Argentinians in the RAF

[keith A]

I have been researching SLdr Ken Charney DFC for some time and believe he was among the group of volunteers which left Argentina on 22 August 1940. If so he was exceedingly lucky to survive the war because of the six others who joined the RAF only one survived the war!

Melville H. Ball, Frederick Bradbury and Thomas Adamson were all killed in training accidents, Frederick Keene was badly-burned and made POW in 1941, while both Ernest Howell (138 Squadron) and Anturo Beaumont (55 Squadron) were killed on operations.

In addition, the eldest, 43-year-old Sldr Hillary C. Caldwell was Assistant Air Attaché and pilot of the British Embassy in Madrid. Due to bad weather he crashed into a hill near Tortosa in 1944 killing himself and Arthur Yenken, British Minister in Spain.

Can anyone supply any more details of this group i.e. members I have not identified, the ship in which they sailed?

I know there is a book about the Argentinian volunteers but it is out of print and inavailable to me.

regards

Keith