Relation with Lake (class): Lake Casualty Cemetery (LCC)  
Total nr. of casualties buried here (TC): 32 end WW2, today 45. 
Lake casualties, initially, end WW2 (LC-I): 1
Unknown today: 2
of which unknown from Lake (LC-U): 0
of which unknown from North Sea (NS-U): 2
Initial burial site in WW2: yes, other cemetery.
Post war burial site for collection and reburial from other sites: yes 
Cemetery with Lake casualties today: yes (LCW).


           
SOLA CHURCHYARD (NORWAY)

In the night 10/11 April 1942, a German nightfighter shot down Hampden AE421 of 49 Sqn. It crashed in the centre of Lake IJsselmeer (Old Zuyder Sea), between Enkhuizen and Urk. End of May 1942, pilot F/O Reg P. Worthy was found by the fishingboat BU17 (Bunschoten 17, skipper Jan Zijl) and buried in Amersfoort (Oud Leusden). Sgt. Anthony T.P. Considine washed ashore and was buried in Scharl (near Stavoren). One crew member, Sgt. Tom McGrenery is missing (MIA). He can be buried as unknown ('Known to God') RAF Sgt. around the lake with date on headstone between April 13th 1942 and January 1943, or still be in the wreck. Remarkable is that the 4th crewmember, Sgt. John W. Wilkinson is buried in Norway, Sola Churchyard.

   

Dutch name cemetery: Sola Kerkhof, bij Stavanger.
Full name: Sola Churchyard.
Address (usable for car navigation):
Sola airbase, Norway

For reaction or comments; send us an email,
see address and info at CONTACT.
Please use as subject title: 'Sola'.








To get to the south-west coast of Norway, the wind must have pressed Sgt. John Wilkinsons body into the north-east corner of Lake IJsselmeer (occurred often). Then through the sluices of Kornwerderzand into the Wadden Sea. This is theoretical possible, but actual chance for a body to pass the thin sluice with its narrow protruding entrance dams, is very remote. Once in the Wadden Sea, it is standard that the current brings a body (if not found at low tide!) into the German Bight and further on to the Danish westcoast. But Norway?

The distance in a strait line from crash position to Sola is 680km (X to S on above map). Via the German Bight along Danmark is 800km. It would have taken the body 5 months, which is not a too long time for a body in the North Sea to wash ashore. Nevertheless, there is something suspicious to the case, also because in 1961, 13 airmen were added in Sola from other cemeteries. Based on Wilkinsons grave position (row E grave 11, the last grave of the entire plot, in the extreme right-upper corner), Wilkinson was not original buried here. See for more photos on the cemetery the links below.


























































 Sources/read more:  

- CWGC
- our site-articles on Amerfoort (oud-Leusden) and Scharl
- Site  www.49squadron.co.uk/cemeteries/sola      and      www.49squadron.co.uk/personnel_index/detail/Wilkinson_JW








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