Ron Middleton was born in Waverley, Sydney, on 22 July 1916. He attended school at Dubbo, becoming a keen sportsman and later finding work as a jackeroo.
He enlisted in the RAAF in October 1940, trained under the Empire Air Training Scheme, and in 1942 he was posted to No. 149 Squadron RAF, flying Short Stirling Mk.1 bombers from England.
On 28 November 1942, as a Flight Sergeant, Middleton captained a Stirling on a raid on the Fiat aircraft works at Turin, Italy. It was his 29th sortie, one short of completing his operational tour. He made three low passes to find the target. On the third, anti-aircraft fire wounded both pilots and the wireless operator. Middleton was so severely wounded that he lost consciousness. His second pilot, Flight Sergeant Leslie Hyder, regained control and dropped the bombs.
When Middleton regained consciousness and the aircraft was clear of the target, he ordered the second pilot back to receive first aid, piloting the aircraft on the long and gruelling flight back over the Alps. Although running very low on fuel, Middleton flew the damaged aircraft for about four hours towards England. Flying parallel to the coast and to avoid his aircraft crashing into a village, he ordered the crew to bail out, and five landed safely. He stayed at the controls, assisted by his front gunner and flight engineer. Middleton steered the Stirling out over the sea off Dymchurch, Kent. He then ordered the other two men to bail out, but they did not survive the night in the Channel. Middleton went down with the aircraft and died when it crashed. His body remained in the aircraft until it was eventually washed ashore on Shakespeare Beach, Dover, in February 1943. He was 26 when he died.
Middleton was posthumously awarded the Victoria Cross, making him the first member of the RAAF to receive this honour in the Second World War. He was also posthumously commissioned as a Pilot Officer, backdated to mid-November, before his sortie to Turin.
He is buried at Beck Row, St John’s Churchyard, Mildenhall, Suffolk, United Kingdom.
Pilot Officer Middleton’s Victoria Cross is held by the Australian War Memorial, Campbell, Australian Capital Territory, Australia.
Story courtesy of Jim Campbell
