N.G. Airmen

Decorations to Two N.G. Airmen "Tommy" Ellis and lan Innes

rWO young New Guinea airmen have received awards for gallantry in the last month. One is F/O T. W. Ellis, vhose DFC award was announced on rune 18; and the other is F/Sgt. (now VO) lan Innes, who has been awarded he Military Medal—an award that goes arely to airmen and has been given to inly three other members of the RAAF.

Tom Ellis’ story was told in the April ssue of “PIM.” About that date, when eturning to a successful attack on Jap anese positions in the Amboina area, a Jeaufighter of Ellis’ unit was forced lown. The crew of two took to the rub ier dinghy and another Beaufighter

itayed to provide cover. A radio message vas sent for help and was picked up by t New Zealand Catalina, and in the neantime two other Beaufighters, one jiloted by Ellis, also returned to the •escue.

When these two reached the position, Ellis took over from the covering Beau ighter, which returned to base escorted )y Ellis’ companion, and although one of ;he plane’s engines was out of action, md he was within sight of enemy-occu pied territory, kept guard on the two nen in the dinghy until the Catalina irrived and picked them up. [N June, 1944, Fit.-Sgt. Innes, son of Mr. and Mrs. Allen Innes, of Vau „ cluse, formerly of Salamaua, was posted missing after a bomber raid over Dccupied France. His fate was unknown until September, when the Allied armies swept across France. Sgt. Innes and several other RAAF men were then dis covered fighting with the French Maquis.

It appears that the bomber in which be was a member of the crew was shot down over Laon in France. The crew bailed out and Innes landed with a sprained ankle and a broken toe. He did not meet up with other members of the crew again but alone made his way through occupied France. He spoke fair French and passed himself off as a Polish “slave” worker, and, helped by patriotic Frenchmen, finally joined the Maquis.

His adventures during the months that

he was at large in France were highly exciting. Sgt. Innes has written them into a story which will probably be pub lished by Angus & Robertson, Ltd., of Sydney, in the near future.

In announcing the award of the MM, on June 21, the Australian Minister for Air said that how Innes won his award could not be disclosed. As the decoration is a military one, it is presumed, how ever, that Innes won it for fighting on the ground—that is, with the Maquis.

Now that the war in Europe is over there seems to be no good reason why such details should be treated as hush-hush.

Permission apparently has been given by the Air Board for Innes to publish his story.

Flight-Lieut. Brian Cobcroft, son of the well-known Samoan planter, A. R. Cob croft, of Vaipoto Plantation, has been home on leave for the first time since he enlisted in the RNZAF in 1940. He was the guest of honour at numerous func tions. Flight-Lieut. Cobcroft was in the North African, Italian and European cam paigns, and also took an active part in D-Day operations.

P/O Ian Innes.