218 Squadron's Short Stirling III (#BK716) aircraft, with an aircrew of seven, took off from Downham Market for a night operation over Berlin, Germany; it was one of 328 bombers participating in this operation. The aircraft flew into stormy weather conditions (which included heavy icing and electrical storms) over the North Sea area; BK716 is thought to have either been hit by ground flak or affected by the weather. As a result, BK716 crashed into the Markermeer Lake near Almere in the Netherlands, taking the lives of the entire crew.

The airmen who perished in the crash were-

RAFVR Sergeant Charles Armstrong BELL,

RAFVR Flying Officer John Michael CAMPBELL,

RCAF Flying Officer Harry Gregory FARRINGTON,

RAFVR Flying Officer John Frederick HARRIS,

RAFVR Sergeant Ronald KENNEDY,

RCAF Flight Sergeant John Francis James McCAW and

RAFVR Sergeant Leonard Richard James SHRUBSALL.

In Jan 2008 some wreckage of this Short Stirling III (#BK716) was discovered submerged in Markermeer Lake in the Netherlands. A salvage project was started by the 'Stichting Aircraft Recovery Group 40-45' to recover the aircraft wreckage. They were also able to recover the remains of the aircrew.

In the fall of 2021 the crew of the BK716 will be finally laid to rest in Holland; family members plan to attend the Service.

**The Dutch people continue to honour our fallen heroes and this story which covers four decades continues this tradition.**

--On 30 March 2021, Dutch authorities dedicated a memorial to the seven-member crew of BK716 who perished in the nearby lake. The memorial was unveiled by City of Almere which helped in the recovery effort alongside the Netherlands military. The memorial, called "Rise", was unveiled during the ceremony in the park Bos der Onverzettelijken in Almere; Laura O'Neill, a young artist of British descent who lives in Almere, created the memorial.

On 28 Sept 2022 he was laid to rest during a special ceremony, with full military honours, at the Jonkerbos War Cemetery in the Netherlands.

Military Service-

Rank: Sergeant

Service Number: 1251519

Age: 30

Service: Royal Air Force Volunteer Reserve

Division: 218 ('Gold Coast') RAF Squadron; RAF Downham Market, Norfolk

(MOTTO: 'In time')

Son of Richard and Ada Shrubsall; husband of Beatrice May Shrubsall of Iwade, Kent, England.

He is commemorated by the Commonwealth War Graves Commission.