MoD searches for the family's of 6 lost airmen

Thank you Tom.

Regards

Peter

 

Thank you so much...P/O John Cromarty was my cousin but sadly I couldn't get to the ceremony today as disabled... A good friend went & represented me.....can't wait to see him when he gets back to England so he can tell me all about it...your photos are brilliant...again thank you for posting them

 

Dodo,
The pleasure was all mine. There were others who also took photographs plus the RBB Local TV station, so perhaps more will emerge especially as the MOD were present.
We will continue to Remember these brave men, who deserve nothing less.
Regards
Tom

 

Absolutely...I didn't know about any of this until the week before last.....all I had was a photo of him as a baby with his cousin, my mum & this one of him as a little boy

 

Tom thanks for sharing your photos

Cheers
Paul

 

Dodo,
What a wonderful photograph of him as a boy.
A wonderful reminder of very brave young man that served his country and made the ultimate sacrifice.
Thankyou for posting his photograph.

Regards
Tom

 

Forces TV have just posted this link, which is a short video of the Services held yesterday.

http://forces.tv/81467308

Regards
Tom

 

Thank you...I will go and watch it now...and my friend has just sent me these photos

 

Excellent ...thank you for posting that link...i've watched it several times

Regards

 

Was their life expectancy 6 months? I was told 6 weeks...still either is far, far too short for so very many young men.

 

Dodo,
The life expectancy of aircrew was hard to pin down.
Luck paid a huge part as some aircrew perished on their first operational mission. Many died during training.
Some went on to complete many missions.
It was a fact when attacking well defended targets like Berlin that sometimes more than 10% were lost.
Statistics can be made for different times of the Bomber Command offensive, but the fact remains that over 55000 lost their young lives.

Here is a newspaper article worth reading.

http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-2159978/Brave-They-scared-witless-What-heroes-defying-fear-raid-terrifying-raid.html

Regards
Tom

 

Thanks Tom, a very interesting read

Regards

 

Thanks Tom for posting the photographs of the reburial service.

These posts also relate to the event,a thread which Tom initiated...http://ww2talk.com/forums/topic/60970-re-dedication-at-cwgc-berlin-war-cemetery-heerstrasse-berlin/

I have looked through the crew lists for a casualty with a southern England location without success.The RAF casualty featured in a documentary which I saw shortly after reunification when his two sisters found their his grave in the former GDR. At this point the CWGC were able to visit the graves sites of British servicemen in the former GDR. There must have been a programme of reburials to concentrated military cemeteries of those who were found buried in GDR cemeteries.

From November 1943 to March 1944, The Battle of Berlin cost Bomber Command 1047 aircraft and an unacceptable loss of aircrew

http://ww2talk.com/forums/topic/60840-night-of-the-big-wind-24th-march-1944/

Per Ardua Ad Astra

 

Harry,
As far as I am aware re burials were carried out when CWGC cemeteries were built and bodies re interned at the nearest CWGC Cemetery.
When the wall went up this ceased and only Brixmis personnel were allowed on DDR territory.
Brixmis laid wreaths at Commemorative Services held in the DDR until unification.

Regards
Tom

 

Thanks Tom for the information.

I'll try to locate the cassette recording I made of the successful attempt by two sisters to find the grave of their brother who had been buried in what turned out to be an overgrown GDR civilian cemetery.

 

Harry, I will also try and look up CWGC info for you.

Regards
Tom

 

Harry,
Here are scans of the relevent pages from a CWGC Booklet I have regarding the Graves in Germany and Berlin in particular.



If I can be of any further help just ask.

Regards
Tom

 

Thanks Tom,

I thought that over the years the casualty would have been re-interred in a concentrated military cemetery which of course would be the Berlin cemetery.

The answer to the casualty's identity is recorded on the cassette about 25 years ago when the casualty's sisters recorded memories of their brother when they were on the quest to locate his initial resting place.

 

Harry,

It would appear that they fell under the category that no Next of Kin could be identified at the time before the area became part of the East and DDR Territory. .

Depending on the timescale the graves were probably out of bounds to all but BRIXMIS.

I wonder if the relatives informed the CWGC after their enquiries? and if so whether a decision was made not to re-interr the remains.

Regards
Tom