Roger Penrose, now 76 years old, was a small boy when on a fateful day in December 1941 his father, Flight Sergeant Hubert Penrose, didn't return from a flying mission. He was killed when a Catalina flying boat crashed in the Milford Haven Waterway.

Then and ever since, Roger has found it hard to come to terms with his loss.

Seventy-four years on, and unbeknown to Roger, his family recently contacted John Evans, of the Pembroke Dock Sunderland Trust, to discuss an idea. Would it be possible to bring Roger back to Pembroke Dock and to visit the site where his father's Catalina flying boat crashed, killing nine of the 11-man crew?

John immediately contacted colleagues in the PDSTdivegroup to ask if they could help. Their response was yes, they would be delighted.

Group members David Pring and Rik Saldanha along with Gill Saldanha researched the tragedy and were able to discover the location of the aircraft, which is now a war grave.

Mid-afternoon on Saturday, June 13, MHPA Water Rangers and two boats carrying Roger and members of his family, along with representatives of the PDST divegroup and Sunderland Trust, arrived over the crash site, near Newton Noyes.

After a short prayer and with the words 'to remember and honour those who sacrificed so muc' Roger, who was clearly emotional, gently placed a wreath upon the water, finally able to say 'goodbye'.

Later in the day, Roger, speaking to son-in-law David Perkins, stated: "We're humbled; people have given up a whole day and made a great effort to look after us. We won't forget."

Dive Group chairman David Pring said: "We all feel that it has been a great privilege for us to be involved today."

During the weekend, Roger and his family members visited the Pembroke Dock Heritage Centre which has many displays on flying boats oper ating from the Haven.