Ronnie Sweetlove et al
Danny: Thank you for the compliment, but if I had been meticulous I would have completed the research a long while ago.
I appreciate the matter of fact way in which you have accepted the information and made logical sense of the situation.
There is no way of knowing so long after the event just what happened to these crews, but I am just a little surprised that McKinnon at least couldn't be specifically identified on reburial.
Both the German and Allied burial details would have known that bomber crews would be no more than 8, so there must ave been a solid reason that they were unable to separate the crews.
You have made the perceptive comment regarding the Service Numbers, and neither of the "RAF" regular airmen have any Additional Information, nor are their ages given.
As previously explained the Additional Information would be provided (where possible) by their families, and that not all families were either traced or responded, perhaps in the hope their loved ones were still alive but Missing "somewhere".
The age, however, would be provided by the RAF and it seems significant that the RAFVR ages were provided but not that for regular RAF. I'd not come across anything so clearly demarking RAF from RAFVR personnel.
You learn something every day!
Their Service Numbers certainly indicate a much earlier entry into the Air Force, so in all liklihood they would be at the higher end of the age bracket for aircrew.
For myself, I'm piqued by Montigue as he's from the same town as myself and i have recently been involved in trying to locate family for another WW2 Halifax casualty from Southend area.
It's an unusual surname and whilst initial searches seemed to indicate he had been born in Germany (!) his Birth was registered in West Ham 2nd Qtr 1922.
His mothers maiden name was Thompson so i believe the German connection is spurious.
In 1959 a Richard W L Montigue was registered as being born in Southend, so he would seem to have at least one brother marrying a Miss Harland.
I'm continuing to look out for details on the 44 Sqdn crew sharing the grave and also Sgt Bird and his 101 Sqdn aircraft.
Ronnie was the bomb aimer that night.
EDIT: Now traced at least the 44 Sqdn details:
44 squadron Lancaster Mk I ED351 coded "S" from Waddington. Bomb load 1 x 4,000 lb cookie and 12 cases of 6x3M IB (incendiary bombs?)
Fitted with TR1335
HAINES, IVAN CHARLES. Rank: Flight Sergeant. Trade: Pilot. Service No: 1257965. Date of Death: 08/04/1943.
Regiment/Service: Royal Air Force Volunteer Reserve. 44 Sqdn.
Grave Reference: Coll. grave 2. E. 9-19. Cemetery: RHEINBERG WAR CEMETERY.
ASBURY, REGINALD ARTHUR. Rank: Sergeant. Trade: Nav. Service No: 1241805. Date of Death: 08/04/1943. Age: 22.
Regiment/Service: Royal Air Force Volunteer Reserve. 44 Sqdn.
Grave Reference: Coll. grave 2. E. 9-19. Cemetery: RHEINBERG WAR CEMETERY
Additional Information: Son of Albert Thomas Asbury and Harriot Madeline Asbury, of Birmingham.
PRINCE, RALPH GREGORY. Rank: Sergeant. Trade: Bomb Aimer. Service No: 1218594. Date of Death: 08/04/1943. Age: 20.
Regiment/Service: Royal Air Force Volunteer Reserve. 44 Sqdn.
Grave Reference: Coll. grave 2. E. 9-19. Cemetery: RHEINBERG WAR CEMETERY
Additional Information: Son of Joseph Evley Prince, D.C.M., M.M., and Alice Jane Prince, of Hull.
(Note: shown on Loss Card as being the W/Op)
RICHARDSON, STANLEY. Rank: Sergeant. Trade: Flt. Engr. Service No: 949104. Date of Death: 08/04/1943. Age: 24.
Regiment/Service: Royal Air Force Volunteer Reserve. 44 Sqdn.
Grave Reference: Coll. grave 2. E. 9-19. Cemetery: RHEINBERG WAR CEMETERY
Additional Information: Son of William and Lydia Richardson; husband of Hilda Richardson, of Moses Gate, Farnworth, Lancashire.
WARD, FRANK GLENISTER. Rank: Sergeant. Trade: W.Op./Air Gnr. Service No: 1020872. Date of Death: 08/04/1943. Age: 20.
Regiment/Service: Royal Air Force Volunteer Reserve. 44 Sqdn.
Grave Reference Coll. grave 2. E. 9-19. Cemetery: RHEINBERG WAR CEMETERY
Additional Information: Son of Frank Glenister Ward and Dorothy Ward, of Newcastle-on-Tyne.
(not on Loss card crew list, the M/U/G is shown as Sgt E Strandberg, R134019).
YEO, LOUIS JOHN. Rank: Sergeant. Trade: Air Gnr. Service No: 1314128. Date of Death: 08/04/1943.
Regiment/Service: Royal Air Force Volunteer Reserve. 44 Sqdn.
Grave Reference: Coll. grave 2. E. 9-19. Cemetery: RHEINBERG WAR CEMETERY
STRANDBERG, EDWIN. Rank: Warrant Officer Class II. Trade: Air Gnr. Service No: R/134019. Date of Death: 08/04/1943. Age: 19.
Regiment/Service: Royal Canadian Air Force. 44 (R.A.F.) Sqdn
Grave Reference: 2. E. 4. Cemetery: RHEINBERG WAR CEMETERY
Additional Information: Son of John Edwin and Elvera E. Strandberg, of Renton, Washington, U.S.A.
(The crew list does not show any name as rear gunner, it seems a badly completed card from 44 Sqdn so the RAF didn't seem to know who had been aboard, though no doubt Ward would have been found to be missing at Roll Call, but never entered on the Loss card.)
Loss Card shows a notation that Haines and "several" others buried 14 April in Munchen Gladbach. Again refers to the aircraft as being shot down.
At first glance it would seem that this "should" be the crew in one collective grave but by some mischance some other aircrew were perhaps transported together and unable to be separately identified as being which crew from which aircraft. Strandberg, however, as an RCAF uniformed body, was able to be separately identified and is buried in an individual grave.
BIRD, THOMAS ARTHUR. Rank: Sergeant. Trade: Air Gnr. Service No: 1337140. Date of Death: 08/04/1943.
Regiment/Service: Royal Air Force Volunteer Reserve. 101 Sqdn.
Grave Reference: Coll. grave 2. E. 9-19. Cemetery: RHEINBERG WAR CEMETERY
A bit more of a puzzle, I can't find any Loss Card for a 101 Squadron aircraft or any other CWGC 101 Squadron deaths that night.
I did think I had found his aircraft Loss Card with him as rear gunner, but not able to find it again today!
The non collective grave burials in Duisburg for 8/9 April are all in Plot 2 Row E commencing with Pilot Officer A J Gurr 143231 of 15 Squadron in 2E3, then Strandberg the RCAF member of the 44 Sqdn crew; F/Sgt J R Riley 415182 RAAF (no Squadron detail) in 2E5 (Date of death shown as 9 April, from the following nights raid also on Duisburg) then Montigue, Chappell and Knowles from 100 Squadron.
2E9 to 19 is the collective grave and 2E20 is F/Sgt Arthur Cox, DFM 952058 from 405 (RCAF) also an 8th April casualty..
The next burials are from 27 April.
A rather eclectic mix of Squadrons, let alone nationalities but I'm hopeful that the remainder of these other crews survived.
I'm sorry to dredge up these memories, please continue with your reminiscences, but I couldn't leave the information once i had put it together.
It may not be pleasant but at least the information may help others who may be making their own searches for what happened.
Last edited by Icare9; 8th Jun 2014 at 00:38.