A Palmerston North woman's quest to find out more about the life and service of her uncle who died in a bomber crash over Germany 73 years ago has led her to Napier - and a search for relatives of one of her uncle's crew-mates aboard the downed Lancaster.
Miriam Sharland said her uncle Flying Officer Robert Sharland had been serving with 156 Squadron RAF and had been married for only three weeks when he was killed on April 28, 1944.
"He was only 21," she said.
As was Flying Officer Kenneth Gordon Franklin DFC, whose brief military details do not have an accurate date of birth but have his closest relatives at the time of his death as his parents Alfred and Joan Franklin of Napier.
Ms Sharland said she had been in touch with some Franklins in Napier but had so far drawn a blank.