Flight Sergeant W. H. Boon
252 Sqn. Royal Air Force Volunteer Reserve
1192418
Killed in action, 9 February 1944, Greece.
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Walter Boon trained in Canada before serving with Coastal command. He joined 252 Squadron, RAF on 26 September 1943. The squadron mostly flew anti-shipping sorties over Greece and Crete from its base at Mersa Matruh in Egypt and was equipped with two man Bristol Beaufighter Mark X heavy fighters.
On 9 February 1944 Walter Boon was navigator of a Beaufighter on a mission over the Greek island of Kalymnos, north of Kos. His pilot that day was 23 year old Flt. Sgt. Fred Squires from Middlesex. Their plane was shot down by a German Me-109, one of three Beaufighters lost on the four plane mission. Neither Walter or Fred’s bodies were ever recovered.
Bristol Beaufighter of 252 Squadron
Walter Boon has no known grave and is remembered on the Alamein Memorial, Egypt (column 279) and on the Woking County Grammar School roll of honour located in Christ Church, Woking.
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Last updated 10 January 2013
Sources
Commonwealth War Graves Commission
Paul Boon personal research.
Paul Boon personal research.
Many thanks to Walter's nephew, Paul Boon who provided a lot of further information to allow Walter's post to be updated.
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