Pte Gilbert Anderson 3606646

World War II soldier Gerald 'Mike' Kight's remains returned, almost 68 years after he died in battle | OregonLive.com

Tanja you maybe spotted it already on teletext, but this is how the USA handles

 

Hi Philip,

No I did not see this one before. It is amazing that this still can happen.
And it is good to know that there a still man to be found a given a final resting place.

Greetings

Tanja

 

Tanja

The BIDKL are still dealing with about 30 body recoveries per year with a good success rate.

I saw the remains of these two American soldiers when I was invited to visit the BIDKL laboratory at Camp Soesterberg last September. They had only just been recovered and were being prepared for forensic examination. However, because of the personal effects and equipment that had been recovered from the site, even at that early stage they were very hopeful that a positive identification would be possible.

Most of the preliminary detective work to establish the identity of the remains was undertaken by the BIDKL. The American authorities were informed immediately after the recovery operation and the BIDKL then had only three weeks to completely process both sets of remains and write full reports on the results of both anthropological and historical research before the remains and reports were handed over to their colleagues of the American JPAC who came over to transfer the remains from the Netherlands to Hawaii in October 2011.
It must be a very rewarding job knowing that their work means that families can still be reunited with their loved ones even after all these years.

John

 

Hi John,

I think that the BIDKL is realy doing a good job. And I understand that they have a difficult job, because they have to be sure about their information. Lot of familys depend on them.

It must have been very interesting to be at the laboratory at Camp Soesterberg. In this case, I understand that they found a lot with the remains to go on. Like the dogtags and a wallet.

In the case of my uncle Gilbert Anderson and pte. G. Best they do not have a lot to go on. Like the record of service. De description of both men where made up at age 18 years. They were boys. When the went to Arnhem they had become adult man and their bodies must have changed.
Important information like a birthmark are gone by now.

Exhumation- and concentrationreports do not contain lots of information and it is very difficult to descripe somebody. Like colour of hair. Some people do not see the different between black or dark brown hair.

Does hair keep its colour after one or more years in the ground. I do not know. That is why the BIDKL is so important.

I realy have deep respect for people who do these investigations.

Greetings

Tanja

 

Hallo

To find out what happens with the haircolour of desceased people I have written to the NFI (Duth Forensisch Instituut).

The told me that haircolour does change by external circumstancis. It can become lighter or darker. How much to colour changes is depending on the circumstancis.

So about my uncle, it is possible that his hair has become darker than dark brown.
But it is not said that has hair has gone black.

Greetings

Tanja

 

Hallo,

Does somebody has a photo of pte Gordon Best?
His service number is 1463210.

Greetings

Tanja

 

Hallo,

Today we recived a new photo of my uncle Gilbert Anderson.
It is a good one this time.

Greetings

Tanja

 

Hi,

We have recived the service record of my uncle Gilbert Anderson.

There is something we do not understand what it means.

134/43 5th
Exposed to a b.w. Agent during
Week-ending 26-6-43 at Chemical
Defence Experimental Station
Porton. Wilts vide K.R1940/Para
171 (XXI).

Was he exposed to posion for 'experimental' reasons?
Why?

Greetings

Tanja

 

Tanja,


My father's first posting was with the Wiltshire Regiment. In his service book under "Particulars of Training" is listed Blister Gas and DM Gas with dates. I'm not sure what that would entail? It could have been a course given to soldiers on standard procedure in event of a real gas attack?

The last part of your quote could be read as "see document K.R1940 under paragraph 171 (XXI)". My guess is that his exposure to a BW Agent was accidental rather than a deliberate experimental one. Once you start looking into the Porton Experimental Station, however, things get strange pretty fast. Since much that went on there was carried out in secrecy separating fact from fiction is no easy matter.

Not very helpful, I know, but I see you have had some excellent replies in the other thread ...

 

Hallo,

Yes, I have had some very good replies in the other thread. And you are right about separating fact from fiction. I have read some realy scary things about experiments at Porton Down. But I do know how to handle my own imagination.

And your reaction is helpful, because you point out the possibility of document K.R1940 paagragh 171 (XXI). In my mind it could have been anything.

I have not found anything about this in the letters of my uncle. There could be two reasons not to write about it. It was not spectaculare of he was not allowed to speak or write about it. (Or I did not found the letter yet).

If it is a document would it be possible to request a copy of it?

Greetings

Tanja

 

Tanja,

KR.1940 could possibly be the 1940 edition of the King's Regulations or KRR, the King's Rules and Regulations. See this link where someone is seeking information on a certain KR paragraph.

Kings Regulations (WW2)

Cheers ...

 

Hallo Cee,

Thank you. I have followd the link and there is a member who writes that he has the document KR1940. So I wrote him a message and asked for a copy of the paragraph.

Greetings

Tanja

 

Hallo Cee,

You were right. This is K.R.1940 paragraph 1718 (XXI). Only the example of the K.R. 1940 that is available at the National Archive at Kew does not go further than 1718 (XX).

That means that there must be an update somewere. But it is not a the National Archive.

Greetings

Tanja

 

Tanja

At post 48 you referred to Kings Regs paragraph 171 (XXI) :-
134/43 5th
Exposed to a b.w. Agent during Week-ending 26-6-43 at Chemical Defence Experimental Station Porton. Wilts vide K.R1940/Para 171 (XXI)
However you are now posting details of paragraph 1718 (XX). Have you been provided with details of the correct paragraph?

John

 

Hi John,

Yes, The National Archive had a look at the service record a told me that I had probably had the paragraph wrong. So I sended a copy of the service record to the National Archive and they told me it was 1718 (XXI).
A military expert had a look at it.

The pdf shows that the K.R. 1940 does not go further than paragraph 1718 (XX)

I had a new look and I can only confirm that it is 1718.

Greetings

Tanja

 

Tanja

Thanks

John

 

Tanja,

If that's the case I hope you are able to find a later edition that contains the (XXI) entry. The (XX) paragraph is quite interesting itself with its mention of "experimental vaccine".

Otherwise I wouldn't recommend the KRR for bedside reading, unless of course you want to fall asleep quickly ...

Cheers

 

Hi,

We have recived the service record of my uncle Gilbert Anderson.

There is something we do not understand what it means.

134/43 5th
Exposed to a b.w. Agent during
Week-ending 26-6-43 at Chemical
Defence Experimental Station
Porton. Wilts vide K.R1940/Para
171 (XXI).

Was he exposed to posion for 'experimental' reasons?
Why?

Greetings

Tanja


Tanya,
I was sent this by I guess a friend of yours a week or so ago and in my youth I was an NBC instructor and I spent a few hours looking through my old manuals and found no mention of any gas with a bw suffix.....by the way in my day you could volunteer to go to Porton Down and be a guinea pig to have chemical weapons and other things tested on you...you got a bit of money for volunteering! I also offer a suggestion for bw as 'binary weapon'..

 

Hallo Airborne Medic,

Yes I remember the e-mail exchange. He is indead a friend of my Dad and me.
And I had sended the service record of my uncle to him. Did you see this service record?

Maybee you have noticed in my last post (#55) I have corrected the paragraph of K.R.1940 into 1718 (XXI). This paragraph should tell me what b.w agent is.

So I am sure it is a b.w agent. But I am not yet sure what b.w. means.
It could be biological warfare or binary weapon.

I am looking through the letters of my uncle to find if he had mentioned something about this. Problem is that the most of his letters has no date or batallion-id. So I have a problem to put those letters in a timeline.

Greeting

Tanja

 

Hallo,

Sometimes it is good that somebody points two times to a piece of information.

Airborne Medic: you had good reasons to doubt the b.w. agent.

I recived a message of the National War Museum today. They told met that it should be c.w. agent. The service record is handwritten and it is not always easy to read.


134/43 5th
Exposed to a c.w. Agent during
Week-ending 26-6-43 at Chemical
Defence Experimental Station
Porton. Wilts vide K.R1940/Para
1718 (XXI).


In the attachmed that goes with this post you can read the updated K.R. 1940 paragraph 1718 (XXi).

Greetings

Tanja