Gamble, Keith

Keith Munro Gamble

Enlisted 9 Dec 1940, 403049 Flight Lieutenant, Discharged 16 Oct 1945

8 Operational Training Unit , 16 Mar 1916 - 19 Oct 2008

Keith Munro Gamble, who has died aged 92, was born in Sydney one of three children of Clarence, an untrained worker, and his wife Margaret Currie. Keith had a sister, Aileen, and a brother, Clarrie, who was killed in World War II. Margaret's poor health meant that the family moved to the Blue Mountains when Keith was six.

The Depression of the 1930s hit the family hard and Keith worked in barber shops and as a caddy at golf courses to bring in money. When the war came, he enlisted in the RAAF and trained in Tiger Moths at Mascot, then took an advanced flying course at Wagga.

Photo: Keith Gamble in uniform in 1942

Posted to England, he and his mate Wilf Goold enjoyed the social life as billets with a well-connected civil servant, Sir Alan Rae-Smith, and his wife. In 1942 Gamble returned to Australia, to the newly formed 75 Squadron. The squadron had been sent to New Guinea in March, flying Kittyhawks, and, with 76 Squadron in August, helped repulse the Japanese at Milne Bay. Gamble found time to marry Mary McAleerin the same year.

Photo: 1942 - Informal portrait of three airmen enjoying a bike ride around their airfield.

Identified are:

Flying Officer (FO) Keith Munro Gamble (left) Flight Sergeant (Flt Sgt) Arthur John (Nat) Gould (centre); and Flying Officer (FO) Bruce Duddridge Watson  (right). There is a Kittyhawk aircraft in the background.

In 1943 Keith became officer in charge of the Spitfire flight within the Operations Training Unit in Mildura. In October 1943 he was posted to Darwin as Flight Commander on 452 Squadron. He had to travel by train to Brisbane before catching a flight to Darwin.

Upon reaching his destination he was promoted to Flight Lieutenant, commanding 'A' Flight of 452 Squadron, and shooting down one of the last Japanese planes over Australia. Following his arrival in Darwin there was no further major Japanese bombing raids. They did however, send over regular reconnaissance aircraft one of which Keith intercepted and shot down.

Keith was considered to be hansom by the fairer sex and his friend, Ron Cundy DFC DFM mid, tells one incident that this was made quite evident.

I had been spending a few days with my family at Armidale and I clearly recall the night I wentto the station to catch the train from Sydney. It was freezing cold and Gwen, my fiancée, had come to see me off.

Keith got off the train to stretch his legs and the first thing Gwen said when she saw him was "Oh, what a handsome man!". Jealousy reared its ugly head and I said,

.he's married you know.

At the completion of his tour of duty in Darwin Keith was posted to No 8 OT at Parkes as a flying instructor.

Photo: August 1942 Informal group portrait of RAAF airmen of No. 75 Squadron sitting on top of a dugout awaiting an action against the Japanese. Identified, left to right: Flight Officer (FO) Richard (Dick) Tweedy Holt; FO Roy Gordon Riddel (Hotshot); FO Keith Munro Gamble; FO Max Johnston (Hawkeye); FO Raife James Cowan; Pilot Officer (PO) Stuart (Stu or Stewy) Munro (1); FO George (Hugh) Hubert Newborne Shiells (Digger).

(1) Later that month, on 27 August 1942, PO Munro, aged 21, was killed in flying battle over New Guinea.

Keith was discharged on 16 October 1945 with the rank of Flight Lieutenant of No 8 Operational Training Unit. FO Watson of Strathfield, NSW.

In later years he helped organize Spitfire crew reunions in Australia. After being discharged from active service, Keith joined his neighbour Ken Hansel to trade in waste cotton and cleaning cloths.

In 1957 the partners separated and Gamble formed Keith Gamble Pty Ltd, now one of Australia's largest privately owned wholesalers of home textiles.

In more recent times Keith was the official supplier of handkerchiefs to the Sydney Olympics (2000) which pleased him greatly. The job, providing thousands of souvenir handkerchiefs for the tourists visiting Sydney for the Games, topped off years of working in the home textiles industry, from his earliest days dealing with China.

Keith also worked for the community, helping to set up one of Australia's earliest sheltered workshops in the 1950s while president of the Leichhardt Rotary Club. He was later associated with the Rotary Club of Sydney and was awarded a Paul Harris Fellow for his service to the community. An active member of the Chamber of Manufactures, he was appointed to the board of directors of Bank America Australia Ltd in 1984.

Keith was widely read, a good conversationalist and loved following current and world affairs. His life was marked by courage, loyalty and a sense of humour.

He is survived by his second wife, Noelene Watt, his daughters Louise and Anne and seven grandchildren. Mary died in 1984.

Credits

Harriet Veitch

The Sydney Morning Herald - 1/12/2008