The Australian War Memorial Collection. Test site
This drawing is a caricature of Flight Lieutenant James Anthony Cathcart 'Tony' Gordon. Gordon flew with the 455 RAAF Squadron, the first Australian squadron to bomb Germany. Although Australian, the squadron was made up of different nationalities from allied countries and flew under operational control of the Royal Air Force's Bomber Command. Pilot Officer Gordon arrived in late September - early October at RAF Swinderby airbase in Lincolnshire, UK to join 455 Sqaudron. On the night of 7 November Gordon piloted a Hampden aircraft (known as a 'Flying Suitcase' or 'Flying Tadpole' due to its appearance) to make a diversionary attack on Cologne while other aircraft from the squadron bombed the main target of Berlin. Gordon described his experience that night: 'Having carried out low level attacks with bombs and M/G's [machine guns] on the searchlight belt Aachen-Mamstrick, I was returning to base [at] low level. As was later discovered the Met [weather prediction] was wrong due to freak weather conditions and our position was some miles south of that estimate. This brought me into the foothils of the Ardennes, where at 350 ft I collided with a chimney stack, bearing off the lower portion of the fuselage and breaking the fuel supply. The motors [cut] out and I had to crash land.' '...while attending to wounded members of crew [I] was taken prisoner by [a] member of [the] "Feldpolize".' Gordon had mild burns from the crash landing. He was captured along with his crew, who all survived, near Namur, Belgium and held as prisoner of war for the remainder of the war.
The artist of this drawing was Bill Fordyce, a survivor from 'The Great Escape', a mass escape of World War II allied prisoners made famous by the movie starring Steve McQueen. Fordyce, a pilot and commercial artist, was captured and imprisoned in Italy and moved to Stalag Luft III in Poland with other captured RAAF aviators. It was from here that he and 200 other men planned to escape. They dug elaborate tunnels and eventually succeeded in staging a mass breakout. German guards discovered the escape operation and recaptured 50 of the 76 allied prisoner escapees, including five Australians, who were all shot and killed on orders of Hitler. Fordyce was billeted to be the 86th escapee and was the last into the tunnel. He made it back through the tunnel and into the camp undetected after German guards discovered the escape and began to shoot into the tunnel. Fordyce produced a series of caricatures of his fellow prisoners of war in Stalag Luft III. Drawn with dignity and care, the caricatures include symbols related to each man's personality and story.
This drawing is a caricature of Flight Lieutenant Hugh Tannahill Lambie (service number 401517) in uniform with a scarf around his neck, holding a piece of smouldering toast on a plate. The caricature
This drawing is a caricature of Flight Lieutenant Leslie John Lawler (service number 419318), a textile operator from Carlton, Victoria who enlisted on the 18th of July 1942 at age 27 and embarked Bri
This drawing is a caricature of Flight Lieutenant Leslie John Lawler (service number 419318), a textile operator from Carlton, Victoria who enlisted on the 18th of July 1942 at age 27 and embarked Bri
The artist of this drawing was Bill Fordyce, a survivor from 'The Great Escape', a mass escape of World War II allied prisoners made famous by the movie starring Steve McQueen. Fordyce, a pilot and co
The artist of this drawing was Bill Fordyce, a survivor from 'The Great Escape', a mass escape of World War II allied prisoners made famous by the movie starring Steve McQueen. Fordyce, a pilot and
This drawing is a caricature of Flight Lieutenant Leslie John Lawler (service number 419318), a textile operator from Carlton, Victoria who enlisted on the 18th of July 1942 at age 27 and embarked Bri
This drawing is a caricature of Flight Lieutenant Hugh Tannahill Lambie (service number 401517) in uniform with a scarf around his neck, holding a piece of smouldering toast on a plate. The caricature
Collection relating to the Second World War service of 400396 Flight Lieutenant Horace Spencer Wills 'Bill' Fordyce, 458 Squadron, Royal Australian Air Force, Germany, 1944. Wallet 1 of 1 – Consists
Studio portrait of 400396 Flight Lieutenant Horace Spencer Wills Fordyce. A salesman and clerk from Black Rock, Victoria, Fordyce enlisted in the 53rd Anti-Aircraft Searchlight Company, Royal Australi