Biographies of Australian Veterans Conferred Legion of Honour 2004
Hamilton Connolly DFC
Buderim Pines, Queensland
RAAF 1940–1945
Hamilton Connolly enlisted in the RAAF in September 1940. After operational training on heavy bombers in Britain he completed his first operational tour in early 1943 in 78 Squadron RAF and was awarded the Distinguished Flying Cross (DFC) for skilful flying on this tour.
On D-Day, he was the Commanding Officer of 466 Squadron RAAF, which dispatched 13 Halifax bombers as part of an attack on an artillery battery at Maisy, which threatened the Utah and Omaha beaches where American troops were to land. The squadron’s aircraft experienced a number of near misses while helping to reduce heavy fire against American forces when they began landing.
After D-Day, he flew a further eight operations in support of Allied forces breaking out of the Normandy beachheads. He was awarded a Bar to the DFC in July 1944 for his part in an attack on a flying bomb site and was later also awarded the American DFC for extraordinary achievement in many attacks over heavily defended targets in Germany. He was discharged in 1945.
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