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Commonwealth War Graves Protestant Churchyard Jelsum

The Cemetery of the Protestant Church in Jelsum, Leeuwarderadeel municipality, contains seven Commonwealth war graves.
These are the graves of airmen of the No. 103 Squadron RAF who died on 05-09-1942.

Flight Sergeant Alec Henry Beesley, 404631, RAAF, age 26
Flying Officer Sydney Frank Belbin, 408140, RAAF, age 33
Sergeant James Grant Crockett, 403393, RAAF, age 33
Flight Sergeant Ernest Lewis Davies, 404934, RAAF, age 24
Sergeant (Flt. Engr.) John James Parish, 622589, age 22
Flight Sergeant (Air Gnr.) Sydney Mervyn Selway, 1376161, age 22
Sergeant (W.Op./Air Gnr.) John Douglas Whitehead, 1057167, age 22

On 5 September 1942 at 0001 departed from RAF Elsham Wolds, the Halifax W1220 with the mission: a bombing raid over the city of Bremen in Germany. The aircraft was shot down over the Netherlands by a German night-fighter and crashed down at 0339 in Jelsum. All crew members died in the crash, they are all buried in this cemetery.

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Source

  • Text: TracesOfWar.nl
  • Photos: Nico Nienhuis