Squadron Leader Allen Edward Browne

Allen Browne was born in Auckland on July 14, 1913 and worked as a factory manager before joining the RNZAF in December 1940. After pilot training in New Zealand he was posted to the United Kingdom in August 1942 to join 488 Squadron in Ayr, Scotland.

This New Zealand unit with the RAF was then carrying out night defence duties in Bristol Beaufighters. With very little German air activity in the area, the young pilot had a comparatively uneventful first tour of operations with the exception of occasional night intruder sorties over France, flown from bases in southern England. 
 
The sorties involved attacking trains, enemy transport and targets of opportunity in occupied France. The Beaufighters were replaced by the much superior Mosquito in August 1943 and, with the unit moving south to Bradwell Bay, the tempo of operations increased as 488 scored its first night victories. 
 
In early December 1943 Browne and his navigator Tom Taylor were posted to instruct new crews at an Operational Training Unit. They returned to operations, rejoining 488 in late July 1944 to find the squadron heavily engaged in night sorties over the Continent in support of the invasion forces. 
 
During the night of August 2/3 Browne, in his first combat of the war, destroyed a Dornier 217 which crashed on the shore near Avranches. Four nights later he caused the destruction of three more enemy aircraft. The first, a Ju 188, was intercepted and shot down over Avranches. The second was found over Rennes and the third further north. In the case of the latter two, the German aircraft were chased down to low level and while taking evasive action crashed into the ground, exploding on impact. 
 
Browne did not fire a shot at either of them. 
 
He was awarded the DFC in September 1944 and then was posted to the Far East in October to join 89 Squadron in Burma. Back on Beaufighters on night operations, he became a flight commander. After promotion to Squadron Leader, Browne took command of the unit in July 1945 and led it until September. 
 
During his wartime service he scored six aerial victories, all at night.