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Memorial to the Missing - Terendak Garrison, Malacca
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Post Memorial to the Missing - Terendak Garrison, Malacca 
I have just received this message:

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Name=Gale Austin
Subject=Terandak Camp

Message=I was delighted to learn recently,through a relative with Internet sleuth skills, of the memorial wall at Terandak that has the name of my father RW Richardson Flt Lt RAF who went missing with others in a plane accident 30.8.50. My mother and I had no idea of any recognition of his death anywhere, or who I should contact to thank for establishing the memorial. I have been told that there are no rememberance days at Terandak but I wonder how other families of people on this memorial find out about it and if they too wish to visit. I noted a comment from someone laying a wreath for a pilot who died in 1952 and would be very keen to hear of his experience. GA
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Can anyone provide any further information? If so, please respond here or contact me in the first instance and I'll pass your message on.

Thanks, Barry


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BarryF, who fought for the Right to Wear the Pingat Jasa Malaysia
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Barry. Re the downed aircraft . Strange ,but only a few days ago, a Malaysian contact sent me some info about a Dakota111, that took off from Changi , and crashed in the jungle while making an AD in Kelantan. The nearest town of any importance to this particular crashed site, is Gua Musang South Kelantan. Although the date I have is that the aircraft crashed on the 25th August 1950, and the one in your email is 30th August 1950, I would say it's the same aircraft ,of which 12 RAF personal and civilians were killed when it crashed.
Roy.

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Thanks, Roy. I'll pass the info on to Gale. If you have any more details, I am sure they will also be greatfully received. Barry


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BarryF, who fought for the Right to Wear the Pingat Jasa Malaysia
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Post Malaysian Star Newspaper. 
The following, which appeared recently in the Star newspaper, Malaysia, and sent to me by my son, may be of assistance to Gale Austen.

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KOTA BARU: History will be made in Gua Musang several weeks from now when a joint search and recovery effort is launched to retrieve the bodies of the crew and wreckage of a downed military aircraft, which crashed near the Kuala Betis-Cameron Highlands in 1950.

The Royal Air Force (RAF) Douglas Dakota KM630 aircraft had crashed at the height of the communist insurgency and records from the British and Malaysian military, indicate that there were 12 crew members on board.

The 12 comprised three RAF pilots, six British army officers, one Royal Malaysian police constable, one orang asli and a Kelantan Development Corporation civilian officer.

The constable had been identified as Mohamad Abdul Lalil @ Jalil whose service number was 9364 and the civilian was Yaakup Mamat. The aircraft took off from the RAF base in Changi, Singapore, to pick up "assets" in Kota Baru before embarking on a mission in Gua Musang as a "smoke marker" for RAF aircraft bombers.

The widely deployed US-made Dakota aircraft was used for multiple missions in the fight against communists and one of it was laying down "smoke markers" to mark the spots where bombs could be dropped.

However, on that day, the aircraft crashed into the foothills and all passengers and crew perished.

An army foot patrol was dispatched to the scene and managed to locate the wreckage hours later, stuck in hard and high terrain.

The patrol hastily buried the crew members as they could not bring them or the wreckage out, owing to the difficult terrain and the communist threat. Decades later, a British crew member's next of kin formally wrote to the British Defence Ministry seeking to revisit the scene.

For the last few days, scouting teams descended onto Gua Musang to begin the process of search and recovery of the bodies including the possibility of bringing down the wreckage, which is now a relic.

Royal Malaysian Police museum director Supt Syed Zainal Abidin Syed Zain said the police were looking for the next of kin of the three Malaysian casualties.

Royal British High Commission Defence attache Col Paul Edwards said he was working closely with the Malaysian Defence Ministry and hopes that within the next several weeks, the recovery process would be completed.

Col Edwards said the outcome is a form of positive news for both the British and Malaysian public besides the surviving relatives.

A symbolic military ceremony for the fallen would also be held at the site. DNA testing would also be conducted to ascertain the identities of the crew.

The Dakota aircraft was a workhorse for the RAF in Malaya after World War II with squadrons based in Butterworth, Penang and Singapore.

__________________________________________________________________________
Your one-stop information portal:
The Star Online
http://thestar.com.my

Note - Colonel Paul Edwards, who is at the British High Commission, Kuala Lumpur, is a very courteous and helpful man and I am sure he would be willing to help.

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Post Re: Malaysian Star Newspaper. 
mcdangle wrote:
The following, which appeared recently in the Star newspaper, Malaysia, and sent to me by my son, may be of assistance to Gale Austen.


Thanks Andy. I have sent Gale the info. Barry


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BarryF, who fought for the Right to Wear the Pingat Jasa Malaysia
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Post Two incidents, I think 
Roy,

You are probably right in thinking that there were two incidents and that the report refers to the 'wrong' one. I have examined the list of RAF personnel on the Memorial to the Missing at Terendak. Three men are listed as having died on the 25th August - and this ties in with the newspaper report.

Gale's father is one of seven RAF men killed on the 31st August.

I have reported this to Gale

Thanks again,

Barry

http://www.fight4thepjm.org/documents/RAF_Terendak_Memorial.xls


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BarryF, who fought for the Right to Wear the Pingat Jasa Malaysia
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Barry The Newspaper article Andy kindly posted about the downed aircraft gives more in depth details about it, than from what I received . Kuala /Sg Betis is some 15 -20 miles north eastish of Fort Brooke and although I never went there ,I knew about it from the local orang Asli . At the time the region was not mapped nor was it fully explored. The attached map one of my original op ones (Part only ) shows this . The terrain in this uncharted region, is mountainous jungle, some towering 4k/5k ft high, with many rivers and valley's, which would have made it difficult for the SF to locate the wreckage Fort Brooke is maked X lower right hand corner. I hope the map goes through
Best wishes
Roy.



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Barry, it might be the same aircraft and RAF losses would show that but as to the difference in dates remember that the casualty reporting proceedures only place them 'missing' at frst and only as killed once either their death has been confirmed or there is no positive news after a period of time this may explain the difference in dates. Check the RAF losses schedule for a Dak over Malaya and see if two were lost or if there was only the one, if it was on special ops perhaps only the crew were recorded on that memorial and the army personnel elsewhere.
John

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Barry, my apologies for not seeing this one earlier.

The accident in which Gale's father died is most probably this one:

30 Aug 50 KN240 Dakota C4 110 Sqn South China Sea 9 fatalities.

The aircraft was en-route from Singapore to Saigon when it crashed into the South China Sea. Only one survivor; Major Lowther, was picked up and the cause of the loss was not satisfactorily established.

Flying Officer R J D Dench 27 Pilot
Pilot III G J McDonald 25 Co-pilot
Flight Lieutenant R W Richardson Navigator
Flying Officer H A Axon Navigator
Flying Officer A E J Baxter Signaller
Squadron Leader V H Dean
LAC A E Bone
AC1 A K Caton
Captain J D'A Costerton 32 RA attached HQFELF


The details in italics were taken from the book 'Last Take-off' by Colin Cummings.

I think I may well be the person that is mentioned 'laying a wreath for a pilot who died in 1952'. This I, and Tunku Mahood Shah, did early in 2004 for a pilot who went missing in March 1952 on a night navigation exercise from RAF Tengah.

Do you know if Gale has a photo of the Memorial Wall at Terendak? If not, I have one that I can forward. Unforetunately, I do not have a photo of the plaque that his name is recorded on. I would also be happy to talk to Gale about my visit there and answer any questions.

By the way, Terendak is, I recently discovered, now fully covered by photos on Google Earth. Although it takes a little finding, the cemetery is visible, very close to the old airstrip.

Addtionally, here is an update on the recovery of remains from near Gua Musang mentioned by Andy above:

http://www.thestar.com.my/news/story.asp?file=/2008/11/15/nation/20081115164809&sec=nation

At least this crew, from 52 Sqn, and their pax can now have a proper final resting place.

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LaurieB wrote:
Do you know if Gale has a photo of the Memorial Wall at Terendak? If not, I have one that I can forward. Unforetunately, I do not have a photo of the plaque that his name is recorded on. I would also be happy to talk to Gale about my visit there and answer any questions.


Thanks very much for the very interesting reply, Laurie.

I have sent Gale an email with a link to your post.

All the best,

Barry


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I was browsing the British High Commission in KL website earlier and came across this:

http://ukinmalaysia.fco.gov.uk/en/our-office-in-malaysia/stories-high-commission/operation-gariswaktu

It is an open letter from the Defence Advisor at the BHC and, besides giving some details of the operation to recover the crew remains from the aircraft mentioned in Roy and Andy's post above, thanks the Malaysian authorities and people for their help in the operation.

It seems that Col Edwards has discovered what those of us who have served in Malaya/Malaysia have known for a very long time; just how generous and gracious the Malaysian people are.

I wonder if his comments will filter down to those in the corridors at Whitehall?

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Laurie,

I have just sent the following email to the HC in KL.


I refer to the following article which has been drawn to my attention, written by Colonel Paul Edwards MBE., the Defence Adviser in KL, at this, URL....

http://ukinmalaysia.fco.gov.uk/en/our-office-in-malaysia/stories-high-commission/operation-gariswaktu

As a former ground-crew member of 52 Squadron RAF, please convey my personal thanks to Col. Paul Edwards for this fine piece of reporting by a serving Army Officer, representing the UK Government in Malaysia.

I take this opportunity to write that seldom do we come across such favourable mention of the assistance that UK service men and women, have always received from the peoples of Malaysia. And I thank again the peoples of Malaysia for their assistance in the arduous recovery of the remains of our lost comrades.


Lest We Forget.


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