Making contact with Rosemary Bellis (Jack Murray Clyde Wilson daughter) has proved an invaluable asset. I had been struggling for some time with the language barrier. There was also a need for someone local in the Netherlands to help me find the crash location. Karl Lusink had given me a start, but I had not heard from him since 2009. I needed help. Step up Rosemary. She had been to Holland with her Mother and visited the grave of her Father many years ago.

During conversations with Rosemary, I explained my wish to visit the crash site. I desperately needed a contact in Holland. She began to explain that years before, she had homed a Dutch exchange student. The families had remained close.

Rosemary contacted Eric Mackay. He lived near The Hague. Eric was more than happy to help with my search. He made contact with Henk Ten Pas. Henk had worked in local government. He knew who to contact. The ball is now rolling.

16th July 2012 the first time

Eric Mackay has arranged for us to meet with him in Zutphen. My brother Geoffrey and I fly out and drive to Gelderland for the first time. My heart and mind are filled with anticipation. Are we really about to find the last resting place of JB603?

Eric explains that they have found the location with the help of Henk Ten Pas. The local historical group, De Elf Marken, and Henk Bruil also assisted. We all meet at a field on the Harfsensteeg. Local farmer Ab Hemeltjen is there to meet us. He lived as a boy in the farm next to the field. This is it. I’m finally standing in the location where JB603 crashed in January 1945. My thoughts are with those seven men who lost their lives that night. I also think of my father. He never knew the story. I wonder what he would have been thinking had he lived to see this day.

A surprise visitor is at the site. A local reporter from De Stentor newspaper has come along to hear the story. My brother and I have become the historians from England. Remember how I said local papers love the local history story!