Sergeant Charles Richard Townsend
- Rank
- Sergeant
- Service number
- 406964
- Unit
- Royal Australian Air Force Attached 199 Squadron Royal Air Force
- Cause of death
- Killed in Action
- Place of death
- North Sea
- Date of death
- 13 March 1943
- Age
- 24
- Plaque number
- MC7
- Co-located plaques
- MC7A - PTE Alfred Witt
- Dedicated by
- Nephew and Nieces on 12 November 2022
- More information
Biography presented during plaque dedication:
Charles Richard Townsend was born at Maylands, Western Australia on 15 July 1918 to parents Charles George and Ellen Townsend (nee Wallace). He had two brothers and two sisters.
Charles attended Midland Junction Central and Perth Modern School. He completed his junior certificate in 1933 at University of Western Australia and undertook further education in telegraphy in 1938 with the Western Australian Railway Tramway Institute.
Charles conducted military service, joining the Western Command Signals attached to the wireless section while employed as a clerk with Western Australian Government Railways. His sporting interests were football, cricket, swimming and basketball.
Charles enlisted in the Royal Australian Air Force (RAAF) at Perth in May 1941 for aircrew. He conducted his initial training at Pearce and was then sent to Number 2 Air Observer’s School at Mount Gambier in South Australia. His training continued in Victoria, where in June 1942 he received his wings as a Navigator/Bomber.
Charles embarked for overseas service in June 1942 to England, where he was attached to Number 199 Squadron, Royal Air Force (RAF) in February 1943. The squadron operated twin engine Vickers Wellington bombers from RAF Blyton, Lincolnshire.
On the evening of 12-13 March 1943, Charles was a crew member of Wellington Bomber serial number HZ262, radio call sign EX-E and took off from Ingham for operations over the city of Essen, Germany. Nothing further was heard from the bomber after take-off, and it did not return to base.
It was later discovered that the bomber was hit by flak, crashing into the English Channel off the coast of Holland with the loss of all aircrew. The body of one crew member was later recovered on Dutch coast. Charles and three other crew members remain missing, presumed to have lost their lives at sea.
Sergeant Charles Richard Townsend, service number 406964 of RAAF, attached to Number 199 Squadron RAF was lost without trace on air operations on 13 March 1943 over the North Sea. He was 24 years of age.
Charles has no known grave and is commemorated on the Runnymede Memorial Surry, England and on the Western Australian State War Memorial. His roll of honour is in Bassendean.
His plaque is placed alongside that of a known relative, Sapper Alfred Witt of 1 Engineers Training Battalion.