ROSE, Keith Donald
| Service Number: | 415184 |
|---|---|
| Enlisted: | 21 July 1941 |
| Last Rank: | Pilot Officer |
| Last Unit: | No. 156 Squadron (RAF) |
| Born: | Bunbury, Western Australia, 27 December 1920 |
| Home Town: | Burekup, Harvey, Western Australia |
| Schooling: | Not yet discovered |
| Occupation: | Farm Hand |
| Died: | Burekup, Western Australia, 15 November 1993, aged 72 years, cause of death not yet discovered |
| Cemetery: |
Bunbury General Cemetery, Bunbury, Western Australia Cremated - ashes collected |
| Memorials: |
World War 2 Service
| 21 Jul 1941: | Enlisted Royal Australian Air Force, Pilot Officer, 415184 | |
|---|---|---|
| 13 Sep 1941: | Promoted Royal Australian Air Force, Leading Aircraftman, No. 1 Wireless Air Gunnery School Ballarat | |
| 30 Apr 1942: | Promoted Royal Australian Air Force, Sergeant, No 2 BAGS Port Pirie | |
| 2 Jul 1942: | Embarked Royal Australian Air Force, Sergeant, 415184, ex Sydney for UK - attached RAF | |
| 30 Oct 1943: | Promoted Royal Australian Air Force, Warrant Officer, No. 156 Squadron (RAF) | |
| 12 Dec 1944: | Promoted Royal Australian Air Force, Pilot Officer | |
| 5 Jun 1945: | Discharged Royal Australian Air Force, Pilot Officer, 415184 |
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Add my storyBiography contributed by Chris Buckley
Pilot Officer Keith Donald Rose DFC (Service No:415184) served in the Militia as a Trooper with 10th Light Horse Regiment (1940/1941) before enlisting in the RAAF as an Aircraftman II on 21 July 1941. In September 1941 he was promoted to Leading Aircraftman at No 1 Wireless and Gunnery School (WAGS) Ballarat, and then to Sergeant on 30 April 1942 at No 2 Bomber and Gunnery School (BAGS) Port Pirie. Attached to the RAF, Sergeant Rose served in the UK (2 July 1942 - 16 April 1944)with No 10 Observers Advanced Flying Unit (AFU) based in Dumfries, 27 Operational Training Unit (OTU) Lichfield, 103 Squadron, No 2 Observer Advanced Flying Unit (AFU), 11 Personnel Despatch and Receiving Centre (PDRC) Brighton and HQ 25 Group UK. On 30 October 1943 he was attached to 156 Squadron and promoted to Pilot Officer - flying Douglas DC2, Fairy Battle, Anson, Wellington Mark III, Halifax - Lancaster and Oxford aircraft. WO Rose was awarded the DFC 'for skill and fortitude in operations against the enemy' (AWM). Pilot Officer Rose DFC was attached to 3 Air Observer School at Discharge on 5 June 1945.
Born in 1920 in Bunbury WA, Don was the third of five children (all sons who served in WWII) of Thomas Leopold Rose (b1883 at Parkfield in Australind, WA) and Dorothea Brooks Wilson (b1897 in Guildford, WA). Thomas (a Farmer) and Dorothea married in 1917 in Bunbury, WA where they settled and raised their family and Thomas was a Farmer. Thomas was killed in December 1927 when his car was hit by a train at a level crossing - Dorothea was left a Widow with five sons under nine years of age.
Don was a Farm Hand in Burekup when he enlisted in the RAAF, and returned there following his Discharge and was a Farmer. In 1950 in Perth WA, Don married Joan Dorothea Meares (b1926 in Roeburne, WA) - Joan was working as a Stenographer at Pyramid Station in Roeburne. Don and Joan settled in Burekup where they raised their family and Don was a Farmer. Don died in 1993 and Joan in 2023.
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