Fearn, William Alfred

1594 Air Mechanic William Alfred Fearn - Australian Flying Corps

Willaim Alfred Fearn was born in Coogee southern Fremantle in 1891 to William and Sarah Fearn. He was the eldest of three children, with George born in 1892 and Elsie in 1894.

William was educated locally and the family lived in South Fremantle.

He was employed as a Motor Driver in Fremantle.

In 1916 William married Elizabeth Effie Cooper in Perth in 1916 and they set up residence in Victoria Avenue North Fremantle. A son, Claude was born in 1916 and George in 1919.

William enlisted into the AIF on the 12th November 1916. He was accepted as fit for service, with the medical examiner recording William's physical attributes as;

Height - 5 Feet 8 Inches tall;

Weight - 162lbs;

Chest Measurement - 36-40 inches;

Complexion - Fresh;

Eyes - Blue;

Hair - Brown.

William was initially assigned to the 19th Reinforcements to the 28th Battalion but due to his mechanical abilities and his civilian job as a motor driver, William was transferred to the Australian Flying Corps reinforcements. This meant he went to Broadmeadows in Victoria to continue his training. He then went to the AFC Camp at Laverton and was then transferred to Liverpool Camp in NSW.

William departed from Sydney NSW on the 10th May 1917 aboard the transport ship Marathon. The ship then arrived at Devonport Harbour on the 20th July 1917.

William was then sent to the AFC Training depot where he had the rank of 2nd Air Mechanic. He was then transferred to the 29th Training Squadron at Larkhill where he was assigned to the Aeroplane Repair section. 

(Photo below of William Fearn and a group of the Australian Flying Corps mechanics in England)

William remained on duty through 1917/18 at different Australian Flying Corps bases in England. In December 1918 he went to France for a short period for duty with No.3 Squadron Australian Flyng Corps as a 1st Air Mechanic. In March 1919 William returned to England.

William left England in April 1919 on the transport ship Sardinia to return to Western Australia, arriving at Fremantle on the 28th May 1919.

William then returned home to Victoria Avenue in North Fremantle. Unfortunately William's wife Elizabeth died aged 29 on the 21st December 1919.

John and his children then moved to Katanning.

In 1922 at Katanning William remarried to Survilla Elizabeth Macaullay. Two more children were born, Kathleen in 1923 and John in 1924.

In the 1930' the family returned to live in Fremantle residing at 6 Charles Street.

William died at Hollywood Hospital in 1971 aged 80.