Gavin Matthew Goldfinch was born in 1919, son of Percy John and Jean Harriet Goldfinch, of Auckland City, New Zealand.

Not much is known about him. He joined the Royal New Zealand Air Force and was sent to Europe at the beginning of World War II. He was a second pilot on a Wellington with 37 squadron.

In 1941, 37 squadron found itself in North Africa, fighting Hitler's Afrika Korps.

37 squadron was stationed at Shallufa, Egypt with detachments at an air base named LG 09, which was at Bir Koralyim.

    37 Squadron

On 25 November 1941, 37 squadron was tasked to bomb Benghazi, Libya. F/L Guthrie was to pilot the plane, with W/O Goldfinch as his second pilot. At this time the remaining three crew members are not known. They took off in Wellington IC Z8798/L at 18.15 from LG 09. Around 21.30 an SOS was received but after that nothing was heard. Later it appeared that the Wellington had been shot down and crash landed 50 miles from Benghazi. All five crew had been taken prisoner. The men were taken to Germany were they spent the rest of the war in PoW camps.

W/O Goldfinch was liberated from his camp in early April 1945 by American forces but on the 12th he was admitted to U.S. 308th Clearing Station, due to an illness he had contracted while a PoW. He died the next day and was initially buried at Margraten American Military Cemetery. He was later reinterred at Nederweert War Cemetery.

W/O Gavin Goldfinch is buried in Nederweert War Cemetery in grave IV. D. 7.  19.

Nederweert, The Netherlands

Sources:
Errol W. Martyn, For Your Tomorrow, Volume I, Christchurch: Volplane Press 1999

Acknowledgements:
RAF Squadron crest © Crown Copyright is reproduced with the permission of the Controller of Her Majesty’s Stationery Office

Directions to Nederweert War Cemetery

Updated 12 February 2007

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This website is dedicated to the men and women who died and/or are buried in The Netherlands during World War II.

 

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