Last Post - Pilot Officer Edmond Kenneth (Ken) Wilson
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Source: http://www.vac-acc.gc.ca/remembers and Shane Kelly, grand nephew of Edmond Kenneth Wilson
The graves of the crew are all in a row, as follows:
Left to Right: Edgar Clark, Lloyd Frizzell, Ab Rowley, Ken Wilson, Louis Basarb of the Ab Steeves Crew
Photo courtesy of the Jim McPhee trip to Reichswald Forest War Cemetery.
To see more images and read about Jim McPhee's trip click here.
The Grave marker at Reichswald is shown below. The image was photographed by Pat Toal while visiting the nearby grave of a family relative in 1993. She searched for and eventually located the family of Edmond Kenneth Wilson. To read her blog of this amazing search for the family, click here. To read more about Edmond Kenneth Wilson, click here.
Image courtesy of Pat Toal, 1993 |
Pilot Officer Edmond Kenneth Wilson
Image courtesy of Shane Kelly, great nephew of Edmond Kenneth Wilson
Pilot Officer Edmond Kenneth Wilson enlisted in 1941, and received Initial Training at Valcartier, Quebec and Moncton, New Brunswick. He graduated from the Wireless School at Guelph and then attended Bombing and Gunnery School at Jarvis. He was posted overseas in March, 1943 and completed his first tour of operations mostly in Iceland. He was transferred back to the UK, 408 Squadron, when he signed up for a second tour and joined the Ab Steeves crew.
Pilot Officer Edmond Kenneth Wilson and his crew, the A. E. Steeves crew were shot down over Germany November 21, 1944. Their Halifax NP810 plane crashed at a farm on the outskirts of Trill, 8 kms from Dusseldorf. The report below from www.rcaf.com is the Daily operations report from the day.
November 21/22, 1944
175 Halifaxes from 408, 415, 420, 424, 425, 426, 427, 429, 432, 433, and 434 Squadrons were joined by 55 Lancasters from 419, 428, and 431 Squadrons on an attack of the oil refinery at Castrop-Rauxel. The crews were over the target at between 17,000 and 19,000 feet, releasing 1,807,000 lbs of high explosives. According to reports, the plant was accurately bombed and severe damage was caused.
_______________________________
F/Lt A. E. Steeves RCAF–POW and crew from 408 Squadron, flying Halifax VII NP-810 coded EQ-H, failed to return from this operation.
Sgt H. Clark RAF
F/O A. Rowley RCAF
F/O L. Frizzell RCAF
P/O E. Wilson RCAF
Sgt J. McPhee RCAF–POW
P/O L. Basarab RCAF
5 crew were killed and 2 crew became POWs, the Pilot A. E. Steeves, and Jim McPhee. Source: www.6grouprcaf.com. Click here to see the Daily Ops report.
"Serial Range NP793 - NP821. 28 Halifax Mk.V11. Part of a batch of 200 HP Halifax Mk. delivered by Handley Page (Cricklewood & Radlett) between 9Sep44 and 26Sep44. NP810 was initially issued to No.426 Sqdn. Airborne 1520 21Nov44 from Linton-on-Ouse. Cause of loss and crash- site not established. Those killed are buried in the Reichswald Forest War Cemetery. F/L A.E.Steeves RCAF PoW Sgt H.E.Clark KIA F/O A.B.Rowley RCAF KIA F/O L.W.Frizzell RCAF KIA WO1 E.K.Wilson RCAF Inj Sgt J.A.McPhee RCAF PoW Sgt L.Basarab RCAF KIA Sgt J.A.McPhee was interned in Camp L7, PoW No.1248. F/L A.E.Steeves in Camp L1, PoW No.6731. WO1 E.K.Wilson died the same day of his injuries." Click here to read the entire report from .http://www.lostbombers.co.uk
Some 60 years later, former POW Jim McPhee was contacted by Thomas Boller of Dusseldorf, Germany, informing him that he had seen the motor from his plane. He and Hanna Eggerath researched the origin of the motor and discovered it was from a Halifax bomber, shot down November 21, 1944. They traced the crew and found that Jim McPhee was the only living survivor of the crew. Jim decided to go to Germany to visit the scene of that tragic night, accompanied by the son of RAF Sergeant Clark who had been his crewmate, John Clarke, and his grandson, Todd McPhee. They photographed the image of all the crew graves in a row. Unbeknownst to Jim McPhee, Pat Toal had visited the same row of graves some 15 yeaars earlier, 1993, and photographed the grave marker of Edmond Kenneth Wilson. Her image is shown at left.
The final image at left is the certificate issued by the Commonwealth War Graves Commission in memory of Pilot Officer Edmond Kenneth Wilson who finally rests in Reichswald Forest War Cemetery with other members of his crew. Click here to visit their site.
Click here to read the ""They Shall Grow Not Old" entry for Pilot Officer Edmond Kenneth Wilson.
Click here to see the "They Shall Grow Not Old" entry for Edmond Kenneth Wilson. This entry is from the Memorial Book, They Shall Grow Not Old which was meticulously researched and compiled by authors Les Allison and Harry Hayward. This critically acclaimed memorial and historical documentation has been compiled to honour all Canadian Airmen and Airwomen who served in the Second World War and to give Remembrance of the over 18,000 members of the RCAF who paid the supreme sacrifice for God and Country.