Historians in Germany are hoping to trace the relatives of a young RAF officer from Highams Park who died when his bomber was shot down more than 80 years ago.
Flying Officer Sydney Vivian was 26 when his Halifax bomber came down near Ramsen, Germany, on 11 August 1943. Crash site investigators who have excavated the spot where he died now want to find his surviving descendants before a memorial planned for next year.
Sydney, the son of Clarence and Rosina Vivian, was co-pilot of Halifax JD369 on a bombing raid on Nuremberg. The aircraft took off from RAF Pocklington in Yorkshire at 9.25pm on 10 August.
According to historian Erik Wieman, the bomber was attacked by German pilot Hans-Georg Birkenstock while flying at low altitude, which meant the crew's parachutes couldn't open fully.
Five other members of the crew died alongside Sydney: flight engineer John Irving, air bomber Ronald Chapman, tail gunner William Davey, turret gunner Raymond Shaw, and Australian airman Guy Ward. Two men survived: the navigator, McLearnon, and the radio operator, Sergeant Bostle.
"We have found and excavated the crash site where Sydney" died, Mr Wieman said.
The Nuremberg raid involved 653 RAF bombers. Halifax JD369 was one of 17 that did not return.
Can you help?
If you are related to Sydney Vivian, or know someone who might be, Erik Wieman would like to hear from you. His contact details are in the Waltham Forest Echo's original report, and more information is at ig-heimatforschung.de.
For a family in Highams Park, or wherever Sydney's relatives live now, this could be a chance to stand where he fell and see him remembered.
