John Gordon Eastman
Memorial: South Gloucestershire war dead not on a local memorial
Regiment: Royal Air Force Volunteer Reserve
Medals: 1939–45 Star, War Medal 1939–1945
Rank and number: Sergeant Navigator 1586348
Parents: John Edward and Ethel Eastman
Marital status: Single
Home address: Eweline, Longwell Green, Bristol
Pre-war occupation: Schoolboy
Date of birth: 23/09/1923
Place of birth: Bristol
Date of death: 28/04/1944
Buried/Commemorated at: Buried at Schoenau Churchyard, Bas-Rhin, France. Not commemorated on a local memorial
Age: 20
Further information:
John was born in Bristol, the son of a clerk at the Ministry of Labour and the eldest of two brothers. John attended Kingswood Grammar School and obtained his Bristol University First School Certificate in 1939.
John enlisted in the 15th Squadron, RAFVR in 1941 and was stationed at RAF Mildenhall. On the night of the 27th April 1944, John and his crew mates took off from Mildenhall aboard Lancaster ILL801 for a night bombing raid on Germany. The aircraft was shot down by a night-fighter and crashed at Schoenau (Bas-Rhin) a small village on the West bank of the Rhine, opposite the German community of Rheinhausen (Oberhausen). John was buried there in the Churchyard along with three other members of his crew.
By kind permission, this information is based on the following source(s):
This information has been provided by Sarah Hands, Volunteer Researcher for the South Gloucestershire War Memorials Web Site.
By kind permission, this information is based on the following source(s):
https://www.cwgc.org/
https://www.ancestry.co.uk/
https://www.findmypast.co.uk/
https://www.forces-war-records.co.uk/
http://www.rafcommands.com/database/wardead/details.php?qnum=13148