Flight Sergeant John Arnold Chappell
- Rank
- Flight Sergeant
- Service number
- 415118
- Unit
- Royal Australian Air Force Attached 102 Squadron Royal Air Force
- Cause of death
- Killed in Action
- Place of death
- Germany
- Date of death
- 31 August 1943
- Age
- 23
- Plaque number
- L120A
- Co-located plaques
- L120 - WOFF Guydon Ward
- Dedicated by
- His family on 5 December 1948
- More information
Flight Sergeant John Arnold Chappell 415118 (1919-1943, born Owen, South Australia) enlisted in the Royal Australian Air Force at Perth, Western Australia, on 21 July 1941 and was trained as a Pilot at Cunderdin Western Australia and Mallala, South Australia. He was sent to the United Kingdom under the Air Training Plan (ATP, known as the Empire Air Training Scheme (EATS) in Australia) and attached to the Royal Air Force (RAF) serving with No. 102 Squadron RAF in Bomber Command. On 31 August 1943 on a mission to bomb Monchengladbach, Germany, Lancaster aircraft JD128 crashed in the target area and all seven crew members were killed. He was the only RAAF member flying with four RAF members, Sergeant Geoffrey Lee 921759 of Ashow, Warwickshire, England, Flight Sergeant John James Jones 1319384, Sergeant John Savukevitch 1558937 of Glasgow, Scotland, and Sergeant Leonard George Smart 1324892 of Liphook, Hampshire, England, one Royal Canadian Air Force member, Flight Sergeant Donald Zander R/115850, and one Royal New Zealand Air Force member, Flying Officer Ernest Ian Smallfield 404116 of Kaihere, Auckland, New Zealand.
Flight Sergeant Chappell’s official memorial is a Special Memorial in the Rheinberg Cemetery, Germany, which shows the personal inscription “Oh! Summoning stars, I come; I lay aside my youth, Australia”. His Roll of Honour is Lake Grace, Western Australia.
His honour plaque in Kings Park was dedicated by his family on 5 December 1948. He is the son of Louis Stephen Chappell (1887-1958) and Ivy Winifred Chappell (nee Crambrook) (1893-1986) of Buckingham, Western Australia.
Flight Sergeant Chappell is remembered with honour.