227340 Sgt. John Edmund Gray Royal Australian Air Force 462 Squadron (d.17th April 1945)  In memory of Sgt J.E. Gray. On the 16th of April 1945 he took his place in MZ467 (Z5-C), a Halifax with 462 Sqn RAAF as a replacement Flight Engineer, the regular crew member being unwell. At around midnight, the pilot, F.O. Allan Lodder, eased the very heavily loaded aircraft into the air, joining 5 other 462 Sqn aircraft for the long trip to the Augsburg area of south western Germany. The raid was a 'spoof' or ABC jamming exercise and by 0330 they were approaching the target region. At 0340, MZ467 was intercepted by one of the few remaining fighter aces of the Luftwaffe, Oberfeldwebel Ludwig Schmidt flying a Ju88G-6. Firing over 200 rounds of machine gun and cannon shells, Schmidt attacked twice from behind. MZ467 caught fire and crashed very quickly. Five of the crew were killed:
Sgt Gray, FO. Foster, Sgt McGarvie,F/Sgt Windus and F/Sgt Tisdell. The pilot FO Lodder,Sgt Naylor and Sgt Casterton survived.
Those killed including Sgt Gray are interred at the Durnbach War Cemetery.
Sgt J.E.A Gray was 20 years old.
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