Australian Victoria Cross Recipient
Acting Wing Commander Hughie Idwal Edwards
Unit
No. 105 Squadron RAF
Born
1 August 1914 at Fremantle, Western Australia
Date of action
4 July 1941
Place
Raid on Bremen, Germany
Details
Fying Blenheim V6028, Edwards led an important daylight attack on the port of Bremen, one of the most heavily defended towns in Germany. During the approach to the German coast several enemy ships were passed. Edwards knew that his aircraft would be reported and that the Bremen defences would be in a state of readiness. Undaunted, he brought his force of twelve Blenheims eighty kilometres overland at an extremely low level of about fifteen metres, towards the target. When his aircraft reached Bremen they were met with a hail of fire. All were hit, four of them being destroyed. After a successful attack which involved flying under high-tension cables and passing through a balloon barrage, Edwards extricated the surviving aircraft without further loss.
Died
5 August 1982
Buried or Commemorated
Karrakatta Cemetery Perth, after a State Funeral, having served as Governor of Western Australia in 1974-1975
Current location of the VC
Australian War Memorial