Ron Middleton " For the football player of the same name see Ron Middleton ( American football ) . " Rawdon Hume ' Ron ' Middleton VC ( 22 July 1916 – 29 November 1942 ) was an Australian recipient of the Victoria Cross , the highest and most prestigious award for gallantry in the face of the enemy that can be awarded to British and Commonwealth forces . Early life . Middleton was born in Waverley , Sydney on 22 July 1916 , and spent his early years in the Central Western district of New South Wales . He was a great - nephew of the colonial explorer , Hamilton Hume . He was an athletic young man , and excelled in cricket and Rugby football at school . After leaving school , he worked for a time as a jackaroo at Leewang station , the large grazing property his father managed . He enlisted in the Royal Australian Air Force on 14 October 1940 , and trained as a pilot in the Empire Air Training Scheme . He undertook initial flying training at No . 5 Elementary Flying Training School ( 5 EFTS ) Narromine NSW , and advanced training in Canada . In February 1942 he joined No . 149 Squadron of the Royal Air Force , flying as second pilot on Short Stirling bombers . By July of that year he was appointed as an aircraft captain , and flew his first raid as a pilot - in - command against Düsseldorf . Victoria Cross action . On 28 November 1942 , Middleton was captain of Stirling BF372 detailed to bomb the Fiat aircraft works at Turin . It was his twenty - ninth combat sortie , one short of the thirty required for completion of a ' tour ' and mandatory rotation off combat operations . Middleton and his crew arrived above Turin after a difficult flight over the Alps , due to the low combat ceiling of the ' bombed - up ' and ' fueled - up ' Stirling . Over the target area Middleton had to make three low - level passes in order to positively identify the target , on the third , the aircraft was hit by heavy anti - aircraft fire which wounded both pilots and the wireless operator . Middleton suffered numerous grievous wounds , including shrapnel wounds to the arms , legs and body , having his right eye torn from its socket and his jaw shattered . He passed out briefly , and his second pilot , Flt Sgt LA Hyder , who was also seriously wounded , managed to regain control at 800 feet and drop the bombs , before receiving first aid from the other crew . Middleton regained consciousness in time to help recover control of his stricken bomber . Middleton was in great pain , was barely able to see , was losing blood from wounds all over his body , and could breathe only with difficulty . He must have known that his own chances of survival were slim , but he nonetheless determined to fly his crippled aircraft home , and return his crew to safety . During the return flight he frequently said over the intercom " I ' ll make the English Coast . I ' ll get you home " . After four hours of agony and having been further damaged by flak over France , Middleton reached the coast of England with five minutes of fuel reserves . At this point he turned the aircraft parallel to the coast and ordered his crew to bail out . Five of his crew did so and landed safely , but his front gunner and flight engineer remained with him to try to talk him into a forced landing on the coast , something he must have known would have risked extensive civilian casualties . He steered the aircraft out over the sea , off Dymchurch , and ordered the last two crew to bale out . They then too bailed out , but did not survive the night in the English Channel . Middleton stayed with the aircraft , which crashed into the Channel . His body was washed ashore on 1 February 1943 . The last line of his Victoria Cross Citation reads : " His devotion to duty in the face of overwhelming odds is unsurpassed in the annals of the Royal Air Force " . Flight Sergeant Rawdon Hume Middleton VC was posthumously promoted to Pilot Officer , and is buried at Beck Row , Bury St Edmunds , Suffolk . His Victoria Cross and uniform are displayed at the Australian War Memorial , Canberra . P / O GR Royde ( Observer ) was awarded a DFC , while F / S LA Hyder ( 2nd pilot ) , F / S D Cameron ( Upper gunner ) and Sgt HW Gough ( rear gunner ) all were awarded the DFM . Honours & Awards . Middleton has been honoured by the naming of the " Middleton VC Club " at 1 RAAF Recruit Training Unit , RAAF Base Wagga . He was on one of 1995 Australia Remembers 45c stamps . The dining hall located at RAF Mildenhall in Suffolk is named after Middleton .