AIR FORCE CASUALTIES.

Manawatu Standard, Volume LX, Issue 257, 27 September 1940, Page 6

AIR FORCE CASUALTIES.

WOUNDED AND MISSING

Per Press Association. WELLINGTON, Sept. 27. The following Air Force casualties were announced to-day : PILOT-OFFICER JOHN GORDON

PATTISON, seriously wounded in air operations, admitted to hospital and placed on dangerously ill list. His father is Mr G. Pattison, of Waipawa. SERGEANT LINDSAY DOUGLAS ANDERSON, missing in air operations. His mother is Mrs S. M. McLean, of Wellington.

AUCKLAND PILOT MISSING

Per Press Association

AUCKLAND, Sept. 26. A New Zealand airman, Pilot-Officer Winton Selwood Shann has been reported missing as a result of operations on Wednesday, according to advice r«eceiv ed by his sister, Mrs D. McMillan, of Mission Bay. Born in Christchurch 22 years ago, Pilot-Officer Shann is a son of Mrs N. Cooper, of Belfast, Christchurch. He was educated at the Christchurch Hoys’ High School, where he was a prelect and had an outstanding record, particularly as a swimmer.

DOMINION FLIERS’ RECORD

The gallant sacrifices which Dominion airmen are making in the cause of the Empire and its Allies are revealed in casualty lists compiled since the beginning of the war. Similarly, a growing list of decorations awarded to New Zealand pilots and air crews reflects the courage and determination with which they are carrying out their tasks. In just over a year of fighting more than 150 Dominion airmen, mostly pilots, have been reported killed, missing, or missing and believed killed. While a few lost their lives in aircraft accidents, the majority failed to return from operations against the enemy. At least 10 New Zealanders are reported to be prisoners of war or internees in neutral countries, and it is likely that some among those miss ing may he held in German prisons. About 20 officers and men have been seriously injured. Dominion airmen have won a full share of the awards granted for bravery and courage during operations. TiltDistinguished Flying Cross has been awarded to 29 officers, including one with bar. One officer has received the Distinguished Service Order and another the Croix de Guerre. Pilots other than commissioned officers have won three Distinguished Flying Medals, and three Air Force Crosses have been awarded. Several of the airmen decorated have since become casualties.