1 WAGS Memorial in Ballarat, Victoria | Community organisation

1 WAGS Memorial

Locality: Ballarat, Victoria

Phone: +61 439 929 322

Address: Airport Road 3350 Ballarat, VIC, Australia

Website: https://www.1wags.org.au

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25.01.2022 RAAF Milne Bay Papua September 1942 [AWM 026648]

25.01.2022 Warrant Officer FRANCIS NOEL MILLER PETCH Warrant Officer Francis Noel Miller Petch was born and educated in Ballarat, Victoria Australia. He trained as a Wireless Air Gunner at No. 1 W.A.G.S. Ballarat- Courses 34/35. He was posted to England and served with the 550 and 150 Squadrons RAF in Bomber Command. Warrant Officer Petch completed 36 Operations in the iconic Lancaster aircraft with bombing raids over Germany.... This was a remarkable time of survival during operations encountering night fighters, flack, near misses of collision with other Lancasters and severe weather conditions. Warrant Officer Petch was discharged on the 28th November 1945 and returned to Ballarat to resume his life in his home town. We pay tribute to the gallantry of Warrant Officer Petch and his outstanding RAAF service during WW2. READ MORE in the FEATURE STORY 1wags.org.au

24.01.2022 1WAGS pays tribute to the gallant RAAF trainees who served during WW2. Remembrance Day honours those who returned and those who made the ultimate sacrifice. We will remember them.

23.01.2022 ANZAC Day A Unique Commemoration on Saturday 25 April 2020 This year, as we draw on our own strength and resources to combat the COVID-19 pandemic, ANZAC Day becomes even more poignant, as we acknowledge and commemorate those whose own resilience and sacrifice defined our nation. Sadly, there will no public events held this Saturday 25th April, however there are a number of initiatives that have been put in place to ensure that we can still acknowledge and participate in ou...r national day of commemoration. Dawn Service ABC TV and radio coverage of the Shrine service starts at 0530hrs with the Last Post and a 1minute silence occurring at approximately 0600hrs. Share Your Commemoration Us I invite you to share your unique ANZAC Day experience with us, by taking a photo (selfie) of yourself and sending it us c/ [email protected], with your name included. Photos received will be placed in a special gallery on our website and also as centre page spread in the next edition of CONTACT newsletter. Branch Activities The Vietnam Veterans Branch is planning a short videoconferencing (via Zoom) activity for Branch members on ANZAC Day, with a reciting of the Ode and a minute’s silence in memory of those RAAF members who died on operations and in honour of those who served in Vietnam. Other Branches may wish to organise a similar activity. Alternatively, at 1130, ABCTV, radio, iView online, will be broadcasting a two minute reflection which includes The Ode and The Last Post followed by a minute silence. ANZAC Day 2020 Poppy Appeal The RSL is also encouraging people to make an on-line donation to the Anzac Day 2020 Poppy Appeal, given there will be an absence of collectors this year. Please see https://anzacappeal.com.au/ for information on how to do this. ‘Gallipoli The First Day’ e-book A free on-line edition of ‘Gallipoli -The First Day’, written by Vietnam Veteran, Peter Condon (RAAF Forward Air Controller) has been made available for you to read and reflect on what happened on that day. Please click on the following link: https://afavic.org.au//i/Gallipoli-The_First_Day_eBook.pdf (or go to our website www.afavic.org.au and visit the Vietnam Veterans Branch page). Best wishes to you and your families in these difficult and challenging times. Stay safe and well Max McGregor | President, Air Force Association - Victoria Contact Us: (03) 9813 4600 | [email protected] | www.afavic.org.au

21.01.2022 Arch of Victory Ballarat - Centenary 1920 to 2020 The world was still reeling from the effect of the global Spanish flu pandemic when His Royal Highness Prince Edward, the Prince of Wales, officially opened Ballarat's Arch of Victory on June 2nd, 1920. Now, exactly 100 years later, centenary celebrations are being limited by the COVID-19 pandemic. The Arch of Victory, one of Ballarat's most iconic structures, stands at the entrance to Australia's longest commemorative avenue... of honour. Across Australia, the Arch is recognised as a symbol of Ballarat, but it has attracted international recognition and status. An exhibition in the world's most famous arch - the Arc de Triomphe in Paris - features a display of significant arches across the world. It features just one in Australia - Ballarat's Arch of Victory. The Arch commemorates the Allied victory in the Great War but, for a community finally emerging from four years of anxiety and grief, the word "Victory" offered some consolation and comfort that the hardship had not been in vain. This Arch of Victory was erected and the Avenue of Honour planted by the Young Ladies of E. Lucas & Co. Pty Ltd. In honour of the sailors, soldiers and nurses of Ballarat who took part in the Great War. The Arch of Victory Centenary is the FEATURE Story on our 1 WAGS Memorial website - 1wags.org.au Visit our website to read more. See more

21.01.2022 1 W.A.G.S The 1 W.A.G.S. website 1wags.org.au continues as a work in progress. Over the month of June, the 1 W.A.G.S Prisoner of War page has been added in the MEMORIAL page. To date 139 1 W.A.G.S personnel were held in captivity with 31 dying as P.O.W.s. These airmen were held in German, Italian and Japanese camps. 22 P.O.W.s died at the hands of the Japanese. The rest were prisoners of Italian/German captors. The FEATURE STORY on the HOME page honours the Centenary of The... Arch of Victory Ballarat June 1920 to 2020. Included in the story is information and iconic photos of the Arch, the Avenue of Honour, the Lucas Girls and the Official opening by HRH the Prince of Wales. We have recently obtained Graduation Certificates and/or Graduation Menus for the following Courses WAGS Courses 5, 26, 28, 48 and 49 as well as Navigation Course 4. These can be found in the COURSES section of the website. Many thanks to Facebook friend Lindsay Cheal and Jeff Stockdale from the Contact Us page on the website for forwarding these certificates. During this difficult time of restrictions and uncertainty it is pleasing to note that since the websites launch in February, we have had 8,723 browsers to the site from all over the world. The online world has enabled us to honour those brave RAAF airmen who trained in Ballarat and went on to serve during WW2. Janet Bates

17.01.2022 F/Off Frederick Michael Spafford [DFM,DFC]

16.01.2022 1 W.A.G.S has recently acquired the 1 WAGS Graduation Certificate for Course 49. Many thanks to Jeff for forwarding this certificate to us. It has been included in the COURSES section of the website 1wags.org.au We are gradually narrowing down the certificates that are missing. These certificates are invaluable as they provide signatures of those who trained in the course and validate our research.

14.01.2022 Ava and Henry Riesewyk with their hand-made wreathes honouring their great grandfather Leading Aircraftman Reginald Earl Barker - 1WAGS graduate Course 47.

13.01.2022 1 W.A.G.S Memorial ANZAC Day Please post any photos/videos of you, your family, your street, your organisation etc in commemorating this important day. LEST WE FORGET

12.01.2022 As we are all self-isolating and restricted in our daily lives especially being unable to be with those we love 1 W.A.G.S. Memorial pays tribute to those brave servicemen who lost their freedom and suffered unimaginable hardship during WW2. We honour those RAAF airmen who trained as Wireless/Air Gunners at Ballarat and became P.O.W.s. Of the 138 1W.A.G.S. P.O.W.s 30 died in captivity. Many were buried in unmarked graves with their families often not knowing what happened t...o their loved one. Those who returned were damaged both physically and mentally but found a way to survive with the love and support of their families. We firstly commemorate Flight Sergeant Allan Graham AITCHESON 1 W.A.G.S Navigation Course 7. P.O.W. Netherlands East Indies. Killed on the 25/01/1945 F/Sgt Aitcheson is commemorated on the MEMORIAL ROLL section of 1wags.org.au Previous service AIF. Plane was a Beaufighter A19-209 on a barge sweep along the east coast of Ceram, finishing at Sebakor Bay on the southern coast of New Guinea. The aircraft experienced difficulty and crashed landed on the Bomberai Peninsula. F/Lt Albert James Moody [Pilot] and F/Sgt Allan Graham Aitcheson [Navigator] survived but were betrayed by local natives and captured by the Japanese. Moody and Aitcheson were tortured and shot after about three months of capture. There was an attempted rescue of the airmen from Idore by Dutch ground troops with RAAF support but the airmen had been dead for some time.

12.01.2022 Today we commemorate the 75th anniversary of ‘VP Day’, (Victory in the Pacific), which has fallen on 15th August this year, 75 years on from 15th August 1945 which must surely have been a wonderful day for peoples of the Pacific region. War in the Pacific ended with Japan's acceptance of the Allied demand for unconditional surrender on 14 August 1945 and the Australian Government gazetted the following day, 15th August 1945, as a VP Day public holiday. The Governments of Brit...ain, the United States and New Zealand preferred ‘VJ Day’ , ( Victory over Japan) but Australia went with VP Day. Of the airmen that trained at No 1 Wireless Air Gunners School at RAAF Ballarat during the Second World War, in addition to the many that lost their lives in Europe and Africa, 281 of them lost their lives in operations relating to our war closer to home against the Japanese, and that is just the Ballarat trained airmen. Of this total of 281 Killed-in-Action Ballarat trained airmen, a handful of those lost their lives on Australian soil with the rest losing their lives beyond our shores with most buried in foreign lands. Twenty-two died as Prisoner of War at the hands of the Japanese. Here is just one name of a locally born young man that trained here in Ballarat and subsequently lost his life in the defence of our nation in our Battle for Australia. Patrick Fraser STANLEY, Born Ballarat........ 3 Nov 1921 ~ Enlisted in RAAF ........... 1 April 1943 Commenced No 1 Wireless Air Gunners Course No 46 at No 1WAGS RAAF Ballarat commencing.........9 Dec 1943 Killed in Action as Flight Sergeant STANLEY P. F. on 5th July 1945 in a flying Battle over Borneo. Noel Hutchins President AFA Ballarat Branch LEST WE FORGET

11.01.2022 Currently'under construction' is a new page in the MEMORIAL ROLL section of 1wags.or.au titled - 1 W.A.G.S Gallantry Citations. The 1 W.A.G.S. MEMORIAL pays tribute to those RAAF trainee airmen who through their courage, fortitude, keeness and devotion to duty were recognised with a Gallantry Citation. To date there are 170+ 1 W.A.G. RAAF personnel listed who received a 'gallantry citation' during WW2. Forty-seven were KILLED. The major citations awarded were the D.F.C [Dis...tinguished Flying Cross] and the D.F.M [Distinguished Flying Medal]. Awarded for "an act or acts of valour, courage or devotion to duty whilst flying in active operations against the enemy" Others citations awarded were the G.M [George Medal], D.S.O [Distinguished Service Order], A.F.C [Air Force Cross], B.E.M [British Empire Medal], M.B.E [ Member of the Order of the British Empire], C.G.M [Conspicuous Gallantry Medal], A.F.M [Air Force Medal] and the M.C [Military Cross]. Those airmen who were KILLED have been added to the page with ongoing research into those who were DISCHARGED. Two remarkable airmen who trained at 1 WAGS and were awarded both the DFM and DFC were F/Sgt Thomas Drayton Simpson [Course 8] and P/Off Frederick Michael Spafford [Course 6]. Both men and their crew received the "Joint Citation for the Dam Busters raid on the Moehne, Eder and Scorpe Dams in Germany on the night of 16th May 1943. The operation was one of great difficulty and hazard, demanding a great degree of skill and courage and close cooperation between the crews of the aircraft engaged. "

11.01.2022 1 W.A.G.S Course 49 Graduation Certificate.

08.01.2022 1 W.A.G.S. Remembers all Australian servicemen who marched for our freedom. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hNUJnndi1qY

08.01.2022 The following 1 W.A.G.S article with photos has been submitted to the Ballarat Mechanics Institute 'YOUR STORY' initiative. This project ensures that photos and stories of historical interest about Ballarat will be digitally preserved for future generations with an exhibition envisaged in the future.

06.01.2022 In case you missed this article I have posted it on our page for those who have family and friends this applies to . Thank you David have reposted hope this works.

06.01.2022 1 WAGS Graduation Certificate Course 48 generously provided by Tricia whose father Warrent Officer Leslie Bernard Foster THOMAS [Blue] graduated from Course 48. Interesting to note graduates were classed as Signaller rather than Wireless due to the development of Radar. This was a new course for Navigators with a 'Wireless' qualification and together with Avro Anson's equipped with Air to Surface[ASV] radar,the Wireless Operator category was replaced with that of 'SIGNALLER'

05.01.2022 Many thanks to the Ballarat Mechanics Institute for publishing in their newsletter the 1WAGS story of The Lost Photos. This story has already been included previously on our Facebook page.

01.01.2022 1WAGS Memorial pays tribute to the 1,182 RAAF trainees from the Ballarat base during WW 2 who never returned. ‘Lest We Forget’ Thank you to our neighbours who stood in their driveways with their torches at Dawn this morning. A very moving sight .

01.01.2022 1 W.A.G.S. Memorial continues to honour those 1 W.A.G.S. graduates who became Prisoner of War during WW2. We pay tribute to Warrant Officer Leslie James TERRETT 1 W.A.G.S. trainee COURSE 31. W/Off Terrett survived being a P.O.W. and was discharged from the RAAF on the 7th May 1946. Discover more on 1wags.org.au website.... TERRETT, LESLIE JAMES Warrant Officer Leslie James Terrett was assigned to 158 Squadron at Lissett, Yorkshire U.K. flying in Mark 11 and Mark 111 Halifax Heavy Bombers. He flew seven operations from the 11th November 1943 to 20th February 1944. Terrett was deemed an Odd Bod as he flew these operations with twenty other airmen.By the end of the War:13 of the men were dead, 6 of the men were Prisoners Of War, and only one of the 20 men (Stanley Dale) was not dead, was not a Prisoner of War, and had received the DFC. The targets were Cannes, Mannheim, Stuttgart, Leipzig, Frankfurt and Berlin. On an operation to bomb Leipzig, Germany the aircraft was shot down.Warrant Officer Leslie Terrett became a P.O.W at Stalag Luft 6 but was moved around other camps in Eastern Germany and Poland due to the advancing Allied forces. After liberation Terrett was repatriated back to Australia and arrived in Melbourne on the 10th September 1945. This was the first group of P.O.W.s to return from the war, and there was a large street parade in Melbourne to welcome them home. Leslie Terrett never spoke about the War to his wife, and when he would wake up screaming in the middle of the night, he would just say it’s nothing, it’s just the War. While he always appeared to be a happy and jovial bloke, some of the people who knew him had said that this was part of his coping strategy, and that today he would he diagnosed as a case of PTSD. Counselling! The only counselling was over a beer with a mate. Currently a book is being written by the sons of Leslie Terrett, Dr A. Terrett and Dr G. Terrett, titled - The Life of Leslie James Terrett 1923-1961 [James, Jim, Jimmy, Curly] Dr Allan Terrett is a member of the AFA Ballarat Branch.

01.01.2022 A wonderful image I had to share .