Francis, Max Gordon Died

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Personal Information

Rank F/S
Forename(s) Max Gordon
Surname Francis
Gender M
Age 20
Date of Death 21-04-1944
Next of Kin Son of Kenneth Pearce Francis and Amelia Bertram Francis, of Waikerie, South Australia.
FRANCIS MG

Aircraft Information

Aircraft Avro Lancaster III
Serial Number ND732
Markings PO-Y Y-Yolk

Memorial Information

Burial/Memorial Country France
Burial/Memorial Place Clichy Northern Cemetery
Grave Reference Plot 16. Row 14. Grave 7.
Epitaph HE GAVE HIS ALL

IBCC Memorial Information

Map
Directions to panel 37
FRANCIS MG

Location

Row -
Panel 37
Column -
Line -

Directions From the Chadwick Centre, take the central path towards The Spire.

Phase 1
Panel Number 37

Enlistment Information

Service Number 417356
Service Royal Australian Air Force
Group 5
Squadron 467 (Australian)
Trade Air Gunner
Country of Origin Australia

Other Memorials

Location Rue Racine, Le Blanc-Mesnil, 93 - Siene-Saint-Denis Prefecture
Country France
Memorial Type Memorial stone and inscribed stone plaque
Memorial Text Hommage de Blanc Mesnil et de ses habitants aux 7 aviateurs Australiens tombes en cet endroit le 20 Avril 1944 morts pour la France
Translation "Tribute from Blanc Mesnil and its inhabitants to the 7 Australian airmen who fell here on April 20, 1944, who died for France."
Location St. Mary the Virgin Church, Bottesford, Leicestershire
Country United Kingdom
Memorial Type RoH in wooden cabinet
Memorial Text Roll of Honour remembering all 467 (RAAF) Sqn personnel who failed to return from Ops at RAF Bottesford
Location SHQ, RAF Waddington, Lincolnshire
Country United Kingdom
Memorial Type External Clock & Internal inscribed Brass Plaque
Memorial Text A commemorative clock in memory of the members of 463 and 467 Sqns RAAF who served at RAF Waddington during WW2
Location Memorial Gardens, RAF Waddington, Lincolnshire
Country United Kingdom
Memorial Type Propeller & Inscribed Metal Plaques
Memorial Text A memorial to the members of 463 and 467 Sqns RAAF who served at RAF Waddington during WW2
Location Bar Lane, Waddington, Lincolnshire
Country United Kingdom
Memorial Type Clock and inscribed Wooden Plaque
Memorial Text A memorial clock to the members of 463 and 467 Sqns RAAF who served with Bomber Command during WW2
Location In front of the mess esplanade, Mailly-le-Camp, 10 - Aube Prefecture
Country France
Memorial Type Stone memorial sculpture, inscribed marble tablets and inscribed metal plaque
Memorial Text En souvenir des heros de la RAF. Qui ont participe au bombardment du camp de Mailly. Unites de la RAF engagees dans le raid sur Mailly-le-Camp, la nuit du 3 au 4 May 1944. N° 9-12-44-49-50-57 61-83-97-100-101 Special Duties Flight-103-105-106-166- 169-192-207-460 (RAAF)-463 (RAAF)-467 (RAAF)-550-576-617- 619-625-626-627-650
Translation "In memory of the RAF heroes who took part in the bombing of Mailly Camp. RAF units engaged in the raid on Mailly-le-Camp, the night of 3-4 May 1944. Squadrons that took part: N° 9-12-44-49-50-57 61-83-97-100-101 Special Duties Flight-103-105-106-166- 169-192-207-460 (RAAF)-463 (RAAF)-467 (RAAF)-550-576-617-619-625-626-627-650"
Location Lincoln County Hospital Chapel, Lincoln, Lincolnshire
Country United Kingdom
Memorial Type Inscribed Metal Plaque
Memorial Text In memory of Officers, NCO's & Other Ranks of 5 (Bomber) Group RAF who gave their lives Sept 1939 - May 1945

Miscellaneous Information

Francis was born 20 August 1923 in Waikerie, South Australia. His father Kenneth served in WW1 with the 43rd Battalion and was wounded (shot in the hand) at Messines on 1 July 1917.
In 1940 Max commenced gliding training, joining the Gliding Club at Waikerie. He enlisted and attested on 25 April 1942, completing his initial training in S.A. before completing training interstate and being posted to Europe and joining Bomber Command.
On the day Max was killed, his cousin Jenny (now Jenny Watson) was born back in Australia, making the date bitter sweet for the family, one of both mourning and celebration.
The people in the area where the plane crashed have not forgotten the sacrifice of Max and his crewmates. They believe the plane turned at the last moment to avoid nearby houses crashing at the end of a street.

The National Archives

Record of Events (Operational Record Book) AIR 27/1931/8
Summary of Events (Operational Record Book) AIR 27/1931/8

Fellow Servicemen

Please note that this list gives all the losses aboard the quoted aircraft and occasionally these may have occurred on an earlier date when the aircraft was not itself lost. Please check the dates of death carefully.

Name Outcome
Brown J E (F/S) Died
Cameron J W K (F/O) Died
Cutmore M H (F/S) Died
Emery S G (F/S) Died
Feeney K G (P/O) Died
Lundy R (Sgt) Died

Last Operation Information

Start Date 20-04-1944
End Date 21-04-1944
Takeoff Station Waddington
Day/Night Raid Night (5% moon)
Operation La Chapelle- to bomb railway yards
Reason for Aircraft Loss Hit by flak during an attack on rail yards and crashed close to Parish Le Bouget airport
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Casualty Pack

IBCC is delighted to introduce a unique facility to link the Losses Database to the relevant RAF Casualty Pack on the National Archives website. This project is the result of on-going collaboration between IBCC, the MOD Records Office and National Archives, Kew. This document describes what Casualty Packs are, when they were created, the process of making them available to the public and then goes on to describe the process by which you can view the contents of the packs. Casualty Packs (CPs) were created by the RAF whenever there was serious injury or loss of life associated with operational activity within the RAF. This includes operational flying losses, enemy action due to air raids, road accidents either on station or even off-station if they involved RAF vehicles. Deaths due to natural causes in service or accidents that did not involve RAF vehicles did not generally give rise to a CP.

CPs were originally given a unique reference number by the RAF. Each begins with the letter ‘P’ and is followed by six digits, then an oblique (forward slash) and the finally the year in which the incident took place- for example P396154/42.

The CPs are in the process of being made available to the general public as they are passed from the MOD Records Office, Portsmouth to National Archives, Kew. This process requires some rework to the files which is very time consuming, so the process of making them all available to National Archives will take several years. They are being made available in increasing date order.

Once CPs arrive at National Archives they are assigned a unique AIR81 number, so each CP has both a P-number and an AIR81 number. Both are searchable on the National Archives website under ‘Search the catalogue’ and both are included on the IBCC website.

The AIR81 reference on the IBCC website is a link to the file on the National Archives website. When you click on it, the relevant page will open in a new tab on your browser.

There is currently no plan to digitise AIR81 files, partly because they are fragile and partly because the information they contain can at times be sensitive, even harrowing, since they may contain exhumation reports and even photographs of corpses. Family members wishing to read the AIR81 files relating to their ancestors are advised to exercise caution and be guided by National Archives warnings where appropriate.

There are two means for accessing AIR81 files- to attend in person or to order a copy by post.

To attend in person, the attendee should first create a Reader’s Ticket. This can be done online by following this link: https://secure.nationalarchives.gov.uk/login/yourdetails. Then click on the AIR81 reference on the IBCC website and click Order in Advance. Enter your Reader’s Ticket number and state the date on which you intend to visit. National Archives will have the file ready for you when you arrive, saving you time. When you visit Kew, you must quote the Reader’s Ticket number and take along two forms of ID- one bearing your signature and one bearing your address. When you view the files, you are permitted to take photographs of each page, should you wish.

Alternatively, if you wish to order a copy by post, please be aware that there is a charge for this service based on the number of pages in the file. Click on the AIR81 reference on the IBCC website and then click Request a Copy. There is an £8.40 charge for National Archives staff to access the file and give you a quotation for the copying service. The process takes around 24 days to complete and can be expensive.

IBCC wishes to thank the staff at the MOD Records Office and National Archives for their engagement and assistance in making this facility available to our website users.