Leigh Vial
Leigh Vial | |
|---|---|
 Flight Lieutenant Leigh Vial in 1942 | |
| Born | 28 February 1909 Camberwell, Victoria |
| Died | 30 April 1943 (aged 34) Benabena, Papua New Guinea |
| Buried | |
| Allegiance | Australia |
| Service | Royal Australian Air Force |
| Years of service | 1942–1943 |
| Rank | Flight Lieutenant |
| Service number | 253939 |
| Unit | Coastwatchers |
| Battles / wars | |
| Awards | Distinguished Service Cross (United States) |
Leigh Grant Vial (28 February 1909 – 30 April 1943) was an Australian patrol officer and coastwatcher in Papua New Guinea during the Second World War. His calm, clear voice earned him the nickname "Man With the Golden Voice".
When war broke out with Japan in late 1941 Vial was an Assistant District Officer stationed in Rabaul.[1]
While a patrol officer he became the first white person to climb Mount Wilhelm, the highest mountain in Papua New Guinea. Vial was killed in a plane crash in 1943, the year after he had been awarded the American Distinguished Service Cross for his "extraordinary heroism" in New Guinea.[2] He is buried in Lae War Cemetery.[3]
References
[edit]- ^ Piper, Bob (August 1993). "Lonely Vigil". Wings (Australia): 9–12.
- ^ Gammage, Bill (2002). "Vial, Leigh Grant (1909–1943)". Australian Dictionary of Biography. Vol. 16. Canberra: National Centre of Biography, Australian National University. ISBN 978-0-522-84459-7. ISSN 1833-7538. OCLC 70677943. Retrieved 23 July 2017.
- ^ "Vial, Leigh Grant". Casualty Details. Commonwealth War Graves Commission. Retrieved 23 July 2017.
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- 1909 births
- 1943 deaths
- Military personnel from Melbourne
- Australian explorers
- Australian military personnel killed in World War II
- Explorers of Papua New Guinea
- Papua New Guinea in World War II
- People from Camberwell, Victoria
- Recipients of the Distinguished Service Cross (United States)
- Royal Australian Air Force officers
- Royal Australian Air Force personnel of World War II
- Territory of Papua people
- Victims of aviation accidents or incidents in Papua New Guinea
- Victims of aviation accidents or incidents in 1943
- Burials at Lae War Cemetery
- Papua New Guinean people stubs