Families of World War Two airmen from County Durham will pay their last respects when their relatives are finally laid to rest after nearly 80 years.
The wreckage of Stirling BK716 was discovered in Lake Markermeer, near Amsterdam, in 2020 along with the remains of its crew- some 77 years after the RAF bomber was shot down in 1943.
Dutch authorities and local historians began trying to trace surviving relatives of the five British and two Canadian airmen on board, but were unable to locate the families of two County Durham crew members: Charles Armstrong Bell, originally from Langley Park, and Sergeant Ronald Kennedy, also from County Durham.
READ MORE: The amazing 100-year-old travelogue of first 'modern' woman to walk Hadrian's Wall
Out of the blue, they contacted Sgt Paul Mawson, then a beat sergeant for Durham Constabulary based at Consett, who was able to track down the surviving families of the local men in his spare time.
As a result, relatives of both men came forward and now Sgt Mawson has been invited to join them as they pay their last respects while the airmen’s remains are finally interred at Jonkerbos military cemetery in Nijmegen in a ceremony held on Wednesday.
In an invite to the service, Lilian van Mourik, programme manager with the Dutch authorities organising the commemoration, said: “Due to his effort and dedication, the family members will be able to attend the crew’s burial in September. We would like to express our thanks for the amazing detective work he has done.
“It is incredible that after nearly 80 years, people like Sergeant Paul Mawson are willing to go the extra mile in helping family members and providing them with answers to what happened to their loved ones.
“It is important to have people who make a difference. His effort pays a heartfelt tribute to the lost crew and their family members.”
Earlier this year, a memorial to the crew of Stirling BK716 was unveiled in the Netherlands and Sgt Mawson received a commendation from the Bomber Command Museum of Canada for his work in tracing the families.
The burial service is being jointly organised by the Ministry of Defence’s Joint Casualty and Compassionate Centre and the Royal Canadian Air Force.
Sgt Mawson added: “It was really nice to receive the recognition, but the most important thing to me is that these young men can be laid to rest with their families around them – and to be able to stand alongside the families at that emotional moment is a genuine honour.”
READ NEXT:
- End of the line for the Tyneside railway station that was 'Britain’s least attractive'
- When the Auf Wiedersehen, Pet star and the lead singer of The Who teamed up
- The 38 Newcastle United players who have represented England at full international level
- Newcastle 270 years ago - a brutal murder in the Bigg Market and a botched execution
- 90 years of Marks & Spencer on Newcastle's Northumberland Street
