27

the ferry flight its nucleus. On the 5th October, 1939 he was promoted
from Pilot Officer to Flying Officer. With the New Zealand Squadron
as Captain of a Wellington Bomber, Flying Officer Coleman took
part in twenty-seven operation flights his targets including
Minden, Krefold, Cologne(3), Bremen, Aache, Duisburg, Dusseldorf, Dortmund(2), Frankfurt, Mors and Rottenberg. All these
targets are in Germany. He also attacked targets in the Black Forest
and on the Rhine River, also in Germany; and Aacborg in Denmark;
Stavanger in Norway and the Turnhout-Antwerp Canal; Gimbloux and
Brussels in Belgium, and Nivelle, Avesnes, Cambrai, Abbeville and
Charleville in France.

Flying Officer Coleman was awarded the Distinguished Flying
Cross, the citation reading as follows:- "Flying Officer Coleman
took part in twenty-seven bombing attacks on Germany, Holland,
Belgium and France since the beginning of 1940, one major bombing
attack on Denmark and on night reconnaissance and raids over Germany.
By his constant determination and outstanding skill as captain of
aircraft this officer set an example of the highest order."

Flying Officer Coleman was Captain of a Wellington bomber which
took off on air operations on the night of the 25/26th July, 1940
to attack a target in Holland. The aircraft failed to return to its
base and all members of the crew including Flying Officer Coleman were
classified as missing. Later, information was received from a German
source through the International Red Cross Committee that Flying
Officer Coleman had been killed in action and in due course his death
was officially presumed to have occurred on the 26th July, 1940.
Information subsequently received from the R.A.F. Missing Research and
Enquiry Unit established that Flying Officer Coleman's body had been
washed ashore from the Ijsel Meer on the 3rd August, 1940 and had
been buried in the cemetery at Amsterdam, Holland.

The crew contained one other New Zealander Sergeant W.D.F.
Annan of Napier.