On 25th August 1940 this unidentified 73 Squadron aircraft collided with a fuel bowser while taxiing at Church Fenton airfield but the identity of the aircraft is not yet known other than the squadron records list the aircraft as "-D". This is one of many incidents where more is known of the pilot than his minor mishap
in Yorkshire and his fate deserves more than the mention that this website can give.
Pilot - P/O Aubrey McFadden RAF (42510), of Ashford, Kent.
Aubrey McFadden attended Ashford Grammar School from 1929 to 1933. The pilot was granted a short service commission as Acting P/O on probation on 19th August 1939
and was confirmed in the rank of P/O a year later. After his time with 54 OTU he was posted to 73 Squadron for the final stages of the Battle of Britain. He rose through
the ranks and was posted to 258 Squadron, probably at Leconfield at the time. In November 1940 they were posted
to Drem and then the 22 pilots were then posted to the Far East. After a number of withdrawals and with many of their numbers
wiped out they found themselves at Ratmalana and Columbo in (what was then) Ceylon. As F/Lt he was posted as missing on
5th April 1942. How he met his death is not really confirmed. On that date a huge number of carrier-based Japanese aircraft
attacked the island of Ceylon and a number of 258 Squadron crewed aircraft got into the air but were out-numbered and it
seems possible that his aircraft was shot down off the island by one of these enemy aircraft or he was taken PoW by the Japanese.
The Japanese illtreatment of PoW's is well documented and it is possible that sadly he was one of many thousand who died in
captivity due to mistreatment and his burial location not recorded/not given a Christian burial.
He may also equally have met his end on one of a number of ships carrying 258 Squadron personnel which were sunk heading for Australia. 258 Squadron is very hard to
research as all personnel appear to have virtually been wiped out by the invading Japanese, of the twenty two pilots leaving Drem only seven pilots survived the Japanese.
McFadden was twenty four years old and is commemorated on the Singapore Memorial. He is also commemorated on a memorial at Ashford Grammer School.
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