[Bas Maathuis]

Somewhere in the mid-nineties I got infected with a ‘historical aviation’ virus. I started to collect information off the gravestones of allied aircrew. The data was stored in a database that eventually became the Dutch Air War Study groups (or SGLO) database.
In 2005 I became a member with the SGLO and in spring 2008 I inherited all available SGLO data from my predecessor Frans Auwerda, and started to build the database and fill in all the gaps.
My personal goal was to have all SGLO data available online for everyone to see and search through.

“Wouldn’t be awesome if that youngster on the other side of the world could find out about his or her grandfathers last flight during WWII by using our online database….”

On the 29th March 2014 my dream came trough when the SGLO database went online thanks to my own son, aged 13 at that time, who build the environment to realize an online database.

I’m however fully aware that the database is not complete, and there still are many gaps to be filled with data that sometimes is already available. It will be a work in progress for the next couple of years. (If a day only had 48 hours instead of 24…)
I’m also aware that the database is not without faults and/or typos and it probably will never be.
Keep in mind that the SGLO database holds some 7400 a/c registrations, including over 22.000 names of aircrew.
Where humans are at work, mistakes will be made. I’m glad to be human!

Thanks to all who responded to my questions!