SHANNON, John
| Service Number: | 404264 |
|---|---|
| Enlisted: | 19 July 1940 |
| Last Rank: | Sergeant |
| Last Unit: | No. 455 Squadron (RAAF) |
| Born: | Mackay, Queensland, Australia, 8 September 1920 |
| Home Town: | Rockhampton, Rockhampton, Queensland |
| Schooling: | Not yet discovered |
| Occupation: | Grazier/Station hand |
| Died: | Flying Battle, Germany, 30 November 1941, aged 21 years |
| Cemetery: |
Hamburg Cemetery, Germany 5A. E. 1. Roll of Honour: Nebo, Isaac Region, Qld. |
| Memorials: | Australian War Memorial Roll of Honour, International Bomber Command Centre Memorial, Nebo Shire WW2 Honour Roll, Toowoomba Grammar School WW2 Honour Board |
World War 2 Service
| 19 Jul 1940: | Enlisted Royal Australian Air Force, Aircraftman 2 (WW2), 404264, Brisbane, Queensland | |
|---|---|---|
| 19 Jul 1940: | Enlisted Royal Australian Air Force, Sergeant, 404264, No. 455 Squadron (RAAF) | |
| 30 Nov 1941: | Involvement Royal Australian Air Force, Sergeant, 404264, No. 455 Squadron (RAAF), Air War NW Europe 1939-45 |
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Add my storyBiography contributed by Daniel Bishop
Son of John Bertmore SHANNON & Edith Muriel (nee Wilesmith) SHANNON, of Rockhampton, Queensland
"404264 Sergeant John Shannon of Rockhampton, Qld. A station hand before enlisting in the RAAF in July 1940, Sgt Shannon trained as a pilot under the Empire Air Training Scheme (EATS) and was attached to 455 Squadron RAAF based at RAF Swinderby. Sgt Shannon was killed on the night of 30 November/1December 1941 when his Hampden bomber, serial number P1272, radio call-sign UB-R (R-Robert) failed to return from an operational sortie over the Blohm & Voss Shipbuilding Yards at Hamburg, Germany. It was later confirmed by German records that UB-R had been shot down and crashed, killing all four members of the crew including Sgt Shannon. Aged 21 at the time of his death, Sgt Shannon and his fellow Australian crew member 402578 Pilot Officer Alan George Sands were the first casualties of 455 Squadron RAAF during the Second World War." - SOURCE (www.awm.gov.au)
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