Arakan, Burma. c. May 1945. Wing Commander (Wg Cdr) L. V. (Bill) Hudson of Kingsford, NSW, on his ...

Arakan, Burma. c. May 1945. Wing Commander (Wg Cdr) L. V. (Bill) Hudson of Kingsford, NSW, on his arrival at an RAF base after spending several months in the Japanese prisoner of war (POW) camp in Rangoon Jail. Aircrew prisoners were treated by the Japanese as 'criminal prisoners', and received much worse treatment than others. They were forbidden such privileges as washing, shaving, and medical attention, and were kept on half rations. At one stage Wg Cdr Hudson went for three weeks without washing his hands. Wg Cdr Hudson, RAAF, was the Commanding Officer of No. 82 (Mosquito) Squadron RAF when he was shot down during an operational mission on 19 December 1944 and taken POW by the Japanese.