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Ofw. Heinrich Bartels remains
Gee whiz, folks, how quickly we forget—or is it simply that no one cares to remember? Heinz Bartels' crash site was identified and excavated in January 1968 under the research, guidance, and leadership of the late great Werner Girbig, decorated by the German government for his contributions in the recovery of missing Luftwaffe airmen. I feel that every reader of this site owes him an immeasurable debt of gratitude for his incomparable humanitarian work as well as his innovative use of documentation in accomplishing the identification of so many long-missing aircrew.
Werner Girbig was also a vivid writer, and he recounted the entire story of the discovery, identification, and recovery of Heinz Bartels in his book Vermisst (Stuttgart, Germany: Motorbuch Verlag, 1986), pp. 110-32. It is must reading for anyone interested in Bartels, aircraft recovery, and the tragic legacy of the missing from World War II.
RA
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