John “Skip” Bailey

8.0
Goodenough Island and Bombing Mission

Goodenough Island was re-taken from the Japanese Special Naval Landing Force by the Australian 2/12th Battalion, and attachments, when the Australian forces landed at Mud Bay and Taleba Bay on 22nd October 1942 (Operation Drake). After intense fighting, about 250 Japanese troops withdrew to Fergusson Island on 27th October 1942. They were soon evacuated from the island on the Japanese light cruiser “Tenryu”. [23]

8 Squadron’s Operations Record Book shows Skip’s aircraft being transferred from the No. 1 Reserve Personnel Pool to 8 Squadron on Goodenough Island on 5th October 1943.

Skip and crew transfer to 8 Squadron [24]

The day after being transferred to 8 Squadron, the crew were test flying Beaufort A9-263 and it crashed, (with major damage), on Vivigani Airfield. An investigation was held into the crash and 50% of the blame was attributed to the weather and 50% to the structural failure.

Crash of A9-263 (Incorrect date of crash – should be 6th October) [25]

Another aircraft they flew after A9-263 was A9-226 which was damaged by bomb splinters when it was parked in a dispersal area on 8th October 1943. The crew was then given Beaufort A9-244 to fly.

Skip wrote a letter to his parents, Gordon and Kathleen, on 13th October 1943 and he did not mention anything about the crash of A9-263. It was to be the last letter Skip wrote to his parents.

Skip’s last letter to his parents

On 21st October 1943 they took off, in Beaufort A9-244, from Vivigani Airfield on Goodenough Island armed with an aerial torpedo as one of ten Beauforts on an attack against Japanese ships [26] off the east coast of New Ireland, near Cape Narum. The Beaufort was part of “B” flight with four other Beauforts.

Their targets were initially one Japanese cruiser but when the first flight of bombers arrived at the target area, another Japanese cruiser and a destroyer escort were also engaged.

At approximately 4:00am, the target was located and at 4:02am the formation attacked. Beaufort A9-244 remained with the formation during the attack. The flight returned to Goodenough Island but A9-244 but was not heard or seen after the attack. It was listed as overdue.

A9-244 Overdue [27]

Next day the operational log of 8 Squadron listed the Pilot, G.H. Vincent, and crew of A9-244 as missing.

A-244 Missing [28]

A relative of Skip’s was waiting at the Vivigani Airfield on Goodenough Is. when the other aircraft returned from the raid. Thomas Francis Ahern, the husband of a cousin of Skip’s wife was a Doctor with 8 Squadron. Previously he had been a doctor at St Vincent’s Hospital, Darlinghurst, Sydney.

He penned a note to an unknown person:

Note from T.F. Ahern

Transcript:

Reference Beaufort A9-244 and 8 Squadron. I well remember the morning of the 21-10-43 having attended the briefing for the attack on Japanese shipping coming down the channel between New Britain and New Ireland. Later in the day I waited on the airstrip for the squadron’s return. As time passed and all other aircraft had return it was felt to be almost certain that A9-244 was lost.

As he was required to do when an aircraft went missing, Wing Commander G.D.Nicoll, commanding officer of 8 Squadron, wrote an account of the missing aircraft and the pilot’s competence.

Wing Commander Nicoll – account of loss of A9-244 [29]

In fact, A9-244 ditched off the coast of New Ireland and the entire crew survived.

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[23] Wikipedia – Battle of Milne Bay
[24] Australia War Memorial
[25] Pacific Wrecks
[26] A Nation Grew Wings – Burton Graham & Frank Smyth
[27] Australia War Memorial
[28] Australia War Memorial
[29] National Archives of Australia