Physical description
A 62 page book outlining the loss of the Beaufort Bomber and the search to locate it. The book includes maps, illustrations and a bibliography. The cover features a map of the search area for the bomber.
Inscriptions & markings
The dedication at the beginning of the book: "To Aussie heroes: The airmen and their families and the men and women who never gave up their search this booklet is affectionately dedicated."
Summary
This book tracks the crash of the RAAF Beaufort, A9-228 which crashed in the mountains near Eskdale, Victoria and the search to locate the wreckage. On the night of 4 June 1945, just weeks before the end of World War 1, a Beaufort Bomber went missing whilst conducting a navigational exercise between Mount Gambier in South Australia and Sale in Victoria.The aircraft was meant to head east, but instead it headed north east due to a series of navigational errors. It flew over Albury, circled and then headed towards the Victorian Alps. It flew over the town of Eskdale in Northeast Victoria and crashed into the side of Mount Tawonga. All crew on board perished. Those lost were Flight Officer Don Flavel (pilot), Flight Officer Robert Clayton (navigator), Flight Officer Fred Wallis and Flight Sergeant L. J. Sims (radio operator). At the time of the crash, many members of the Eskdale community were in the public hall just beginning to watch a screening of the Bing Crosby movie, "Going My Way". This accounts for the title of the publication.
References
- Monument Australia - Beaufort Bomber Air Crash An outline of the crash and search for the Beaufort Bomber including photos of a monument at the site of the crash. The plaque has since been removed due to vandalism.