An Extraordinary Incident The Wirraway, an Aboriginal word meaning challenge, was a trainer design but classed as a general purpose aircraft and equipped with machine-guns and bomb racks. The Commonwealth Aircraft Corporations plant at Fishermans Bend in Victoria produced 755 Wirraways. They were most successful as army cooperation aircraft during the campaign in Papua New Guinea. On 26 December 1942, Pilot Officer John Archer, 4 Squadron RAAF, shot down a Japanese fighter, believed at the time to be a Mitsubishi Zero, from his Wirraway. Archers Wirraway is now in the Bradbury Aircraft Hall at the Australian War Memorial As soon as he had landed at Popondetta airstrip in Papua on 12 December 1942, Pilot Officer J S Archer leapt from his Wirraway aircraft, A20-103, to tell the Control Officer that he had shot down a Japanese Zero. Despite the Control Officers disbelief, Archer described the incident and soon phone calls from observers all around the Gona area confirmed his story. He and his observer, Sergeant J F Coulston, had been flying a tactical reconnaissance mission over a Japanese ship which had been wrecked in the sea off Gona. When they sighted the Zero 1000 feet below, Archer dived on the Japanese aircraft and fired a long burst from the Wirraways two Vickers .303 machine-guns. The Zero crashed into the sea. For his actions, Pilot Officer John Archer received the United States Silver Star from Brigadier General Ennis C Whitehead, the Commanding General of Allied Air Forces in New Guinea in a ceremony at Buna in 1943. AWM
Posted on: Tue, 03 Dec 2013 05:15:44 +0000
Trending Topics
Recently Viewed Topics
© 2015