Sylvain Kluska
Pilot, 527 Squadron
Service number 1264478
Died 9 May 1944
Buried Willesden Jewish Cemetery
Age 33
Headstone Inscription
‘IN LOVING MEMORY OF OUR BELOVED SON KILLED ON ACTIVE SERVICE. DEEPLY MOURNED AND SADLY MISSED BY HIS FATHER, MOTHER, SISTER, BROTHER-IN-LAW, RELATIVES AND NUMEROUS FRIENDS’.
Sylvain was born on 17 April 1911 in Paris, France to Polish father Charles and Romanian mother Anna Lotta nee Weintraub and he had one sister Ethel. Sylvain was a talented artist who had two paintings at the Royal Academy of Art exhibition when he was seventeen. The family story is on the link below.
On 9 May 1944 it was arranged for Blenheim V5795 to fly from RAF Digby to Inverness at 13.30 hours and Blenheim T1830 to fly there also and bring the crew of V5795 back. F/O. Setterfield asked permission to fly in the Blenheim to Inverness and permission was granted.
The crew of Blenheim V5795 were W/O Kluska, W/O Frederick Edward Wood, 563292 and F/O Charles Henry Setterfield, 155643. The aircraft departed at 14.10 hours for Inverness. Blenheim T1830 with the crew of F/Lt. Shillitoe and W/O. Cooper took off at 14.30 hours for Inverness.
News from Flying Control at 18.30 hours. F/Lt Shillitoe phoned to say V5795 was overdue. It was confirmed that overdue action was taken and were informed that Ops. had organised a search.
F/Lt Shillitoe then returned to RAF Digby in T1830 at 21.20 hours. No news at all of the missing aircraft.
On 10 May 1944 there was no news of the missing aircraft in the morning. At 18.00 hours R.A.F. Dumfries phoned to advise that V5795 had been found on mountain Hart Fell north of Moffat, Dumfries, all three crew had been killed.
