Trefil World War Two New Zealand airman memorial praised

New Zealand's military has thanked people in Blaenau Gwent for commemorating one of its airmen who died there during World War Two.

Six men, including Sgt Reginald Brown, died when their Wellington Bomber crashed on the mountainside near Trefil on 9 December 1940.

New Zealand's Defence Attache in Europe, Brig Evan Williams, said his country was "deeply appreciative".

Sgt Brown's family attended an annual commemoration service on Saturday.

The Wellington Bomber T2520 was part of 115 squadron based at RAF Marham, Norfolk, and was returning from a bombing mission to Bordeaux.

Primitive navigational equipment and terrible weather meant instead of descending over the flat land of Norfolk, they headed towards the Brecon Beacons.

The aircraft caught the rocky outcrop of Cefn yr Ystrad just north of Trefil in the early hours of the morning.

Pilot Albert Tindall, 21, from Sydney, co-pilot Sgt David Mills, 21, from Belfast, and navigator Sgt Hylton Daniel Ellis, 26, were all killed.

Wireless operator Sgt Stanley Gordon Howard and air gunners Sgt David Ernest Allis, of Southend, and Sgt Brown also died.

A makeshift memorial appeared at the site many years ago, made from a mound of rocks among the surviving fragments of the plane, before two local men added a wooden cross with a plaque.

This year's visit to the memorial included three relatives of Sgt Brown - Leonie Wilson from Timaru in Canterbury, New Zealand, her son Fraser and daughter-in-law Myra.

Leonie Wilson travelled from New Zealand to visit the site where her relative died 77 years ago

The family took part in the wreath-laying ceremonies and brought traditional New Zealand crosses to lay at the crash site.

Ms Wilson said it was a "very moving" service, adding: "It really brought it home to me, who we'd lost.

"It was really important for us to come, once we found out where uncle Reg was buried and where the plane crashed that we come and pay our tribute to him and the village.

"We're just so grateful that his body, all the bodies, were recovered and grateful to the village… it just says what love people have for each other."

Brig Williams added: "He made the ultimate sacrifice and it is a great thing that the town has remembered him - not only today but also in the years that have gone since.

"He travelled from home, he gave his life, but he is not forgotten.

"We in New Zealand are deeply appreciative of what this little town and its people have done to remember Sgt Brown.

"I thank you on behalf of the New Zealand Defence Force and the people of New Zealand."

Plane wreckage is still on the mountainside