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Spitfire Association
Hugh on the wing of 'Mac111'

FLTLT · 437523

Hugh Daley Kennare

Squadron/s
79 SQN
Rank On Discharge/Death
Flight Lieutenant (FLTLT)
Mustering / Specialisation
Pilot
Date of Birth
19 Feb 1925
Date of Death
21 Oct 1999
Contributing Author/s
Original biography by Bill Schoon and Kinga Jurth

Updated by Vince Conant

February 2016

The Spitfire Association

Hugh was born on the 19/2/1925 in Semaphore South Australia. Hugh completed his secondary schooling at the Christian Brothers College in Adelaide in 1942 and joined the Royal Australian Air force in February 1943. His flying training culminated in his posting to the No. 2 Operational Training Unit at Mildura after which he joined the 79 RAAF Fighter Squadron in the Pacific. He remained with the 79 Squadron until the end of the war.

One of Hugh's comrades Bill Schoon said, "our fateful departure from Merauke and our encounter with intense clouds – Hugh did not break from his No. 1 until he realised they were inverted at VNE (470), he managed a recovery at minimum altitude, using the trim and adding a few degrees diehedral to his MkVIII!

Hugh passed away on the 21st of October 1999, aged 74

Squadron in which Hugh served

Photographs

Los Negros, Admiralty Islands, New Guinea. 28 May 1944. Pilots of No. 79 Squadron RAAF, No. 73 Wing, with one of their Vickers Supermarine Spitfire Mk Vc aircraft on Momote airfield. Back row, left to right: 401741 Pilot Officer (PO) R. Hugh (Ross) Cameron (KIA Celebes 27 March 1945); Flying Officer (FO) A. (Arch) Moore; 437476 FO R. Vernon (Ross) Day (Killed Merauke Dutch New Guinea 28 April 1945); Warrant Officer (WO) J. (Jock) Haines; 400735 FO L. S. (Len) Reid DFC; 418232 Flight Sergeant (Flt Sgt) G. A. (Alec) Chomley; 405026 FO P. E. (Paul) Sebire; 411809 Flight Lieutenant (Flt Lt) W. A. (Warren) Napier; 418071 FO W. J. (Bill) Coffey); 401000 FO D. (Doug) Scott. Middle Row: PO J. (John) Vader; FO J. (Joe) Marshall; FO R. (Dick) Long, Acting Flight Commander; 251414 Flt Lt J. W. L. (John) Atkinson, Medical Officer (also known as Leigh); 407778 Flt Lt R. M. (Max) Brinsley DFC, Acting CO; 402270 FO W. H. (Bill) Wright, Flight Commander; 403392 Flt Lt A. S. (Alan) Yates; FO A. (Arthur) Clayton. Front row: Sgt V. (Viv) Pollard; 437523 PO H. D. (Hugh) Kennare; 403681 FO I. E. B. (Ian) McKellar; 408951 FO J. (Jim) Barrie; Flt Lt T. (Tom) Williams. No. 79 Squadron RAAF pilots at that date, but not in this photograph: 412215 WO Phillip F. (Lew) Turner (in hospital); 411741 Flt Sgt A. E. (Andy) Byrne (in sick quarters); FO (Snow) Waldron (in sick quarters).
Los Negros, Admiralty Islands, New Guinea. 28 May 1944. Pilots of No. 79 Squadron RAAF, No. 73 Wing, with one of their Vickers Supermarine Spitfire Mk Vc aircraft on Momote airfield. Back row, left to right: 401741 Pilot Officer (PO) R. Hugh (Ross) Cameron (KIA Celebes 27 March 1945); Flying Officer (FO) A. (Arch) Moore; 437476 FO R. Vernon (Ross) Day (Killed Merauke Dutch New Guinea 28 April 1945); Warrant Officer (WO) J. (Jock) Haines; 400735 FO L. S. (Len) Reid DFC; 418232 Flight Sergeant (Flt Sgt) G. A. (Alec) Chomley; 405026 FO P. E. (Paul) Sebire; 411809 Flight Lieutenant (Flt Lt) W. A. (Warren) Napier; 418071 FO W. J. (Bill) Coffey); 401000 FO D. (Doug) Scott. Middle Row: PO J. (John) Vader; FO J. (Joe) Marshall; FO R. (Dick) Long, Acting Flight Commander; 251414 Flt Lt J. W. L. (John) Atkinson, Medical Officer (also known as Leigh); 407778 Flt Lt R. M. (Max) Brinsley DFC, Acting CO; 402270 FO W. H. (Bill) Wright, Flight Commander; 403392 Flt Lt A. S. (Alan) Yates; FO A. (Arthur) Clayton. Front row: Sgt V. (Viv) Pollard; 437523 PO H. D. (Hugh) Kennare; 403681 FO I. E. B. (Ian) McKellar; 408951 FO J. (Jim) Barrie; Flt Lt T. (Tom) Williams. No. 79 Squadron RAAF pilots at that date, but not in this photograph: 412215 WO Phillip F. (Lew) Turner (in hospital); 411741 Flt Sgt A. E. (Andy) Byrne (in sick quarters); FO (Snow) Waldron (in sick quarters).
Morotai, Netherland East Indies. 25 October 1945. Flight Lieutenant (Flt Lt) B. T. McLaughlin (right), a Catholic RAAF Chaplain, and Flt Lt T. W. Scott (left), an Anglican RAAF Chaplain conduct burial rites for two Australian Spitfire pilots, as one of the caskets is lowered into the ground. 405875 Flt Lt B. B. (Barney) Newman, 79 Squadron, of Ayr, Qld, was killed in action during a strike against a radio station in the Wasile Bay are of Halmahera on 2 August 1945, he was 79 Squadron's last casualty of the war. 432589 Flt Lt E. McL. (Mac) Stevenson, 452 Squadron, of Dubbo, NSW, died in captivity on Halmahera after being tortured by the Japanese. He was captured when he was forced to ditch his Spitfire on a reef close to shore during a strike against Japanese installation on Ternate Island on 13 January 1945. Lowering the casket into the ground (left to right) is 400735 Flt Lt Len S. Reid DFC, 408021 Squadron Leader Ken E. James, Commanding Officer 79 Squadron, and 443666 Flight Sergeant Robert J. (Bob) Davies. Front row, left to right: first five unidentified, Flight Sergeant Jim Davidson, 437523 Flying Officer Hugh Kennare and 408891 Flying Officer Norman A. Smithells. (Donor H. Kennare)
Morotai, Netherland East Indies. 25 October 1945. Flight Lieutenant (Flt Lt) B. T. McLaughlin (right), a Catholic RAAF Chaplain, and Flt Lt T. W. Scott (left), an Anglican RAAF Chaplain conduct burial rites for two Australian Spitfire pilots, as one of the caskets is lowered into the ground. 405875 Flt Lt B. B. (Barney) Newman, 79 Squadron, of Ayr, Qld, was killed in action during a strike against a radio station in the Wasile Bay are of Halmahera on 2 August 1945, he was 79 Squadron's last casualty of the war. 432589 Flt Lt E. McL. (Mac) Stevenson, 452 Squadron, of Dubbo, NSW, died in captivity on Halmahera after being tortured by the Japanese. He was captured when he was forced to ditch his Spitfire on a reef close to shore during a strike against Japanese installation on Ternate Island on 13 January 1945. Lowering the casket into the ground (left to right) is 400735 Flt Lt Len S. Reid DFC, 408021 Squadron Leader Ken E. James, Commanding Officer 79 Squadron, and 443666 Flight Sergeant Robert J. (Bob) Davies. Front row, left to right: first five unidentified, Flight Sergeant Jim Davidson, 437523 Flying Officer Hugh Kennare and 408891 Flying Officer Norman A. Smithells. (Donor H. Kennare)