Ploughshares and Propellers

Kyt · Apr 26, 2009

Flying farmers' war stories told - Weekly Times Now

AS AUSTRALIANS prepare to commemorate Anzac Day on Saturday, The Weekly Times relives the landing at Gallipoli and meets the flying farmers of World War II.
Northern Victoria's flying wartime farmers' stories have finally been told.

On the eve of Anzac Day, the unforgettable tales of heroics and courage have been preserved forever in a new book.

From pilots to gunners, mechanics, engineers, navigators, wireless operators, drivers, clerks a bulldozer driver and a spy, Ploughshares and Propellers is the first collection of the extraordinary stories of 84 ordinary men and women who joined the air force last century.

What began as an idea for a small book called Five Flying Farmers, rapidly snowballed as word spread.

Compiler Bruce Anderson said he ended up with a list of 196 names, and 56 of the 84 war veterans featured in chapters in the book were farmers.

Among them are Roby Manuel, a captain who reportedly survived six skirmishes with German ace, the Red Baron, achieved fame as the first Victorian farmer to import a plane in 1920 and only stopped flying at the age of 78, two years before his death in 1975.

They also include Harvey and Nance Bawden - a warrant officer and aircraftwoman - parents of federal politician Dr Sharman Stone.

There are also very private men such as air ace Norman Williams, Australia's most decorated non-commissioned airman. Mr Williams' story reads like a Hollywood thriller.

Mr Williams, who became a squadron leader was awarded the Conspicuous Gallantry Medal and the Distinguished Flying Medal twice.

"The average life of tail gunners was less than 20 hours and he survived the whole bloody war," Mr Anderson said.

In one incident, despite his plane catching fire and suffering damage to its gun turret, a badly injured Mr Williams managed to shoot down two enemy fighters before his crew dumped their bombs and the plane dodged enemy flak to limp back to England where it crash landed.

Williams was cut out of the turret and spent months recovering in hospital.

The crew later presented him with the bomber's turret door, which contained 37 bullet holes.

Mr Williams quietly grew rice at Barham for more than 50 years after returning to the farm.

Several of the surviving veterans are still on the land: Lancaster bomber pilot and squadron leader Edgar Pickles has a rice farm at Barham and Kel Jeffery, who rose to the rank of flight lieutenant, raises beef cattle at Canary Island.

Mr Jeffery, now 85, has bred Murray Greys since 1969 on the family farm that was settled in 1877 by his grandfather.

Until Mr Anderson started the book, Mr Jeffery said he had never really talked about his wartime experiences.

"My family has learnt more from this than they ever knew," he said. "I've been an RSL member for 60 years and we don't discuss war things."

* The 560-page hardcover book is available from the Kerang and District RSL Sub-Branch for $83, plus $15 postage.

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Antipodean Andy · Apr 26, 2009

A bit beyond my budget at present but would be good to track down.

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Kyt Άρης

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