The airmen’s caskets ready for lowering at Bomana War Cemetery, Port Moresby, on Monday. Photo: Department of Defence
They served their country and made the ultimate sacrifice more than 80 years ago. Now they have finally been laid to rest.
The Royal Australian Air Force (RAAF) has just held a committal service for two of their fliers at the Bomana War Cemetery in Port Moresby, PNG.
Warrant officers Clement Batstone Wiggins (pilot) and Russell Henry Grigg (navigator) were onboard a 100 Squadron Beaufort (A9-186) which it crashed in September 1943.
Families of the two fliers were joined by Australian and Papua New Guinea dignitaries at the service; the duo had been flown up from RAAF Base Amberley in Queensland to Port Moresby for the ceremony.
“Through this service, we honour the ultimate sacrifice of the crew of Beaufort A9-186, specifically warrant officers Wiggins and Grigg,” said Deputy Chief of Air Force, Air Vice-Marshal Harvey Reynolds.
“We also pay our respects to their families and hope this service will bring them closure after eight decades.
“It is special to be in this beautiful place which the wartime losses of our two countries made sacred,” he said.
The wreckage of the Beaufort was found buried in 43 metres of water, 1.4 kilometres southwest of Gasmata airfield, in late 2020.
The Australian Defence Force says no further recovery from the crash site is planned.
MISSION BACKGROUND
On the morning of September 5, 1943, 10 aircraft from No 100 Squadron, including A9-186, were sent to bomb Japanese-held Gasmata airfield at New Britain, PNG.
Despite earlier attacks, Japanese ground fire proved heavy and accurate; three aircraft were shot down over target and another lost upon its return to base.
Beauforts in 1945. Picture: Department of Defence
Beaufort A9-186 was last seen on fire during an attack run and other crews from the raid believed it crashed into the sea near the target.
The aircraft, and the remains of Wiggins and Grigg, were positively identified in February 2022.
The two other crew members, flight sergeants Albert Beckett and Gordon Lewis Hamilton, could not be recovered, the RAAF said.
The identification of, and recovery missions for, the Beaufort were sponsored by WA mining magnate Dr Andrew Forrest of the Minderoo Foundation.
The initial discovery of A9-186 was made by an Ocean Ecology Pty Ltd dive team working for Dr Forrest during a search for his uncle.
His uncle was also lost during a mission to Gasmata while flying a Beaufort.
