4 June 1945 - Crash of a Beaufort 15 miles south west of Eskdale in Victoria

CRASH OF A BEAUFORT
ON MOUNT TAWONGA
15 MILES SOUTH WEST OF ESKDALE, VICTORIA
ON 4 JUNE 1945

RAAF Beaufort, A9-228, of No. 1 Operational Training Unit (1 OTU), left Mount Gambier at 5.33pm on 4 June 1945, headed for East Sale on a long range sea reconnaissance and night astro-navigation exercise. The aircraft was meant to head east for East Sale, but instead it headed north east. It flew over Albury in New South Wales. It circled Albury and and then flew in the direction of the Victorian Alps.

Several bearing adjustments were radioed to the aircraft from East Sale, but these were not acted on and the aircraft descended through the clouds. Radio transmissions had ceased at 8.15 pm. The aircraft slammed into the side of Mount Tawonga killing all the crew listed below:-

The RAAF searched for 5 days in the area where they suspected the crash may have occurred. Evidence at a Court of Inquiry indicated a possible aircraft crash on Mount Tawonga. This area had not been checked and relatives, with the aid of Lieutenant Richard Hamilton of the Volunteer Defence Corps started a search on Mount Tawonga. It only took them 2.5 hours to find the wreckage. The crew were buried at the military cemetery at Sale.

There were still some significant remnants of this wreck at the crash site in early 2000. Parts of the tail section still have the green and brown camouflage quite evident. Malcolm Black of Sydney has been involved in finding many WW2 wrecks in the Northern Territory and Western Australia and was surprised to find this wreck in Victoria.

Subject:    Beaufort Crash
Date:             Mon, 13 Dec 1999 13:03:30 +1100
From:           Russell Kelly <wombat@albury.net.au>

I am researching for a small booklet on the crash of a Beaufort A9-228 in North East Victoria in June 1945.

Do you have Bruce Stewart's List? I am trying to track down the book - "Aircraft in Australian Service". can you give me any more details, please ?

Subject:   Beaufort Crash
Date:           Tue, 14 Dec 1999 09:44:05 +1100
From:          Russell & Robyn Kelly <wombat@albury.net.au>

The crash occurred at approx 2018 on 4th June near Eskdale, on the side of a mountain.

Eskdale is in the Mitta Valley and there is considerable local interest in the crash. Most of the wreck has been taken away. Only recently part of a wing and an engine were removed from the site.

The crash occurred because of some terrible navigation errors. The aircraft was supposed to be on the direct track from Mt Gambier to East Sale, finished up 20 degrees left of track and flying around at night in bad weather in mountainous terrain apparently looking for east Sale (100nm away!). The RAAF didnt find the wreck until 2 months later.

My interest : I'm a commercial pilot (hobby only) living in the Mitta Valley with an interest in aviation history.

Do you know anyone (ex navigator) who remembers how to use or has a handbook on the Astro Compass? Are there any (I guess old!) ex Beaufort pilots and navigators on the internet who remember how some of the systems work ?

Subject:    A9-228
Date:             Wed, 12 Jan 2000 18:19:56 +1100
From:           Russell Kelly <wombat@albury.net.au>

For your records, A9-228 crashed 7nm SW of Eskdale (NE Victoria) on 4 June 1945.

Subject:    A9-228
Date:             Thu, 13 Jan 2000 11:20:17 +1100
From:           Russell & Robyn Kelly <wombat@albury.net.au>

A9-228 crashed at 2018 hrs on 4th June 1945 on the northern slopes of Mt Tawonga, 7nm SW of Eskdale. Eskdale is a small village in the Mitta Valley SE of Albury/Wodonga.

A9-228 was returning to East Sale from Mount Gambier on a training exercise which included practice Astro navigation.

Soon after leaving Mount Gambier, the crew incorrectly set a heading 20 degrees to the left and due to a succession of navigational errors, continued on this track until overhead Albury (thinking this was East Sale). The aircraft then flew in the area for around an hour and at low altitude collided with Mt Tawonga, 85nm off course.

The a/c exploded on impact with a rocky outcrop and the wreckage spread over a wide area.

Despite an extensive search, the wreckage was not found until eight weeks later. The search was initiated by relatives who were concerned at the inactivity of the RAAF.

1. Do you have accurate statistics as to how many Beauforts crashed in Victoria during WW2?

2. Do you know were I might be able to find the records of the construction of A9-228 and how it was equipped ?

3. Do you know anyone familiar with the avionics - specifically the radar and IFF ?

Subject:   "Going My Way"
Date:            Fri, 26 May 2000 18:26:43 +1000
From:           Russell J Kelly <wombat@albury.net.au>

I have written a booklet on the crash of Beaufort A9-228 on 4th June 1945 near Eskdale, Victoria.

Title: "Going My Way - The Story of the Mysterious Crash of a Beaufort Bomber"
Price: $12.00 plus $1.00 P&P.
Cheque, Money Order etc payable to R.J.Kelly

Subject:   Ceremony
Date:           Sat, 03 Jun 2000 11:27:47 +1000
From:          Russell J Kelly <wombat@albury.net.au>

Tomorrow (Sunday 4 June 2000) there will be a memorial plaque unveiled dedicated to the airmen who lost their lives in A9-228. Also dedicated to the locals who searched for the Beaufort for 8 weeks. Many of the relatives of the crew will be present. Also the Commanding Officer of RAAF East Sale and a fly-past, local politicians etc etc.

Subject:    A9-228
Date:           Tue, 06 Jun 2000 08:28:48 +1000
From:          Russell J Kelly <wombat@albury.net.au>

I was disappointed to read that the article was inviting scavengers to take what was left. In fact there is very little left and the relatives of the dead crew see the site as being sacred.

Hope you have received my booklet. You will need to correct some details in your database for A9-228.

I need your help

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