"Rex" Reginald Zebulun GREEN
Born 7 April 1923 in Katanning, Western Australia [16]
Son of "Zeb" Zebulun GREEN and "Lena" Helena Mena SWEETMAN [17] [66]
Resided with his parents in Carnamah [19]
Attended the Carnamah Children's Fancy Dress Ball as a "Clown" on Saturday 15 October 1927 [9: 21-Oct-1927]
Won a 1st prize for a Crayon Drawing and a 2nd for Boys Handwork at the Carnamah Agricultural Show in 1930 [4: 27-Sep-1930]
At the Carnamah Agricultural Show on 14 September 1930 won a 1st prize in the Educational section for Writing [5: 22-Sep-1933]
Student at the Carnamah State School 1931-1935 [7: page 87] [97]
Won 1st prizes for Handwork and a Crayon Drawing at the Carnamah Agricultural Show on 12 September 1935 [5: 20-Sep-1935]
Resided in the Perth suburb of South Guildford prior to enlisting in the Australian Army on 18 July 1944 [16]
Bombardier WX41628 in the Australian Army's 2/3 Splash Spotting Battery during the Second World War [16] [17]
He was one of 22 servicemen suffering from skin complaints that were to be evacuated back to Australia [39: 28-Dec-1945] [81: 13-Jan-1946]
Along with a medical orderly and a crew of four they left Ambon Island in Indonesia at 2.45 a.m. on 19 December 1945 [39]
They flew out on a Dakota model Royal Australian Air Force aeroplane with call-sign C.I.Z. [39]
The aeroplane was believed to have entered into a series of electrical storms that culminated in a typhoon [39]
An attempt was made by the plane to radio to Darwin at 3.45 a.m. but it went off the air before leaving a message [39]
Nothing else was heard until 8.40 a.m. when a navy signals broadcast in Darwin was interrupted by "Alive, I am all alive" [39]
The Royal Australian Air Force in Darwin kept listening on the same frequency and at 12.45 the next day picked up a signal [39]
It was reported to have been a "cryptic signal" but included the plane's call sign C.I.Z. and a continuous note for a few seconds [39]
No further contact was received but the bearing of the signal was used to target a search around a group of islands [39]
The search was later widened to 400 square miles taking in islands near Darwin, part of Timor and islands around Ambon [39]
Within a week the organised search had been called off but planes passing the vicinity kept watch for any signs [293: 28-Dec-1945]
At that time it was believed himself and the others were all alive and somewhere on an island or atoll in the Banda Sea [293]
The grave fear was that they could be without food and it was hoped they would find native people who could feed them [293]
A few days later the search resumed after a Darwin civilian picked up a signal that may have come from the plane [293: 31-Dec-1945]
It became public knowledge almost two weeks into January 1946 that he was one of the evacuees on the missing plane [81: 13-Jan-1946]
Officially he was presumed to have died on 19 December 1945 at sea between Ambon, Indonesia and Darwin, Australia [17] [18]
Memorialised on the Ambon Memorial at the Ambon War Cemetery on Ambon Island, Indonesia [17]
| Reference: Carnamah Historical Society & Museum and North Midlands Project, 'Reginald Zebulun Green' in Biographical Dictionary of Coorow, Carnamah and Three Springs, retrieved 8 November 2024 from www.carnamah.com.au/bio/reginald-zebulun-green [reference list] |
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