Branch of Service

Air Force

Conflict

World War II (1939-1945)

Date of Enlistment

06/05/1940

Date of Discharge

24/09/1945

Place of Enlistment

Sydney NSW

Gender

Male

Other Name(s)

Nicknamed 'Nobby'

Date of Birth

02/11/1914

Place of Birth

Canberra ACT

Address (at enlistment)

Weethalle NSW

Occupation

Farmer

Next of Kin

Mary Blundell (wife), Weethalle NSW

Service Number

15069

Final Rank

Sergeant

Final Unit

2 Personnel Unit

Mentioned in Despatches (Commonwealth of Australia Gazette: 22 June 1944, Page 1253, position 48)

Blundell was born in Blundell's Cottage in Canberra in 1914. Although a qualified mechanic he was also a wheat farmer at Weethalle (near West Wylaong) in New South Wales when he was called up in January 1940. His preliminary training was at Richmond near Sydney and then Ascot Vale in Melbourne as a Fitter 2E after which he travelled to the UK and joined 456 RAAF Nightfighter Squadron on the Isle of Anglesey in Wales. In September 1942 he was remustered as a Flight Sergeant but a plane crash rendered him unfit for operational duties and he returned to 456 Squadron. In early 1943 he joined 617 Squadron for special duties. 617 Squadron were the Dam Busters and Nobby flew with the Lancasters during test drops of their bombs. On the night of 16/17 May 1943 617 Squadron attacked the Mohne and Eder dams causing considerable damage in Germany's industrial centres in the Ruhr valley. Nobby Blundell's role was to redesign the undercarriage of the Lancaster so it was able to carry the drum type bombs.

In November 1943 he was posted to 463 Squadron which was based at Waddington in England as a Sergeant Engine Fitter. He was Mentioned in Despatches for his work during the D-Day operations in June 1944 and in October 1944 Blundell was sent to Russia to service Lancaster bombers attempting to sink the German raider, Tirpitz.

After the war he ran a motor engineering business in Sydney until he retired in 1974 to live in Dubbo. He self-published five books on 467 and 463 Squadrons and was awarded a Medal in the Order of Australia (OAM) in 1995 for services to war veterans. He later moved to Cairns but died in Hervey Bay, Queensland on 13 September 2003.

Harold M. Blundell, 'They Flew From Waddington!: 463-467 Lancaster Squadrons RAAF'
WWII Nominal Roll http://www.ww2roll.gov.au
AWM Honours & Awards
AWM Collections Record : PR87/094
www.467463raafsquadrons.com (including image)
http://www.itsanhonour.gov.au/honours
Information and image provided by Mrs. Vera Strickland (sister)
David B. Blundell, 'An Airman's Tale: My Brother Nobby', Reveille (RSL NSW)
Stories from the ACT Memorial, 'The Dam Buster of Blundell's Cottage', ACT Heritage Library www.library.act.gov.au/find/history/stories_from_the_act_memorial
Ryerson Index http://ryersonindex.net/search.php