Onslow Waldo Thompson
Born 10 Nov 1916 - Died 1 May 1943
- Service number
- NZ401791 AWMM
- WWII 401791 AWMM
- Also known as
- —
- Armed force / branch
- Air Force AWMM
- Last rank
- Flying Officer/Military AWMM Royal Air Force, No. 105 Squadron AWMM
- War
- World War II, 1939-1945 AWMM
About
- Title
- —
- Forenames
- Onslow Waldo AWMM
- Surname
- Thompson AWMM
- Ingoa
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- Also known as
- —
- Service number
- NZ401791 AWMM
- WWII 401791 AWMM
- Gender
- Male AWMM
- Iwi / Hapū / Waka / Rohe
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- Religion
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Images
Documents
About birth
- Birth
- 10 Nov 1916 AWMM
- Date of birth
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- Place of birth
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- Birth notes
- Son of Waldo Samuel and Ethel Annie Thompson, of Waipiro BayPublic - Lorraine M - Researcher - 6 January 2016 - http://www.nzwargraves.org.nz/casualties/onslow-waldo-thompson
- Address before enlistment
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- Post war occupation
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- Next of kin
- Mrs Ethel Annie Thompson (mother), Box 1, Waipiro Bay, via Gisborne, New Zealand AWMM
- WW2 Wife: Mrs J. C. Kearns, 40 Caldecott Road, Denmark Hill, London S. E. 8, England (remarried) AWMM
- Relationship status
- Married/WWII AWMM
- Unknown AWMM Married AWMM
- husband of Joyce Thompson (nee' Williams), of Camberwell, London - married in 1943 in Hendon, Middlesex, EnglandPublic - Lorraine M - Researcher - 6 January 2016 - http://www.nzwargraves.org.nz/casualties/onslow-waldo-thompson & Free BMD uk
Wars and conflicts
- War
- World War II, 1939-1945 AWMM
- Campaign
- Europe (Air) AWMM
- Armed force / branch
- Air Force AWMM
- Service number
- NZ401791 AWMM
- WWII 401791 AWMM
- Military service
- —
- Promotions/ Postings/ Transfers
Military decorations
- Medals and Awards
Training and Enlistment
- Military training
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- Branch Trade Proficiency
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- Enlistment
- WW2 Jul 1940 AWMM
Age 24 AWMM
Clerk AWMM - Age on enlistment
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- Occupation before enlistment
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Embarkations
- Embarkation details
- WW2 Royal New Zealand Air Force AWMM
Prisoner of war
- Capture details
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- Days interned
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- Liberation date
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- POW liberation details
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- Liberation Repatriation
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- POW serial number
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Medical history
- Medical notes
- Killed in Action, Cause of Death AWMM
Killed on air operations AWMM
Last known rank
- Last rank
- Flying Officer/Military AWMM
Royal Air Force, No. 105 Squadron AWMM - Last rank
- —
Biographical information
- Onslow Thompson was the son of Waldo Samuel and Ethel Annie Thompson, of Waipiro Bay, New Zealand; husband of Joyce Thompson, of Camberwell, London.
NZ401791 Flying Officer Onslow Waldo Thompson, DFM, RNZAF. Born Auckland 10 November 1916. Educated Gisborne High School. Parents Waldo Samuel and Ethel Thompson of Waipiro Bay. Date of marriage 27 March 1943 to Joyce Williams of Camberwell, UK. 105 Squadron, Bomber Command, R.A.F. Marham, Norfolk. On 1 May 1943 shortly after take-off for a raid Flying Officer Thompson's aircraft suffered engine failure and crashed not far from the airfield at Marham. Both airmen died.Thompson buried Marham Cemetery, Norfolk ,England.
Attended Gisborne High School (Source: RNZAF Biographies (R17845616)) AWMM - MOSQUITO PILOTS - New Zealanders Praise Work
Of Latest Planes ADVENTURE AND ROMANCE N.Z.P.A. Special Correspondent Rec. 1 p.m. LONDON, March 28. After training together in the same course in New Zealand and operating together in the same Blenheim squadron in Malta and then being instructors on the same station, Flying-Officer O. W. Thompson, D.F.M., of Waipiro Bay, and Pilot-Officer L. T. Weston, of Christchurch, are now together again in the same squadron, flying Mosquitoes.
When Flying-Officer Thompson was married to Sergeant Joyce Williams, W.A.A.F., of London, yesterday, Pilot-Officer Weston was his best man. Also at the wedding was Miss Georgina Thompson, the bridegroom's cousin, who was a bridesmaid when Flying-Officer Thompson's father and mother were married in Auckland in 1915.
Flying-Officer Thompson has carried out 44 raids from Malta, where he spent four months from October to January last. He was awarded the D.F.M. in April, 1942, the citation stating that he successfully attacked, lorries on the Tripoli-Bengasi Road, also a railway siding at Soveranto. He also took part in an attack against a 10,000-ton merchant ship, resulting in its complete abandonment, and sank a 1000-ton merchant ship off Tripoli. Flying-Officer Thompson has now carried out six raids in Mosquitoes and Pilot-Officer Weston eight. They have bombed targets at Tours, Rennes, Le Mans, Hengelo, Lingen and Nantes. Pilot-Officer Weston was in two raids against Le Mans, where there is a branch of the Renault works. He was also in a raid against Nantes, when Mosquitoes flew some 1200 miles, bombing locomotive-works. Both these New Zealanders highly praise the Mosquitoes, which are nicknamed "Flying Furniture," as they are constructed largely of wood. They regard it as the most exciting work of the R.A.F., and state that it is the best type of precision bombing, and that the hits achieved are never below 75%
"Most of the attacks are carried out from a low level," said Flying- Officer Thompson, "and it is very difficult to pick up the target at a low height when flying at 213 miles an hour. Buildings look very much alike from that height and at that speed."Public - Lorraine M - Researcher - 6 January 2016 - Auckland Star, Volume LXXIV, Issue 74, 29 March 1943, Page 3
- Onslow Thompson was the son of Waldo Samuel and Ethel Annie Thompson, of Waipiro Bay, New Zealand; husband of Joyce Thompson, of Camberwell, London.
About death
- Death
- 1 May 1943 AWMM
Age 26 AWMM - Date of death
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- Age at death
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- Place of death
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- Cause of death
- Killed in Action AWMM
- Death notes
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- Cemetery
- Marham Cemetery, Norfolk, England AWMM Grave 39 AWMM
- Cemetery name
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- Grave reference
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- Obituary
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- Memorial name
- Tokomaru Bay War Memorial
Tokomaru bay Memorial Gates
Gisborne's War MemorialPublic - Lorraine M - Researcher - 6 January 2016 - Research - Memorial reference
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Memorial
- Memorial name
- Auckland War Memorial Museum, World War 2 Hall of Memories AWMM
Related objects
Sources
- External links
- RNZAF [Royal New Zealand Air Force] Biographies of Deceased Personnel 1939 - 1945 (Bound Volumes) - Ea - Gw. ARchives New Zealand (R17845610)
https://collections.archives.govt.nz/web/arena/search/#/entity/aims-archive/R17845616
Sources Used - Commonwealth War Graves Commission record
https://www.cwgc.org/find-records/find-war-dead/casualty-details/2764055
Sources Used - List of RNZAF [Royal New Zealand Air Force] Personnel - List of Personnel Killed or Missing in Various Theatres, 1940 - 1945. Archives New Zealand (R17845748)
https://collections.archives.govt.nz/web/arena/search/#/entity/aims-archive/R17845748
Sources Used - Air casualties. Evening Post, Volume CXXXV, Issue 108, 8 May 1943, Page 6
http://paperspast.natlib.govt.nz/cgi-bin/paperspast?a=d&cl=search&d=EP19430508.2.77&srpos
Further Reference - Aviation Safety Network:
https://aviation-safety.net/wikibase/20176Public - Antonio - Researcher - 16 July 2026 - Internet research - Details of accident:
https://aircrewremembered.com/thompson-onslow-waldo.htmlPublic - Kelvin - Researcher - 4 April 2024 - https://aircrewremembered.com/thompson-onslow-waldo.html
- RNZAF [Royal New Zealand Air Force] Biographies of Deceased Personnel 1939 - 1945 (Bound Volumes) - Ea - Gw. ARchives New Zealand (R17845610)
- References
- The Evening Post
- AWMM. Photographic Album: My War Years 30/1/1941-27 March 1943 compiled by O.W. Thompson.
- Martyn, E. (1998-2008). For Your Tomorrow (Vols. 1-3). Christchurch, N.Z.: Volplane Press.
- RNZAF [Royal New Zealand Air Force] Biographies of Deceased Personnel 1939 - 1945 (Bound Volumes) - Sm- Ty. Archives New Zealand (R17845616) - Former archives reference: AIR118
- Please note that the 11 volumes of the "RNZAF [Royal New Zealand Air Force] Biographies of Deceased Personnel 1939-1945" held at Archives NZ (formerly known as AIR118) should be used in conjunction with Errol Martyn's "For Your Tomorrow". FYT reflects detailed examination of all of the AIR118 bios which contain many inaccuracies and omissions.
- List of RNZAF [Royal New Zealand Air Force] Personnel - List of Personnel Killed or Missing in Various Theatres, 1940 - 1945. [List of Killed - Officers (Canada, Pacific, Europe) - Airmen (Canada, India and Far East)]. Archives New Zealand (R17845748)
- List of RNZAF [Royal New Zealand Air Force] Personnel - Embarkation Lists, November 1940 - July 1942. Archives New Zealand, Wellington (R17845762).
- Auckland Museum. Roll of Honour, Auckland Province, 1939 - 1945. Auckland War Memorial Museum Library. MS 93/139.
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