Sqn Ldr Robert “Bobby” Henry Maxwell Gibbes, Commander of No. 3 Squadron RAAF, sits in a Curtis Kittyhawk, Ras Lanuf, Libya, December 1942.
Colour by Dan Steele
Bobby had managed to rescue and takeoff with, whilst losing a wheel, a downed pilot from within enemy territory. Despite sharing a single-seat cockpit with the pilot and the loss of a wheel, they both landed safely back at base. Gibbes was awarded the Distinguished Service Order, although some dispute that he should have received a higher honour for such bravery.
