Aug 29,1944 - program of the 65th anniversary commemration (1 Viewer)

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Thanks everyone, and thanks Karl; I'd just posted the article when I realised I hadn't photographed the wooden B17 !!
 
Roman although you have met up with W. Reschke several times has there ever been any consideration to contact former members of JG 300 to attend the memorial ceremonies ? not sure how the rest of you and the US servicemen would of felt or feel about this but thought I would ask anyway. I do now that many former LW pilots of JG 300 have passed on over the eyars so maybe this was just and is impossible due to ages of these men...........

E ~
 
Hi Erich, few years ago I was trying to trace some still living pilots claiming Abschuss or Herausabschuss that day but found only Willi Reschke. I was close to find Hans-Otto Nehls (11./JG300) but he passed away in 2004. I stayed in touch with his daughter who send me some pics of him from WW2 and today and complete log book but I´ll always regret I haven´t found him earlier. He was that one who met my friend Joe Owsianik in jail in my born town, ordered to bring him food, drink and gave him cigarretts after he found out Joe haven´t eaten anything in last 2 or 3 days. To organize the meeting of those two would be something special...

Here is the list of the German fighters with claims from that day:
Fw. Karl Schauenberg, 4./JG300
Fw. Konrad Bauer, 5./JG300
Fw. Walter Vogel, 2./JG3
Uffz. Rudolf Hennersdorf, 1./JG300
Fw. Walter Loos, Stab/JG300
Uffz. Jürgen Wellhausen, 7./JG300
Uffz. Afred Büthe, 3./JG300
Fw Willi Unger, 15./JG3, 2 victories
Uffz. Heinz-Julius Uchdorf, 16./JG3
Uffz. Klaus Neumann, 16./JG3
Oblt. Eberhard Schade, 6./JG27
Uffz. Hannes Schmitz, 1./JG300
Uffz. Paul Mang, 9./JG53
Uffz. Willi Reschke, 1./JG302
Uffz. Herman Heck, 9./JG53
Ofw. Adalbert Koch, 6./JG300
Ltn. Werner Hermann, 10./JG53
Uffz. Herman Pusch, 11./JG53 (or Günther Busch?)
Oblt. Karl Ritter, 11./JG53
Ltn. Josef Törfer, 5./JG27
Obfw. Heinz Nevack, 1./JG302
Ofhr. Gerhard Piel, 5./JG300
Uffz. Hansotto Nehls, 11./JG300
Flg. Fritz Weinzierl, 11./JG53
Fw. Rudolf Zwesken, 6./JG300
Ltn. Lutz-Gottfried Hengst, 9./JG300
Ofhr. Herbert Köhler, 9./JG300

This is the official list. As you sure know, Ofw. Heinz Nevack (1./JG302 has never existed). The correct name is Ofw. Heinrich Weuack who served in 2./JG300. I´m in touch with his son as well.

Anyway Erich, do you think that anyone from them is still alive?
 
Kelly, I just got a message from a friend of mine. I´ve never met him before the commemoration but we know each other from one Czech avaition forum. He decided to come to see the commemoration and drove some 270 miles to Slavicin and toke his young son with him.

And now, in his message, he says: 'Roman, wherever we are, my son never wants to use my camera to take pics by himself. This time he wanted to have the camera all the time. I was wondering why. Today I downloaded all the pics to my PC and now I understand- on at least half of all the pictures there´s Kelly´s daughter Cassandra...:oops::lol:
 
Terry I read 5 pages of your account because I'm off to go check out my P-40 kit and see if she's going into the GB or not hehe. I will finish that later, GREAT so far!
 
Ah, Ram Bovines, maybe that's where the name 'Rambo' came from!!
Anyway, here's my short, illustrated account of our trip to the 65th Anniversary of the Air Battle over the White Carpathians. To save cluttering the thread, and for ease of reading, it's in a PDF.

Terry...got no words but thank you!
I´ll send it to all of my friends by e-mail if you don´t mind...
I didn´t know your last nite in Slavicin was so...heavy...gotta ask Anton and George tomorrow8)

And I´m very sorry, I didn´t realized it but on Tuesday or Wednesday morning you could visit our museum in Slavicin again. I´d just call to a friend of mine and he would open it just for you.
I´m really very sorry...
 
The museum in Slavicin is no problem Roman. Next year, when I come again, I will be staying longer, so there will be plenty of time to see it at leisure - and have a few more beers, 'T' Stoff...oh, and watch the beautiful girls walk by !!!
I'd better be careful, otherwise I will be moving to Slavicin to live...if they'll have me!!
 
Kelly, I just got a message from a friend of mine. I´ve never met him before the commemoration but we know each other from one Czech avaition forum. He decided to come to see the commemoration and drove some 270 miles to Slavicin and toke his young son with him.

And now, in his message, he says: 'Roman, wherever we are, my son never wants to use my camera to take pics by himself. This time he wanted to have the camera all the time. I was wondering why. Today I downloaded all the pics to my PC and now I understand- on at least half of all the pictures there´s Kelly´s daughter Cassandra...:oops::lol:


That's is hilarious. Cassie wants to know if it was the little blonde haired boy. So cute. Cassandra is very flattered.

Tell the father we'd love to have copies if he hasn't deleted them already (although I hope he hasn't deleted them..... as that's great story material as is son gets older..... oh look- here's all the photos you took of that American girl..... remember when.......

Torturing your children like that makes parenting so much fun and he has torture material to last a very long time!!
 
Hi Erich, few years ago I was trying to trace some still living pilots claiming Abschuss or Herausabschuss that day but found only Willi Reschke. I was close to find Hans-Otto Nehls (11./JG300) but he passed away in 2004. I stayed in touch with his daughter who send me some pics of him from WW2 and today and complete log book but I´ll always regret I haven´t found him earlier. He was that one who met my friend Joe Owsianik in jail in my born town, ordered to bring him food, drink and gave him cigarretts after he found out Joe haven´t eaten anything in last 2 or 3 days. To organize the meeting of those two would be something special...

This is the official list. As you sure know, Ofw. Heinz Nevack (1./JG302 has never existed). The correct name is Ofw. Heinrich Weuack who served in 2./JG300. I´m in touch with his son as well.

Anyway Erich, do you think that anyone from them is still alive?

For me, it would be something special.

I'd love to find out where Russell's dogtags are and I'd love to be able to return them to the family.
I thought they stayed with Russell and were them of course buried with him and then came back to the states with him. But my father says no, that they weren't there and the Germans kept them.

Any help on that front Roman would be greatly appreciated.
 
That's is hilarious. Cassie wants to know if it was the little blonde haired boy. So cute. Cassandra is very flattered.

Tell the father we'd love to have copies if he hasn't deleted them already (although I hope he hasn't deleted them..... as that's great story material as is son gets older..... oh look- here's all the photos you took of that American girl..... remember when.......

Torturing your children like that makes parenting so much fun and he has torture material to last a very long time!!

Yep, that was him, so Cassandra noted it as well :) .
Did they speach to each other? As I´am wondering where does he know Cassandra´s name from...

And yes, I´ll ask him for te pics.
 
For me, it would be something special.

I'd love to find out where Russell's dogtags are and I'd love to be able to return them to the family.
I thought they stayed with Russell and were them of course buried with him and then came back to the states with him. But my father says no, that they weren't there and the Germans kept them.

Any help on that front Roman would be greatly appreciated.

I´ll try to help you to get them back to your family. They are in USA, I´d say in Wash. DC.
If am I not wrong I guess I got a picture of them in my PC. Let you know this afternoon.
Yep, just got the word it is here National Archives and Records Administration
Anyway, I just sent you an e-mail with Russell´s dog tag pics.
 
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OMG Roman- that info gave me goose bumps. I sent the info to my dad and he is going to start the process of getting the tags. We decided that we'll keep them with the flag from Russell's funeral. (It's the folded one- and we have it in a glass flag table- it's beautiful.) And hand them down as a "set" through the Meyrick generations.

My children loved their time with everyone. They loved all the memorials and still haven't stopped talking about it. They will tell anyone and everyone they see about their time and how nice and generous everyone was- and they are planning their return trip.

They loved Prague as well- even though it was rushed, we saw a lot. It's gorgeous. It was an amazing trip.

I'm just glad I was able to bring them and experience everything with my children and my dad. My dad and I have always had a great relationship and shared a love of family history- even the appreciation of family history and roots. SO to experience this with him and to pass that on to my children is something I will treasure forever. Even when we return and even if other family joins us in future years- this year will always have the special "something". That feeling of total amazement and awe and appreciation to the Czech People for everything.

Something you may not has known- Russell's dad (my great grandfather) was named William. Russell's middle name is William, my dad's middle name is William and Andrew's middle name is William. Russell was the oldest, my dad was the oldest, I am the oldest and Andrew is the oldest. (My middle name isn't William, but my brother's is ). I hope Andrew and Cassie will carry that tradition.

I also know that for my dad and I, making the trip helped fill in the missing part in our live from never knowing Russell. It's helped his siblings begin to tell stories and share about him, in ways they couldn't before. It's helped with closure. I know my dad felt the "hole" as I did- never knowing Russell. I'm not sure about my siblings. I know my dad' sister mentioned never being able to meet him and have him in our lives and how she felt a missing piece. I hope she'll get to make the trip one day.

OK- time to get back to work.(Yes, I'm still at work at this hour on a Friday) Too much to do. Still feeling like a headless chicken and need to fix that for next week.

I'll be on later to post what I promised about Mission 263 and I'll post about Russell.

Oh- Roman, I'm putting a small package in the mail for you next week- photos on a CD and some cards for people I hope you'll deliver for me (just some thank you notes). Be on the look out for it. :)
 
Thank you for your kind words Kelly! It´s the same for me- I´ll never forget our meeting!
And I am already looking 4ward 2 our next meeting!
I go to Rudice tomorrow to see George and some other people there. When I was at George´s few days before the commemoration with Nic to taste his Slivovice (George calls such actions a team building:lol: ) probably I tasted too much and forgot one publication there. It´s very rare publication as it was published in 1945. It´s about the air battle. So I´m going to pick it up tomorrow morning. And, in the afternoon, I´go to watch the icehockey game with Tommy here in Zlin. Finally, our hockey league begun...
Say hello to all your family. Btw, do you have slivovice yet?8)
And, did you get all the e-mails I sent you yesterday?
And, I´m looking 4ward to my package. I´ll send you my pics as well.
 
For the first time I am going to leave off my position of silent observer and reader and I am going to add something myself. Roman suggested me to register and join your forum and I do not regret it. It's been so nice to read all your comments. I enjoyed being part of the commemoration events very much and meeting you. It was unforgettable for me too, despite the fact I've been taking part in these commemorations in more than last 15 years. I look forward to meeting you next year again, if not sooner than that. And you are always welcome to stay in our house in Brno.

Jana Turcinkova, granddaugher of Mojmir Baca (friend of Loy Dickinson)
 

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