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The remains of two Australian crewmen from a crashed WWII Beaufort bomber have been laid to rest in Port Moresby.
Warrant Officer Russell Grigg (navigator) and Warrant Officer Clement Wiggins (pilot), who died when their aircraft Beaufort A9-186 went down off the coast of Papua New Guinea in September 1943, were interred last month at Bomana War Cemetery.
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The two men are the first WWII RAAF aviators to have been identified using their DNA, and their remains were flown to Port Moresby on board a Hercules following a ramp ceremony in Australia.
“We thank God for the lives of Russell Grigg and Clement Wiggins, and mourn and honour them,” said Air Force chaplain Squadron Leader La’Mont Ferreira at the committal ceremony.
“We support with our love and prayers those who for many years have been burdened with sadness and uncertainty because they did not know where their loved ones lay.”
Dr Roger Grigg, grandson of Russell Grigg, said after the ceremony that his family appreciated being able to farewell his grandfather.
“It is fitting to bury my grandfather in this peaceful location, at rest with so many other Australians who never came home,” Dr Grigg said.
“My family is grateful to the Air Force for giving us the opportunity to say goodbye.”
The remains of Warrant Officers Grigg and Wiggins were identified two years ago after divers from Ocean Ecology located the site in 2020 under 43 metres of water, having been contracted by Dr Andrew Forrest to locate his uncle who was lost in a similar Beaufort.
The team returned to the crash site in February 2022 accompanied by members of the RAAF Directorate of Historical Unrecovered War Casualties.
Despite support from anthropologists and DNA specialists, Chief of Air Force, Air Marshal Robert Chipman announced at the time that the remains of Flight Sergeant Albert Beckett and Flight Sergeant Gordon Hamilton could not be located.
“The aircraft identity plate and cockpit lever were recovered from the site and will be returned to Australia under a permit granted by the PNG National Museum and Art Gallery (NMAG),” Air Marshal Chipman said.
