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| RNZAF No. 3 Squadron Former Assignments 1 AD 1 GR  RNZAF 1942 |
Pilot F/L Wilfred Opawa Rutherford, 1299 (MIA / KIA) Auckland, NZ Co-Pilot F/O Vivian Roberts Eady, 413828 (MIA / KIA) Auckland, NZ Crew Sgt Lisle Gordon Smith, 412754 (MIA / KIA) Auckland, NZ Crew Sgt William Clement Lankshear, 413262 (MIA / KIA) Wellington, NZ Crew Sgt John Robert McDougall, 413765 (MIA / KIA) Southland, NZ Crashed July 7, 1943 Aircraft History Built by Lockheed Aircraft Corporation (LAC) in Burbank. Constructors Number 3856. Assigned Royal Air Force (RAF) serial number AE501 as part of British purchasing mission contract. Disassembled and loaded aboard Manuel as cargo and shipped across the Pacific to New Zealand. Wartime History On October 29, 1941 assigned to the Royal New Zealand Air Force (RNZAF) as Hudson serial number NZ2033. Reassembled by No.1 Aircraft Depot at Hobsonville Airfield. Next, assigned to 1 GR Squadron at Whenuapai Airfield. Finally, assigned to No.3 Squadron at Henderson Field on Guadalcanal. Mission History On July 7, 1943 at 5:15pm took off from Henderson Field piloted by F/L Wilfred O. Rutherford on a flare dropping mission for three TBF Avengers over the Kahili to Buin area of southern Bougainville. The operation required 12-15 flares to be dropped across Tonolei Harbor at 500 yard intervals, with a further 4 flares dropped off Vella Lavella during the return flight to assist the Avengers pilots guide them back to base. One of the American pilots later reported the Hudson had dropped about 12 flares over Tonolei Harbor at 7:45pm, as arranged, but nothing further was heard or seen of the aircraft. When this aircraft failed to return the crew was officially declared Missing In Action (MIA). This aircraft was officially written off August 23, 1943 at Guadalcanal. In fact, this Hudson was intercepted by a J1N1 Irving night fighter pilot Shigetoshi Kudo on an evening patrol from Ballale Airfield. Firing at this Hudson from behind and above, the night fighter fired his two downward angled 20mm cannons. Damaged, the Hudson quickly caught fire and crashed over western Shortland Island. There were no survivors. Memorial The entire crew was declared dead the day of the mission. All five are commemorated at the Bourail Memorial on New Caledonia. Rutherford on panel 3. Eady on panel 4. Smith, Lankshear and McDougall on panel 7. Lankshear also has a memorial marker at Old Levin Cemetery in Levin, New Zealand. References ADF Serials - Hudson NZ2033 Kodochosho, 251 Kōkūtai, July 7, 1943 Auckland Memorial - Wilfred Opawa Rutherford (Bourail Memorial) Auckland Memorial - Vivian Roberts Eady (photo, Bourail Memorial) Auckland Memorial - Lisle Gordon Smith (Bourail Memorial) Auckland Memorial - William Clement Lankshear (photo, Bourail Memorial) Auckland Memorial - John Robert McDougall (photo, Bourail Memorial) CWGC - Wilfred Opawa Rutherford CWGC - Vivian Roberts Eady CWGC - Lisle Gordon Smith CWGC - William Clement Lankshear CWGC - John Robert McDougall FindAGrave - Wilfred Opawa Rutherford (Bourail Memorial) FindAGrave - Vivian Roberts Eady (Bourail Memorial) FindAGrave - Lisle Gordon Smith (Bourail Memorial) FindAGrave - Sgt William Clement Lankshear (Bourail Memorial) FindAGrave - William Clement Lankshear (Old Levin Cemetery) FindAGrave - Sgt John Robert “Jack” McDougall (photo, Bourail Memorial) Moonlight Interceptor (1985) page 40 Thanks to John Douglas for additional information information Contribute Information Are you a relative or associated with any person mentioned? Do you have photos or additional information to add? Last Updated August 21, 2022 |
 Hudson  MIA 5 Missing |
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