Dedicated to reclaiming and honouring Britain’s lost warriors.
Dedicated to reclaiming and honouring Britain’s lost warriors.
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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-
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
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.
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
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
CAN YOU HELP?
KL654-
Be part of an adventure with a purpose.
A minimum of ten volunteers are required to travel to Malaysia for the
purpose of recovery of materials and remains of British airmen whose
plane crashed in the Malaysian jungle one week after the end of the
second world war.
A crash site which has been totally ignored by our
government. All volunteers will be required to pay their own fare and
expenses in the region of £2,000 each,
Digging equipment will be supplied and the search will be supervised by Malaysian professional researchers and historians.
But first read their story
I sent this item to several newspapers in the hope that someone will understand what I am saying.
We have been trying for the last 60 years to have the government send someone out to examine this wreck and 26 others in Malaysia.
Could offer practical help or help fund or publicise our efforts -
KL654 IN THE HOUSE OF LORDS
TEAM MEETS LORD LEE
On 20th November 2008 a group consisting of family members and campaigners of the fated crew of flight KL654 met with Lord Lee inside the House of Lords.
The meeting was arranged by Joe Bamford (NESA) and its purpose was to discuss a satisfactory way of pursuing the issue of honouring the 8 RAF servicemen whose remains still lie among wreckage on top of a Malayan hill.
During the meeting Arthur Lane was acknowledged as the person who set the ball rolling in bringing the matter to the attention of the MOD and Government. However despite past attempts to lobby those in power over the years, the issue of the downed plane was ignored and sometimes even its existence (despite overwhelming proof) was ‘virtually’ denied.
Lord Lee received the group very well and agreed that the matter was one worth pursuing.
The meeting (which was also attended by the President of the 655 Sqn Association) concluded that the most appropriate resolution would be to have the area of the crash officially preserved. This would prevent the threat of further disturbance to the remains of the British men there, at the hands of unwelcome ‘lprofiteers.
KL654R
On August 23rd 1945 KL654R crashed into the Malaysian jungle. It was originally believed to have gone down into the sea. The B24 Liberator was carrying 8 crew, all of which are listed on the Singapore Memorial, the bodies of the men never recovered. It wasn't until January 1973 that a group of Dutch backpackers stumbled across the wreckage of an aircraft that had clearly been there for some time. The Dutch backpackers took some items away from the wreckage and when they returned to Kuala Lumpar they passed the discovery of a wreck to the British Embassy. The British Embassy replied that it was not a British wreck.
As far as we know the wreck of the aircraft remained undisturbed until 1991 when
some Orang Asli rattan-
They were lead by two Orang Asli guides; 53-
The group lost their way a number of times and at one point trekked down the ridge to end up in Seremban, which was quite some distance from the site (around 16 kilometers). They finally located the wreckage when Pak Abu chanced upon a one cent Indian coin and a cangkul on top of the ridge. Following the discovery the RMAF used a Land Rover to drive up to the site which was at the end of a logging trail. The RMAF team brought chain saws and power cutters to cut trees down around the crash site, and used plastic explosives to create a landing pad on top of the ridge.
The RMAF used power cutters to cut up the blades of the aircraft and carried them individually up the slope to the landing pad. Some other parts were carried in gunny sacks, but apparently the whole exercise was later abandoned. According to Pak Abu, the RMAF commandos found some human remains while digging in the sand close to the wreckage, including what appeared to be a human skull. Unfortunately it was mouldy and disintegrated at their touch. They also found a rusty revolver which again crumbled at the touch, and a number of rusty and twisted 12.7mm shells that appeared to have exploded, most probably in the ensuing fire.
In 1992 the wreck was rediscovered by a British researcher who again reported the find to the British Embassy in Kuala Lumpar. The same year a small team from the RMAF again visited the site, this time they found a skull, that was in poor condition and was left at the site. Two years later a three man team from the Malaysia Military History Museum visited the site took photographs and made a report. The British Embassy in Kuala Lumpar were again informed. This time the British Embassy stated that the wreck was not a British wreck so nothing could be done.
1996 saw a one failed attempt to reach the wreck by historians and one recorded tourist visit to the site, by a group of Australians. Once again items were removed from the site.
During 1999 and 2001 there were two organised "trips" to the wreck site. The first trip in 1999 was unsuccesful, but in 2001 the aircraft KL654/R was identified from unique markings on engine and chassis parts and the paintwork, "Snake" and "R". The numbers allowed the aircraft to be identified as being a Royal Air Force aircraft delivered to Great Britain by the US between February and May 1945. This was the first time we could be sure the aircraft was a British wreck. Since that time the expeditions to the site have been led by the Malaysia Historical Group.
It was from 2001 that the campaign to have the men exhumed and given a proper burial has really started.
In 2006 Members of the group found that the main parts of the wreckage were found
scattered in a valley about 100 metres down a two-
In 2007 they returned to KL654R accompanied by the British DA and Col. Paul Edwards. They found two ring's, one jack knife, one manufacture plate which later confirmed the aircraft id and one specimen suspected as human bone. All these finding's were handed over to the British High Comm and the specimen was later sent to to the Forensic Dept, HKL.
The final trip to KL654R was made in August 2008 by the Malaysia Historical Group once again. They found a human bone and a personel bracelet which belonged to Air Bombardier, Flying Officer JT Bromfield.
Since the wreck has been confirmed as belonging to the Royal Air Force there has been a constant campaign to exhume the bodies of the eight crew and give them a proper military burial. In June 2008 a local MP asked the Ministry of Defence if they would search the site and exhume the bodies of the crew. The families want to see their loved ones given the burial that they deserve.
In March this year Arthur Lane and Joe Bamford set about obtaining volunteers to pay there own way to go over and exhume the bodies of the crew and uncover as much of the wreck as possible. Any personal items of the crewmen would be returned to the families at their request. The expedition will be led by the Malaysia Historical Group and the Time Line Expedition. A team from the Great Britain will work alongside the MHG in approximately three weeks spent in the jungle at the crash site. It is intended that the site be thoroughly investigated for a final time and all remains of the crew recovered and identified, prior to being finally laid to rest.
Arthur Lane
KL654 Expedition 2009
Liberator KL654 crashed on 23 August 1945 while carrying out a long range supply
dropping sortie from the Cocos Islands to central Malaya. The aircraft was presumed
to have ditched in to the sea but many years later it was found to have crashed in
dense jungle near Seremaban. Despite being informed about KL654 being discovered
the British authorities failed to act and it has been repeatedly ignored.
The primary
aim of the group of volunteers that is travelling to Malaysia to work on the crash
site of R.A.F. Liberator KL654 and to search the area for any remains of the eight
man crew. After over sixty years all that they can be expected to find is bone fragments
and some more personal possessions such has already been found in the form of belt
buckles, rings and I.D. tags.
The secondary aim is to take whatever they suspect to
be human remains to the museum and local hospital for analysis and D.N.A. testing.
If they should prove positively to be human remains then we shall inform the relatives.
Finally the remains will be interned in the nearest British Military War Cemetery
with Full Military Honours. We would expect the M.o.D. to pay for or fly out any
relatives or 356 Squadron members that wish to attend.
Having worked on the KL654 project with Arthur Lane for over two years I feel that
the matter has to be resolved. We have been to the House of Lords and spoken to many
powerful and influential people. We have had many promises that have been made but
never fulfilled.
All we are asking is that the Government helps to recover the remains
of eight airmen who gave their lives for their country. A Christian burial or a ceremony
appropriate to their beliefs and religions is all we want. That will provide closure
for the families and friends after many years of heart ache.
Joe Bamford.
Vice Chairman
NESA
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.
Vice Chairman
NESA
KL654R
On August 23rd 1945 KL654R crashed into the Malaysian jungle. It was originally believed to have gone down into the sea. The B24 Liberator was carrying 8 crew, all of which are listed on the Singapore Memorial, the bodies of the men never recovered. It wasn't until January 1973 that a group of Dutch backpackers stumbled across the wreckage of an aircraft that had clearly been there for some time. The Dutch backpackers took some items away from the wreckage and when they returned to Kuala Lumpar they passed the discovery of a wreck to the British Embassy. The British Embassy replied that it was not a British wreck.
As far as we know the wreck of the aircraft remained undisturbed until 1991 when
some Orang Asli rattan-
They were lead by two Orang Asli guides; 53-
The group lost their way a number of times and at one point trekked down the ridge to end up in Seremban, which was quite some distance from the site (around 16 kilometers). They finally located the wreckage when Pak Abu chanced upon a one cent Indian coin and a cangkul on top of the ridge. Following the discovery the RMAF used a Land Rover to drive up to the site which was at the end of a logging trail. The RMAF team brought chain saws and power cutters to cut trees down around the crash site, and used plastic explosives to create a landing pad on top of the ridge.
The RMAF used power cutters to cut up the blades of the aircraft and carried them individually up the slope to the landing pad. Some other parts were carried in gunny sacks, but apparently the whole exercise was later abandoned. According to Pak Abu, the RMAF commandos found some human remains while digging in the sand close to the wreckage, including what appeared to be a human skull. Unfortunately it was mouldy and disintegrated at their touch. They also found a rusty revolver which again crumbled at the touch, and a number of rusty and twisted 12.7mm shells that appeared to have exploded, most probably in the ensuing fire.
In 1992 the wreck was rediscovered by a British researcher who again reported the find to the British Embassy in Kuala Lumpar. The same year a small team from the RMAF again visited the site, this time they found a skull, that was in poor condition and was left at the site. Two years later a three man team from the Malaysia Military History Museum visited the site took photographs and made a report. The British Embassy in Kuala Lumpar were again informed. This time the British Embassy stated that the wreck was not a British wreck so nothing could be done.
1996 saw a one failed attempt to reach the wreck by historians and one recorded tourist visit to the site, by a group of Australians. Once again items were removed from the site.
During 1999 and 2001 there were two organised "trips" to the wreck site. The first trip in 1999 was unsuccesful, but in 2001 the aircraft KL654/R was identified from unique markings on engine and chassis parts and the paintwork, "Snake" and "R". The numbers allowed the aircraft to be identified as being a Royal Air Force aircraft delivered to Great Britain by the US between February and May 1945. This was the first time we could be sure the aircraft was a British wreck. Since that time the expeditions to the site have been led by the Malaysia Historical Group.
It was from 2001 that the campaign to have the men exhumed and given a proper burial has really started.
In 2006 Members of the group found that the main parts of the wreckage were found
scattered in a valley about 100 metres down a two-
In 2007 they returned to KL654R accompanied by the British DA and Col. Paul Edwards. They found two ring's, one jack knife, one manufacture plate which later confirmed the aircraft id and one specimen suspected as human bone. All these finding's were handed over to the British High Comm and the specimen was later sent to to the Forensic Dept, HKL.
The final trip to KL654R was made in August 2008 by the Malaysia Historical Group once again. They found a human bone and a personel bracelet which belonged to Air Bombardier, Flying Officer JT Bromfield.
Since the wreck has been confirmed as belonging to the Royal Air Force there has been a constant campaign to exhume the bodies of the eight crew and give them a proper military burial. In June 2008 a local MP asked the Ministry of Defence if they would search the site and exhume the bodies of the crew. The families want to see their loved ones given the burial that they deserve.
In March this year Arthur Lane and Joe Bamford set about obtaining volunteers to pay there own way to go over and exhume the bodies of the crew and uncover as much of the wreck as possible. Any personal items of the crewmen would be returned to the families at their request. The expedition will be led by the Malaysia Historical Group and the Time Line Expedition. A team from the Great Britain will work alongside the MHG in approximately three weeks spent in the jungle at the crash site. It is intended that the site be thoroughly investigated for a final time and all remains of the crew recovered and identified, prior to being finally laid to rest.
Arthur Lane & Clayton Ford
KL654 Expedition 2009
The Malaysian Air Force pilot who as a child discovered the wreckage of KL654 after his father told him tales of a crash in the nearby jungle.
The crew of KL654
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