The Unaccounted Airmen and Airwomen Thread series - Conclusion

[Jagan]

A big congratulations to Alex Smart for wrapping up the unfinished work of posting the Unaccounted airmen threads that the late Henk Welting had started. Thank you Alex for all the work.

1. The complete list of the Unaccounted threads by year is available at http://www.rafcommands.com/henk-welt...-thread-index/


I decided to pull some stats from the forum to see what this work had entailed.

The initial threads were posted on the old forum - starting Feb 1940, the threads can be found on this vbulletin software.

The first thread was started on 8 January 2007, and the last thread was started on 18 October 2019.
-It is 4667 days from the start date to the end date, end date included.
-Or 12 years, 9 months, 11 days including the end date.




There have been 2862 threads
There have been 18431 posts in these threads
342 users have contributed to these threads.


The top 30 posters on these threads along with the numbers..

Henk Welting	4213
wwrsimon	1907
malcolm_raf	1769
Alex Smart	1650
dennis_burke	1440
COL BRUGGY	1134
Dick	1009
paulmcmillan	756
Ross_McNeill	619
alclark	490
Martyn A Critchlow	473
davew	324
CZ_RAF	193
thorne83	186
Jagan	181
Amrit	166
Rich Allenby	163
AlanW	146
alieneyes	135
Resmoroh	127
Bill Walker	111
Theletterwriter	111
phill jones	98
John Larder	96
Lyffe	87
AL90	75
Ken MacLean	72
Marks	63
Andy Ingham	52
JohnE	49

The numbers are approximate but are probably 99% as close to accurate. And do not include the older archive.
Big thanks to all - especially the top posters here.

[Errol Martyn]

Well done and congratulations to all those who have contributed. A shame that Henk isn't here to see the results - perhaps he's smiling down from on high!

Errol

[Alex Smart]

Hello Jagan
Wow, so many !

I have always been puzzled why Henk had not started with an earlier date ? His database began with IIRC late1938. Was it because he had solved the earlier "unaccounted" that he only started in the later February 1940 date ?

Alex

[dennis_burke]

Very proud to read the above, imagine if I hadn't gone and gotten hitched in 2013 - come to think of it, the late nights I was putting in , I wonder where I got the time to find a lady so tolerant.

The posts are there to be added to at all times, even two nights ago we found a date of death that was two years out. I'm about three years behind in checking things.

So many little stories of lives lost have stayed in my mind, the WAAF killed by the plate she was cycling with, the airman who had a heart attack helping firemen putting out a haystack fire leaving a young family, the training accidents, the ones for whom life became to much.

Thanks to a great bunch of folks, big thanks to Alex, I'm very glad to see him getting his due thanks for this, and Henk for getting me hooked.

[Jagan]

Hello Jagan
Was it because he had solved the earlier "unaccounted" that he only started in the later February 1940 date ?

Hi Alex, the threads prior to Feb 1940 got caught in the old forum software and the spam trouble ... we can find those threads in the archive - as linked from this page they start from September 1939

the only surprise for me was there were some post Feb 1940 threads in the old forum archive.. and i think he may have started them in advance...

[Alex Smart]

Thanks Jagan, will take a look. Maybe could begin with January ?
Ah I see , this was new to me, although I do seem to recall a similar list sent to me years ago, now lost somewhere in the computers mind.
Another great list that is I expect mostly unknown to most members these days.
Needs reawakening .
Henk's 1939 list starts 3rd Sept with three names.There are six in CWGC.
Alex

[CZ_RAF]

I am very proud to be a part of this bunch and to be able to contribute by few bits and pieces.
Well done everyone!

Pavel