NZ392012 Flight Sergeant Robert Hugh McFarquhar Buchanan 1917-9/6/1945

Robert Buchanan was a Flight Sergeant in No. 1 Squadron, RNZAF, flying Lockheed Ventura bombers out of Guadalcanal in 1945.

The Ventura in which Robert was crew took off on a leaflet raid on June 9th.  The plane was shot down, crashing into a mountain on the island of New Ireland.  The missing plane and crew were found by an allied team in September or October, 1945, being led to the site by Japanese POWs.  Japanese troops had found and buried the crew, each grave marked by a wooden marker with Japanese writing and painted flowers.  The wreck was still findable in 1992. 

Robert and the rest of the crew were buried in Bourail War Cemetery in New Caledonia.

Waimate Cemetery.