Vale Neil Macdonald

Members of the Kenmore-Moggill RSL sub-branch are respectfully requested to attend the funeral of our late member, Neil Macdonald, to be held at the Uniting Church Chapel Hill, corner Chapel Hill and Moggill Roads, Chapel Hill on Tuesday 24 July commencing at 2.00pm, by request of the President.

Neil passed away suddenly on Wednesday 18th July, at RBH following a massive heart attack at Fairview, our thoughts and prayers are with Neil’s widow, Dorothy.  A funeral service has been arranged for 2.00pm Tuesday 24 July, at the Uniting Church, Chapel Hill,( cnr Chapel Hill Rd and Moggill Rd).

Neil was a strong and active supporter of the Sub-Branch, and only last Monday was discussing the possibility of another visit to The Intelligence Centre museum at Canungra, with which, as a result of a long association with The Intelligence Corps, Neil had maintained a close interest.

 

Neil, an Hon Captain served in the Australian Intelligence Corps during the war, operating in New Guinea and the Islands to the North.  Trained in Air Photo Analysis, the role of Air Photo Imagery Units was to interpret photographs taken by aircraft and pass on that information to Allied commanders planning operations in the area.

In Port Moresby, images from Japanese positions in occupied New Guinea, New Britainincluding Rabaul and New Ireland were identified with particularly important areas in Wewak and Boram which were used as main Japanese bases along with Salamaua and Lae.

Today’s battlefield images are beamed into our lounge rooms via satellite, back then conditions were remarkably different.  “Air photos were often damp, tables were made of drums and planks and lighting was by hurricane lamp making interpretation extremely difficult.”  “In spite of the conditions, the information was invaluable to both forward operating troops and the air force targeting enemy bases at dawn the following morning.”

The hardships endured by troops in the tropics was very real for Neil who had severe attacks of Dengue fever.  While recovering in the Advanced Medical Station at Wareo, some of the patients there were not as fortunate, failing to recover and it is the sacrifice of all these gallant men to whom we are indebted.

“Lest We Forget”