Rodger Peryman Wishart
Biography
Role: Son of Harold Peryman Wishart and Daisy Vera Latter — RAAF Flight Lieutenant and air gunner, killed over the Netherlands in 1944.
Born: 10 November 1920 — Adelaide, South Australia
Died: 30 January 1944 (aged 23) — over Kolhorn, North Holland, Netherlands (Lancaster JB535, shot down on a Berlin raid; buried Kolhorn General Cemetery)
Service: Flight Lieutenant, air gunner, No. 97 Squadron RAF (RAAF), Avro Lancaster Mk III JB535 ("OF-Q")
Family
| Relation | Name |
|---|---|
| Father | Harold Peryman Wishart (1888–1965) |
| Mother | Daisy Vera Latter (1886–1963) |
| Grandmother | Esther Farrow Latter (1859–1951) |
| Siblings | Alison Mary Wishart (1916–1980), David Wishart (b. 1922) |
Life Summary
Rodger Peryman Wishart was born in Adelaide on 10 November 1920, the second child of Harold Peryman Wishart and Daisy Vera Latter. Through his mother he was a grandson of Esther Farrow Latter — carrying the Farrow/Telfer line into the Latter–Wishart branch.
He served as a Flight Lieutenant and air gunner with No. 97 Squadron, RAF (8 Group, Bomber Command), flying from RAF Bourn in Cambridgeshire.
On the night of 30 January 1944, Lancaster JB535 "OF-Q" took off at 17:15 as part of a 534-aircraft raid on Berlin — 21 of the Lancasters were from 97 Squadron. The aircraft was intercepted by a German night fighter, probably from Leeuwarden airfield; a wing and engine caught fire and the aircraft exploded in mid-air. It came down at about 22:10 local time over the village of Kolhorn, North Holland, about 6 km east of Schagen. All seven crew were killed.
The crew are buried at Barsingerhorn (Kolhorn) General Cemetery. Rodger Wishart was 23 years old.
In April 2026 the village of Kolhorn held a commemoration for the JB535 crew, attended by the Australian Ambassador to the Netherlands — evidence that this family's story is still being told in the Dutch village where the aircraft fell.
Timeline
| Date | Event |
|---|---|
| 10 Nov 1920 | Born — Adelaide, SA |
| 30 Jan 1944 | Killed when Lancaster JB535 was shot down over Kolhorn, North Holland (aged 23) |
| 1 Feb 1944 | Buried — Barsingerhorn (Kolhorn) General Cemetery, Netherlands |
| 18 Apr 2026 | Crew commemorated at Kolhorn, attended by the Australian Ambassador |
Sources
- Source: Stichting Herdenkingspalen Hollands Kroon — "Crash information JB 535 Kolhorn" — full crew list naming F/Lt Rodger Peryman Wishart, gunner, 23, Australia; take-off 17:15 from Bourn for Berlin; aircraft exploded in mid-air over Kolhorn, 30 January 1944; all 7 crew killed and buried at Kolhorn; April 2026 commemoration — accessed 11 September 2026
- Source: RAF Pathfinders Archive — "Crew: Clarke" — ORB extract for 30/31 January 1944 Berlin: "JB535Q F/L E.S.Clarke … F/L R.P.Wishart. Up 1715 – missing"; Bomber Command Losses: Lancaster III JB535 OF-Q, shot down by night fighter, crashed 2210 at Kolhorn (Noord-Holland); all buried 1 February at Barsingerhorn (Kolhorn) General Cemetery — accessed 11 September 2026
- Source: Mannum Institute — Richard Pelling LATTER descendant report — Rodger Peryman Wishart born 10 Nov 1920 Adelaide, died 30 Jan 1944 "over Berlin"; son of Daisy Vera Latter and Harold Peryman Wishart — accessed 11 September 2026
- Source: A Telfer Family Tree (Supplement to From the Borders to the Bush, 2008), p.39 — death 30 Jan 1944, buried Kolhorn, Holland — accessed 11 September 2026
Tags
Parents
- Daisy Vera Latter (1886 – 1963)
- Harold Peryman Wishart (1888 – 1965)