coastal patrol missions.
5 September 1939

The Anson and five Wirraways arrived at DARWIN at 10.30 hours from Daly Waters. Unfortunately the arrival of the Wirraways was marred by a fatal accident. Flying Officer AV Dolphin of Recruit Training Depot, Laverton who was ferrying Wirraway A20-5, stalled and crashed onto the aerodrome and both the pilot and observer, No. 1 Corporal JOHNSON, H W - Air Observer, No. 12 Squadron were killed.






DOLPHIN, ARNOLD VICTOR

Rank: Flying Officer
Date of Death: 05/09/1939
Age: 23
Regiment/Service: Royal Australian Air Force
Grave ReferenceQ.A.16.
Cemetery ADELAIDE RIVER WAR CEMETERY

Additional Information:

Son of Thomas Victor and Florence Dolphin, of Fairfield, New South Wales.



JOHNSON, HAROLD WILLIAM

Rank: Corporal
Service No: 1727
Date of Death: 05/09/1939
Age: 28
Regiment/Service: Royal Australian Air Force
Grave Reference P.A.12.
Cemetery ADELAIDE RIVER WAR CEMETERY

Additional Information:

Son of Harold Reginald and Margaret McGrandle Johnson, of Geelong West, Victoria.

 

From the CWGC records:



TYLER, DERRICK

Rank: LieutenantService No: P/3434Date of Death: 05/09/1939Age: 23Regiment/Service: South African Air ForceGrave Reference Grave UN. 18.Cemetery CAPE TOWN (PLUMSTEAD) CEMETERY Additional Information:

Son of Harold O and E S Tyler, of Port St. Johns, of Cape Province

 

From CWGC records:





TAYLOR, CHARLES HAIG

Rank: Aircraftman 2nd Class
Service No: 39587
Date of Death: 03/10/1939
Age: 21
Regiment/Service: Royal New Zealand Air Force
Grave Reference 73/74. 7.
Cemetery GISBORNE (TARUHERU) CEMETERY

Additional Information:

Son of Charles and Margaret Helen Taylor, of Gisborne.

 

From CWGC records:

Edit: Further information shows that this airman was the first Canadian killed in the RAF on 3/09/1939 with LAC Stewart listed below.

STEWART, ALEXANDER RONALD RENFREW Leading Aircraftman 521250 03/09/1939 24 Royal Air Force United Kingdom Sec. S. Grave 391. PAISLEY (HAWKHEAD) CEMETERY

CUMMINGS, ELLARD ALEXANDER

Rank:Pilot Officer
Trade:Pilot
Service No:40803
Date of Death:03/09/1939
Age:23
Regiment/Service:Royal Air Force
Grave Reference Grave 1949.
CemeteryABERDEEN (GROVE) CEMETERY

Additional Information:

Son of James Victor and Edith Fanny Ellard Cummings, of Ottawa, Ontario, Canada.


These two airmen are the first killed in the RCAF.





DOAN, JAMES EDGERTON

Rank: Warrant Officer Class II
Service No: P/240
Date of Death: 14/09/1939
Age: 34
Regiment/Service: Royal Canadian Air Force
8 Sqdn.
Panel Reference Panel 1. Column 1.
Memorial OTTAWA MEMORIAL

Additional Information:

Son of Charles Wilson Doan and Ida May Florence Jane Doan; husband of Vera Gertrude Doan, of Toronto, Ontario.


RENNIE, DAVID ALEXANDER

Rank: Corporal
Service No:P/2258
Date of Death: 14/09/1939
Age: 25
Regiment/Service: Royal Canadian Air Force 8 Sqdn.
Panel Reference Panel 1. Column 1.
Memorial OTTAWA MEMORIAL

Additional Information:

Son of David and Isabella Rennie, of Ottawa, Ontario.

 

From CWGC records:



BIKRAM LAL

Rank:Pilot Officer
Date of Death:06/01/1941
Age:25
Regiment/Service:Royal Indian Air Force
Panel Reference MemorialDELHI / KARACHI 1939-1945 WAR MEMORIALS

Additional Information:

Son of Dr. Paras Ram, of Lahore, Pakistan.

 

Gisborne is where I live. Are there any details you have on Charles Haig Taylor's death?

 

Gisborne is where I live. Are there any details you have on Charles Haig Taylor's death?

Hi SpiderW,

He died of natural causes.

Full Name Charles Haig Taylor
Rank Last Held AircraftmanClass 2
Forename(s) Charles Haig
Surname Taylor
War World War II, 1939-1945
Serial No. NZ39587
Gender Male
Next of Kin Charles and Margaret Helen Taylor (parents), Gisborne, New Zealand
Place of Death Ohakea, New Zealand
Date of Death 3 October 1939
Age at Death 21
Year of Death 1939
Cause of Death Natural causes
Cemetery Name Gisborne Cemetery, Gisborne, New Zealand
Grave Reference Grave 73/74 7
Biographical Notes Charles Taylor was the son of Charles and Margaret Helen Taylor, of Gisborne.

Further References

• Martyn, E. (1998-2008). For Your Tomorrow (Vols. 1-3). Christchurch: Volplane Press.
• Commonwealth War Graves Commission. URL: CWGC - Homepage

Cheers

Geoff

 

I have included the first known deaths of the Southern Rhodesian Air Force although 1st April 1940 brought the unpopular name change of No.1 Squadron, Southern Rhodesia Air Force to No 237 (Rhodesia) Squadron Royal Air Force.

From: World War 2 - SRAF No. 1 Squadron / No. 237 (Rhodesia) Squadron RAF, May/June 1940

26/05/1940: Reconnaissance

Type: Hawker Hardy
Serial number: ?, DV-?
Operation: Reconnaissance
Lost: 26/05/1940
Flying Officer Hugh C. Peyton, Southern Rhodesia Air Force CR/2916, 1 Sqdn., age 21, 26/05/1940, Nairobi (Forest Road) Cemetery, Kenya
Corporal Frederick H. Kimpton, Southern Rhodesia Air Force CR/606, 1 Sqdn., age 25, 26/05/1940, Nairobi (Forest Road) Cemetery, KenyaIt is presumed that they lost their way in the extremely difficult country, and made a crash-landing. Months afterwards their aircraft was located.


In Memory of
Flying Officer
Hugh Chinnery Peyton
CR/2916, 1 Sqdn., Southern Rhodesia Air Force
who died on 26 May 1940 Age 21
Son of Richard Chinnery Peyton and Annie Peyton, of Avondale, Salisbury, Southern Rhodesia.
Remembered with Honour
Nairobi (Forest Road) Cemetery

In Memory of
Corporal
Frederick Harold Kimpton
CR/606, 1 Sqdn., Southern Rhodesia Air Force
who died on 26 May 1940 Age 25
Son of Capt. William Harold Kimpton, T.D., and Patricia Beatrice Kimpton, of Salisbury, Southern
Rhodesia.
Remembered with Honour
Nairobi War Cemetery

 

Here is a link to his grave

Gisborne District Council » Online cemetery record search

 

These two airmen are the first killed in the RCAF.



View attachment 77568

DOAN, JAMES EDGERTON

Rank: Warrant Officer Class II
Service No: P/240
Date of Death: 14/09/1939
Age: 34
Regiment/Service: Royal Canadian Air Force
8 Sqdn.
Panel Reference Panel 1. Column 1.
Memorial OTTAWA MEMORIAL

Additional Information:

Son of Charles Wilson Doan and Ida May Florence Jane Doan; husband of Vera Gertrude Doan, of Toronto, Ontario.


RENNIE, DAVID ALEXANDER

Rank: Corporal
Service No:P/2258
Date of Death: 14/09/1939
Age: 25
Regiment/Service: Royal Canadian Air Force 8 Sqdn.
Panel Reference Panel 1. Column 1.
Memorial OTTAWA MEMORIAL

Additional Information:

Son of David and Isabella Rennie, of Ottawa, Ontario.


The NCO Pilots: Air Force, Part 11 | Legion Magazine

Another NCO pilot had a less happy distinction. On Sept. 14, 1939, a Northrop Delta of No. 8 General Purpose Sqdn. disappeared while en route from Ottawa to its wartime station in Halifax. The occupants, Warrant Officer James E. Doan and LAC David A. Rennie, were the first RCAF casualties of the war. The corroded Delta wreckage was found 60 kilometres north of Fredericton in July 1958; there was no sign of either man, whose names headed the list of 800 men and women on the Air Force Memorial on Green Island, Ottawa, dedicated to air force personnel who died in activities around Canada, yet have no known grave.
The New Brunswick Military Heritage Project - Locations

First Canadian Fatal Casualties of the Second World War
Near Beaverbrook Lake, 30 km north of Town of Juniper





Photo: Canadian Aviation Museum
On 27 August 1939 a Northrop Delta 673 from No 8 General Purpose Squadron RCAF departed Ottawa en route to its wartime station at Halifax. It was flown by Warrant Officer James E. Doan and Leading Aircraftman David Alexander Rennie. Both had joined the RCAF pre-war and had been called to active service when war broke out. After a series of mishaps, the plane and its crew disappeared on 14 September 1939. It was not until nineteen years later, on 10 July 1958 that wreckage of a plane and bone fragments were found in thick woods near Beaverbrook Lake. The plane was identified as the missing Northrup Delta with the remains of WO Doan and LAC Rennie. These two servicemen are the first Canadian casualties of World War Two. Their names head the list of some 800 men and women on the Air Force Memorial on Green Island in Ottawa, dedicated to air personnel who died in activities in Canada. For more information see “Mystery Plane Found in New Brunswick” by Jim Cougle.

 

From CWGC records:

Edit: Further information shows that this airman was the first Canadian killed in the RAF on 3/09/1939 with LAC Stewart listed below.

STEWART, ALEXANDER RONALD RENFREW Leading Aircraftman 521250 03/09/1939 24 Royal Air Force United Kingdom Sec. S. Grave 391. PAISLEY (HAWKHEAD) CEMETERY

CUMMINGS, ELLARD ALEXANDER

Rank:Pilot Officer
Trade:Pilot
Service No:40803
Date of Death:03/09/1939
Age:23
Regiment/Service:Royal Air Force
Grave Reference Grave 1949.
CemeteryABERDEEN (GROVE) CEMETERY

Additional Information:

Son of James Victor and Edith Fanny Ellard Cummings, of Ottawa, Ontario, Canada.


Big-hearted James in search for RAF man’s relatives - Daily Express

Big-hearted James in search for RAF man’s relatives

Oct 5 2011 by Jeff Holmes, Paisley Daily Express
THE Bennachie Hills may lie about 160 miles north east of Paisley ... but a dark secret links the two places.
On September 1, 1939 – the first day of the Second World War – two RAF men were killed when their Westland Wallace biplane crashed into the 1,733-feet-high hills in thick fog.
The pilot, a 23-year-old Canadian named Ellard Alexander Cummings and Alexander Ronald Renfrew Stewart, who was 24, both perished in the tragedy.
The latter was the son of Paisley couple Alan and Elizabeth Stewart and was leading aircraftsman on the doomed flight.
http://trinitymirror.grapeshot.co.uk/scotland/redirect.cgi?target=http://ad.uk.doubleclick.net/ad/dailyexpress.5293/article_mpu;slot=article%5Fmpu;sect=local%2Dnews%2Din%2Drenfrewshi;templ=page;cat=News;reg=SUN;st=r2;oid=29535333;sz=300x250;gs_cat=GS_CHANNELS;tile=2;ord=910827040?

Now, 72 years on, James MacKay, from Kemnay, Aberdeenshire, is attempting to track down Alexander’s relatives, who may still be living in the Renfrewshire area.
James explained: “I’m a member of a group called the Baillies of Bennachie, which is a conservation society that undertakes to look after our beautiful hills and mountains.
“Bennachie is the best-known and most frequently climbed mountain in north-east Scotland but, on the day war broke out in 1939, these two brave airmen lost their lives when their plane crashed while flying in dense fog.
“We have been trying for some time to track down Alexander’s family because we are arranging a memorial plaque to be placed on the crash site.
“It would be fitting if members of his family could be present at the unveiling ceremony – and that’s where the Paisley Daily Express comes in.
“We feel it’s important the airmen’s memories should not forgotten and that relatives should be informed so they can attend an unveiling if they so wished.”
The airmen were on their way from RAF Wigton, in the Scottish Borders, to RAF Evanton in Ross-shire when disaster struck.
And James explained how they had already changed flightpath because of the hazardous weather conditions.
He explained: “They could have flown directly over the Cairngorms but decided to switch direction because the fog was getting worse.
“Their line was spot on but the pilot was a fraction too low and they were killed instantly when the plane smashed into the hills.
“The pilot would only have seen the hill at the very last moment, which wouldn’t have given him enough time to pull the aircraft back.
“The engine must have stalled because the tail was broken off and, when both men were found, they were still strapped into their seats. It sounds slightly daft but they were relatively uninjured, although dead when discovered.”
And James revealed how the remnants of the aircraft are still lying on the exact spot where it came down.
He said: “The tragedy happened on a largely inaccessible part of the hill. I’ve been up there two or three times and it is so hard to find that I had trouble locating it.
“It’s so difficult to get to that point there was no way of recovering the wreckage.”
The Baillies of Bennachie are to finance the plaque and James explained how they will use a pile of stones to create a little memorial, and erect a plaque within the memorial.
He said: “It would be great to have members of both families present at a commemoration.
“We already have a good lead with the Canadian pilot’s family and now I’m hoping Express readers can come up trumps by providing us with details of Alexander’s relatives.”
l If you can help James to track down relatives of Alexander, who lies buried at Hawkhead Cemetery in Paisley, call Jeff Holmes at the Express newsroom on 0141 847 8638.

Terry & Max at the Westland Wallace Crash Site Bennachie | Flickr - Photo Sharing!

Photograph of Cummings here:

http://rafainverurie.terapad.com/resources/728505/imageGallery/E_A__Cummings_mki.jpg

 

Big-hearted James in search for RAF man’s relatives - Daily Express

Terry & Max at the Westland Wallace Crash Site Bennachie | Flickr - Photo Sharing!

Photograph of Cummings here:

http://rafainverurie.terapad.com/resources/728505/imageGallery/E_A__Cummings_mki.jpg

Thanks Alien Eyes.

Very interesting. Should we advise them that the lads were killed on the 3rd and not the 1st of September?

On September 1, 1939 – the first day of the Second World War – two RAF men were killed when their Westland Wallace biplane crashed into the 1,733-feet-high hills in thick fog.

 

Might not be a bad idea, spidge. I was looking to see if there was a followup story since this was reported last November but nothing. When I am settled at home again I will follow up on the Stewart angle through a friend of mine who may be able to shed some light.