大象传媒

I am looking for any family of Sgt Leslie Raeburn Royston Alistair PARKER RAF who was a member of 31 Sqdn SAAF based at Celone ,Foggia Italy 1944 .

Leslie Parker was killed in northern Italy in a Liberator [KG874] crash on the night of 12th Oct.1944 while on a supply dropping mission to Italian partisans.
Twenty Liberators,of 31 and 34 SAAF,each with 8 crew took off on 12/10/44 from the Celone ,Foggia base in southern Italy but six planes failed to return.48 men were killed or missing, mainly, it is thought, because of sudden bad weather & poor ground visibility near the drop zones and possibly enemy ack ack .

Leslie's family lived in Lutterworth, Bicester & Raglan Street,Leicester possibly early/mid -late 1940s. I believe Raglan St. no longer exists ? Father was Alfred Parker. Mother was Mildred D.A. Parker [nee Plant] Possibly one brother, Alfred George Parker or perhaps more siblings?

There is to be a 31/34 SAAF commemoration event in South Africa in September this year to remember the 48 men who failed to return to base that night [12/10/44] to which crew relatives are invited .I'm trying to find Leslie's relatives to let them know of this event.
His mother corresponded with a SAAF crew member's mother in 1944 and the South African family still have the letters .

My Australian RAAF [31 SAAF] father was also on the same mission and his Liberator [KH158] & crew disappeared that night .Wreckage never found.
I have been researching his wartime life in 104 RAF and 31 SAAF Italy & searching for crew relatives.I have been successful in finding both RAF and SAAF crew relatives.
The SAAF sdns in Italy were made up of Commonwealth crews.

Can anyone help ?

AE Storm
storm04@globalnet.co.uk

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