Cowper, Mr B.

The Hon. M.L.J. HAMILTON-SMITH (Waite—Minister for Investment and Trade, Minister for Small Business, Minister for Defence Industries, Minister for Veterans' Affairs) (14:05): I seek leave to make a ministerial statement.

Leave granted.

The Hon. M.L.J. HAMILTON-SMITH: It is with great sadness that I report the passing of one of our state's most distinguished World War II veterans, Squadron Leader Bob Cowper DFC & Bar OAM, Legion of Honour. Bob was a true ace of World War II, a title achieved by shooting down at least five enemy aircraft. He finished the war as the Commanding Officer of 456 Squadron, Australia's only Night Fighter Squadron.

Bob survived two crash landings, one when his Beaufighter crashed in the Sahara desert and another of the coast of Malta. I remember having a long discussion with him about each of those incidents and they were harrowing to say the least. He was lucky to survive each. He shot a German Junkers 88 light bomber out of the sky. The Junkers exploded directly in front of Bob's plane and brought Bob down with it. He was lucky to be rescued by a passing Allied ship. For his distinguished service in the Malta action, Bob was awarded the Distinguished Flying Cross (DFC) with the following citation:

This officer has completed 68 sorties and has displayed great courage and determination. During a sortie in January, 1943, Flying Officer Cowper was compelled to make a forced landing behind the enemy's lines but he displayed great resource in outwitting the enemy and regained our own lines on foot. One night in July, 1943, he engaged a Junkers 88 and caused it to explode. The enemy aircraft disintegrated and a large portion struck and so disabled Flying Officer Cowper's aircraft that he was forced to leave it by parachute. He was later rescued from the sea and rejoined his squadron to resume operational flying. Since then, Flying Officer Cowper has destroyed another Junkers 88.

On 6 June 1944 (D-Day), Bob flew with 456 Squadron. He later spoke of the view of the channel, completely covered with thousands of boats. He was subsequently awarded a Bar to his DFC for 'consistently displaying a high degree of skill on two tours of operations'. The insignia was presented by His Majesty King George VI at Buckingham Palace on 2 February 1945.

After the war, Bob was a prominent farmer and active in local government with the Council of Willunga. He was also a member of Legacy and became state president. He was on the Bloodstock Breeders Board and was very active in horseracing. Bob retained unwavering loyalty to the members of his unit and their families. He was asked to step in after the last of the Australian Battle of Britain pilots died, representing them in England at a memorial service in 1995. More recently, Bob coordinated a memorial honour board, remembering the service of our Australian Battle of Britain pilots. The honour board was unveiled in September 2011 and is now proudly displayed at the RAAF Base Edinburgh Officers' Mess.

In 2004, Bob was awarded France's highest military decoration, the Legion of Honour. The award was bestowed to a small number of veterans representing Allied nations of World War II in recognition of their contribution to D-Day operations and the liberation of France. Bob was awarded a Medal of the Order of Australia in the 2012 Australia Day Honours List for service to veterans and their families through a range of ex-service organisations. In June 2014, Bob returned to France on a commonwealth DVA commemorative mission to mark the 70^th anniversary of the D-Day landings.

A biography of Bob's amazing life, entitled Chasing Shadows, was written and published by Stephen Lewis in 2007. Bob was a tireless advocate for veterans and will be sorely missed by the veteran community. He was a proud South Australian. Lest we forget.

Honourable members: Hear, hear!