27 FEBRUARY 1942
CRASH OF AN RAAF SHORT EMPIRE FLYING BOAT A18-12
IN CLEVELAND BAY, TOWNSVILLE, QLD

Short Empire A18-12, ex QANTAS aircraft
VH-ABC "Coogee", at Rose Bay, NSW in 1940

Short S23 C-Class S.849, Empire Flying Boat, A18-12 G-AEUG "Coogee" VH-ABC (see above photo) of 33 Squadron RAAF, was extensively damaged in a landing accident in Cleveland Bay near Townsville on Friday 27 February 1942 opposite the Queens Hotel. Eight RAAF personnel died as a result of this tragic accident.

The pilot, F/O Love was seriously injured but died of his injuries the same day:-

The following five RAAF personnel were initially all listed as missing and believed killed. Their bodies were eventually recovered and buried at the Townsville War Cemetery:-

Map:- NAA

The Empire was previously VH-ABC "Coogee" which had been one of four Empire flying boats impressed into RAAF service from QANTAS.

Photo:- Shorts photo H.1064 via Phil Vabre

"Coogee" on the River Medway outside the Shorts works shortly after launching, on
3 Jan 1938. Note that she was launched wearing her Australian registration, VH-ABC,
and Qantas titles though not actually registered in Australia until much later.

Photo:- Eldorado real photo postcard from the Phil Vabre collection

"Coogee" later in the first half of 1938 on the Shatt-el-Arab river at Basra,
Iraq. Because Australia was not yet ready to join in the Empire Air Mail
 Scheme, the Australian Empire boats were operated in the meantime
by Imperial Airways under British registrations, in this case G-AEUC.

The Court of Inquiry could not find sufficient evidence on which to base a conclusive finding but they were of the opinion that it was caused by one of the following:-

A. The aircraft when landing struck a floating or partly submerged object not revealed by the sweep carried out by the civil aviation launch.

It is desired to draw attention to the fact that the aircraft touched down some distance short of the proper alighting point, and the object concerned may have drifted into the area in the interval between the sweep and the touching down of the aircraft.

B. As suggested by the evidence of Flight Lieutenant GREY (Pages 9 and 10) the slightly fast nose down landing that the pilot evidently made may have thrown stress on the forward section of the hull not normally stressed during a landing or take off, causing this to collapse. This aircraft is known to have operated under overload conditions from the open sea prior to its inspection by QANTAS and may have had the forward section of the hull strained in a manner which would not be revealed by the QANTAS inspection.

Maurice Clayton was the son of Stanley and Florence Anne Clayton, of East Katoomba, New South Wales. He was buried at Townsville War Cemetery, Grave Reference/Panel Number: A.A.9.

William French was the son of William James French and Mary Jane French. His wife was Doris Ethel French, of Ulverstone,  Tasmania. He was buried at the Townsville War Cemetery, Grave Reference/Panel Number: A.A.6.

Peter Devonshire was the son of of Lt.-Col. Guy Satterswaite Devonshire and Doris Devonshire, of Unley, South Australia. He was buried at the Townsville War Cemetery, Grave Reference/Panel Number: A.A. 10.

Robert Love was the husband of Patricia Christine Love, of Potts Point, New South Wales. He was buried in the Townsville War Cemetery, Grave Reference/Panel Number: A.A.11.

Harold Wagner was the son of John Henry and Catherine Wagner; husband of Vivien Beatrice Aileen Wagner, of Kingaroy. He was buried at the Townsville War Cemetery, Grave Reference/Panel Number: A.A. 14.

John Gordon was the son of Joseph and Maud Augusta Nicholson, of Fremantle, Western Australia. He was buried at the Sydney Memorial Cemetery, New South Wales, Australia, Grave Reference/Panel Number: Panel 6.

Short Empire Flying Boat "Carpentaria"

WINGS AROUND US
By Rodney G. Cardell

Page 88
The squadron (33 Sqn) acquired two Empire Flying Boats from Nos. 11 and 20 Squadrons, and operated these from the bay between Townsville and Magnetic Island. One of the prettiest sights I ever witnessed was when I lived on the strand myself in about 1939/1940, and watched civil versions of these beautiful big silver boats approaching majestically from over Castle Hill way, to alight out in the bay. One of the 33rd Squadron's 'boats' crashed on take off from the bay on 27 February 1942, with much loss of life.

AIRCRAFT OF THE RAAF
By Sqn Ldr K. Isaacs, AFC

"Coogee" was written off in a landing accident at Townsville on February 27, 1942, and a few days later, on March 3, 1942, "Centaurus" was destroyed during a Japanese air-raid on Broome.

SOURCE:-   Aircraft Crash Sites - Australia

Crash:         No. 104

Position:     19.13 - 146.47

Department of Aviation Chart No:       3219

NOTE:- In September 2003, I was contacted by June Stones, the daughter of Cpl William French.

ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS

I'd like to thank Phil Vabre and Richard Gibbons for their assistance with this home page.

REFERENCE BOOK

"Diary of WWII - North Queensland"
Complied by Peter Nielsen

Can anyone help me with more information on this crash?

"Australia @ War" WWII Research Products

This page first produced 14 June 1998

This page last updated 02 June 2020