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QUARTERLY NEWS LETTER
APRIL - JUNE 2008
CAN YOU HELP?
I have sent this appeal to the BBC channel four, The Daily Mail, ITV, David Cameron, and the labour party HQ
Every other nation in the world send a team of researchers out to either recover the remains or in some way bring closure to those men deemed to have no known grave.
Not so the British, our government prefers to stand by the old saying that there will always be a corner which shall be forever England. A load of crap and rubbish
Those men deserve better
In Malaya alone there are twenty seven wrecks from the period 1943/1956, no research or recovery has taken place.
I have returned to the Far East on many occasions in the matter of missing soldiers and occasionally been successful
I am appealing for your assistance in a matter which the people to whom I have already applied seem to have adopted a negative attitude.
I am a former service man circa 1935-1949, Having served in various theatre’s of war etc, also a prisoner of the Japanese. Since the war I have tried in many ways to assist many of my former comrades and the families of those we left behind, in researching and where possible to bring close regarding their loved one who went missing. I have been successful on many occasions. Sometimes however I met a stone wall similar to this one.
KL654 now listed on accident report card as
SEREMBAN LIBERATOR
Last communication 23/8/45
Last sig sent 24/8.45
Crashed in dark 23/845
Duel pilots
R reg
Snake
Damage category “E”
Engines
Port O P&W CP320753
Port I P&W CP320803
StarboardO P&W CP320741
Starboard I P&W CP320804
These are extracts from the logged accident report and could have been sent to the researchers at any time ????
It was not until June 1960 that the wreck of the bomber was reported as being seen and a message sent to the British Embassy. Nothing further transpired. Then in July 1975, a further report was sent to the embassy by a group of back packers. In 2001 and 2004 similar messages were sent both to the embassy and the war graves commission. Still no response. This year several other messages have been sent.
One reply clearly states that “we do not have the facilities to assist”
This crew of eight enlisted airmen were sent out to the far east to do a job of work, The least our government can do is to send someone out there to if possible locate if and whatever remains are there have them taken to the nearest cemetery.
I have sent letters to various newspapers with little response.
Now I am appealing to you .
Any remains found in the UK or Europe and the government produce all the pomp
and
ceremony, however those cluttering up the far east are left.
Christmas Island and others small islands, the mess left by the 1960 nuclear bomb
experiments are still lying around spilling their chemicals into the
surrounding
area. In Burma the remains of war are still lying out in the
jungle a rusting monument
to the uncaring attitude of men, especially
British.
What can you do ???? Ihave 30
pages of "E" mails which show where several
wrecks have been notified to the British
government
negative replies on each occasion.
Today our service men are advised not to speak to the media just as they did when I came home.
Example
The following “E” mails I have received from the curator of the Malaysian military museum
Rank Service Number Date Of Death Age Regiment/Service Nationality Grave/Memorial Ref. Cemetery/Memorial Name
WATTS, JOHN SELWYN
Flight Lieutenant 158017 23/08/1945 24 Royal Air Force Volunteer Reserve United Kingdom Column 446. SINGAPORE MEMORIAL
Page 1
1 MASON, EDWARD DONALD
Flying Officer 166082 23/08/1945 Unknown Royal Air Force Volunteer Reserve United Kingdom Column 447. SINGAPORE MEMORIAL
Page 1
1 DOVEY, WILLIAM KENNETH
Flying Officer 166352 23/08/1945 Unknown Royal Air Force Volunteer Reserve United Kingdom Column 447. SINGAPORE MEMORIAL
Page 1
BLAKEY, JACK
Flight Sergeant 1582692 23/08/1945 31 Royal Air Force Volunteer Reserve United Kingdom Column 449. SINGAPORE MEMORIAL
Type your question here and then click Search.
Page 1
ROSS, WILLIAM
Flight Sergeant 2213814 23/08/1945 Unknown Royal Air Force Volunteer Reserve United Kingdom Column 450. SINGAPORE MEMORIAL
PORE MEMORIAL
TURNER, ARTHUR
Flight Sergeant 1621393 23/08/1945 Unknown Royal Air Force Volunteer Reserve United Kingdom Column 451. SINGAPORE MEMORIAL
BROMFIELD, JOHN TREVOR
Flying Officer 166369 23/08/1945 20 Royal Air Force Volunteer Reserve United Kingdom Column 447. SINGAPORE MEMORIAL
Arthur Lane
Stay Alive
On the 23 August 1945 a 356 Squadron Liberator, KL654 'R', was lost while carrying
out a lsupply dropping sortie over Malaysia. The aircraft had taken off from the
Cosos Islands and for many years it was presumed that the aircraft had crashed into
the sea, either during the operation or on its long return flight.
That was not the
case however at some in the 1950's the wreckage was found in thick jungle near Seramban
with the remains of the eight man crew scattered around the site. It was reported
to the British authorities but nothing was done and during the 1970s it is claimed
that the wreck was discovered for second time, but again ignored.
In 2006 a team of
Malaysian aviation archaeologist lead by Shah Ahmed found the aircraft and got in
touch with Mr. Arthur Lane, an active eighty eight year old veteran of the 'Death
Railway'. Arthur knows that part of the world well and is keen to get involved in
any project that involves the recovery and remembrance of those that died in the
service of their country.
In January 2007 the Malaysians carried out a preliminary
excavation of the crash site and found two rings, a jack knife, belt buckles and
watch straps, along with some bone fragments, that they positively identified as
'Human Remains'. Large parts of the wreckage are intact and suggest that the aircraft
made a heavy crash landing into the canopy of trees.
Subsequently Mr Lane notified
the M.o.D. and then I got involved along with various other people, including members
of 356 Squadron Association and relatives of some of the crew. The Malaysians were
certain that what they found was bone fragments and they handed over everything to
British representatives in K.L., who have since denied this and claimed that what
they found was in fact bits of charred wiring!
Over the last few months we have been
in touch with various agencies and have held meetings with a number of people closely
linked with M.o.D., but all to no avail. It seems that there is a culture of denial
and our request for a full excavation of the crash site of KL654 have been totally
ignored.
Our aims are:
(1) to get the M.o.D to support and carry out a full excavation of the crash site and recover any remains that might still be in situ or close by.
(2) To hold a Memorial Service for the eight airmen that will be attended by relatives
and former members of 356 Squadron, many of whom have said they would attend. Amongst
them, former Squadron Adjutant, Squadron Leader Joe Carberry, who has been very helpful.
Former Sergeant Denis Pontifract was a gunner in the crew of KL654 and he now lives
in California, U.S.A. Along with two other air gunners he was taken out of the crew
just before the squadron was posted to the Cocos from India. Denis remembers his
skipper Johnny Watts and his old crew mates with great affection, and he would also
like to see their remains given a decent burial and remembered. In the end that is
all any serviceman can ask for and that is all we want.
Without the M.o.D.'s involvement
we are looking for the means and support to achieve our aims. If anyone can help
us in any capacity, we would be grateful for offers of help.
Joe Bamford.
THE MYSTERY OF FLIGHT KL654
The Liberator was crewed by eight men of the RAF their skipper F/L John Selwyn Watts. Pilot.24 yrs. 2nd Pilot Edward Donald Mason, 22yrs, F/O Navigator William Kenneth Dovey, 21yrs, W/O Sergeant Arthur Turner 22yrs, Forward Gunner Sgt Raymond Arthur Towell 21yrs, Rear Gunner Sgt William Ross 23yrs, Sgt F/O John Trevor Blomfield 20yrs, and Sgt F/O Jack Blakey who was the father of the group age 31 years.
Their journey of 817 miles would take a maximum two hours outward and two hours return. Although fully armed it was not expected that they would become involved in any action.
On board the conversation was the usual chatter of friends and comrades anticipating completing their mission and hopefully returning home. The squadron itself was due to be dissolved within the next eight weeks. Cruising at around 10,000 ft they had not a care in the world. At 1554hrs twenty five minutes ahead of schedule the navigator gave the thumbs up signal for Trevor Blomfield to slide open the port passenger door. The two field officers of 136 force waved to the crew and leapt out. Dovey and Blomfield watched as their parachutes opened and the two agents dropped out of sight. Co ordinates B24 02 Degree 49.189 and East 102 Degree 04.08
On the 23rd August 1945 a Liberator bomber KL654 from 356 Squadron was reported missing. Unfortunately the Squadron was disbanded on the 15th November so all immediate friends and comrades were dispatched to other units and therefore The lost aircraft was theoretically lost.
<x-flowed>
Dear sir,
Just visiting a new British High Comm officer Colonel Athill in KL. As I said before, those poor old chaps were thinking not be involved in our project. They just said that it is British High Comm and MoD policy not involved with any project to recovered remains from aircraft wreckage.!.
Pity on those souls and remains who still missing and still tangled inside their aircraft. They said that they do not want to make any alarm to the missing relatives and the next kin. And it is a quite difficult for them to raise a team, forensic team just to recovered some remains..
They ask us to leave any bones if found and hope we will do a work for them. They only want us to get intact remains with dog tag ( easy for them ). So far, we do not find any intact remains. !.
Very lazy blokes I'd say to them..hehe. Buzy with golf activities!.
See you around
Shaharom Ahmad
It seems that MoD Britain were busy with the other thing. Some of the next kin were upset with their kind of attitude. Even on the letter, they were not agreed with us that we found the KL654/R which they need some hard proof before making any decision. I passed to them the video which we took at the crashed site. The video show the R letter but they denied it that it was came from KL654/R. I spoken to several researchers and pilot. They claimed that only one aircraft used the specific letter. No other aircraft wearing the same
Do you know anything about KN 563?
Hope to hear more from you
Shaharom Ahmad
KL654 LOG
