The relatives of World War Two pilot, Flight Sergeant Kenneth Chapman from Westbury, who died on board a Lancaster, attended a special service in Berlin recently to see Kenneth’s final resting place rededicated.
Ken Davis and his wife Esther who live in Westbury, travelled to Berlin for a rededication service at Berlin 1939-1945 War Cemetery in Germany having been found following an appeal by MOD to trace family of the crew of Lancaster JB640. The graves of the crew have now finally been rededicated following years of research into their identities.
Ken, who is Kenneth’s nephew said, “It went really well and we are so pleased we went. My wife and I went together with my cousin Gillian Hurn and her husband, which was nice. It’s all been quite an whirlwind, but we are very pleased we had the opportunity to go.
“When we arrived in Berlin, the weather was grey and overcast and for most of the service the weather was miserable, but as soon as the RAF bugler finished playing ‘The Last Post’, the sun broke through the clouds and shone on us. That was very moving.
“What was also quite moving was seeing all the graves of those who died, and most of them were so young. It was a very special day and so well organised. I was asked to do a reading at the service which I was very proud to do.
“We spoke to other families, which was lovely. There was a gentleman there who was a Pathfinder, and he was 94 years old.
“It was an emotional experience, especially when their names were read out, but we all said how pleased we were that we were able to go. If we visit Berlin again, we will certainly go back and visit the grave.”
Lancaster JB 640 was lost on the night of 2nd or 3rd January 1944 on a sortie to Berlin. The Germans later reported via the Red Cross that two of the crew, Flight Sergeant Collens and Sergeant Woolven, and five unknowns had died, but no burial details were provided.
After the war, the Missing Research and Enquiries Unit (MREU) was unable to find any graves for this crew because of the difficulties and restrictions of investigating in the Russian zone of Berlin in the immediate post-war era.
It was only in 1976 that the Russians handed the remains of four individuals to the British authorities in Berlin, which the Russians said came from the crash site of a Second World War Lancaster bomber found in East Berlin.
The remains were examined and a pathologist determined they belonged to four adult males and had been dead for at least 30 years, but was unable to identify any individuals or connect them with the Lancaster crew.
Research done by the MOD’s air historical branch led them to believe that the four “unknown airmen” buried in Berlin War Cemetery are four crew members of Lancaster JB640.
Pictures: © Crown Copyright
