THE crushing magnitude of war, and the many millions lost, often means the individual stories of those who die are forgotten over time.

With a death toll in the tens of millions, the Second World War was the single most deadliest conflict in human history.

Those many tales of heroism and sacrifice, may never be known despite the loss of loved ones gripping each and every corner of the country.

However, in Clackmannanshire, a group of dedicated local historians, calling themselves the King's Seat Hillbillies, are determined to preserve the memory of three men, all aged 21, who crashed in the Ochil Hills in 1943.

Late in morning of Saturday, January 16, a trio of Spitfires cleared the runway at RAF Grangemouth on a formation flying exercise.

Yet the poor visibility and weather conditions led to the three plans crashing into the southern face of King's Seat Hill, near Dollar, at approximately 12noon.

Flying Officer Hugh "Bud" Reynolds and Sgt Gordon "Gordie" Duda, both of the Royal Canadian Air Force, died during the impact.

Yet, Sgt Vincent "Vin" Daly of the Royal Australian Air Force saw the hill with enough time to hoist the nose his plane up with enough of angle to soften the blow.

Though his swift actions ultimately saved his life, his true struggle to survive had only just begun.

With a broken leg, supported by a self-made splint, he dragged himself down the hill towards Dollar Glen, eventually being rescued at around 8am on the Monday.Though he suffered double pneumonia and frost bite to his fingers and nose, he lived until 1969.

A relatively unknown Clacks tale, it nevertheless caught the attention of Chris Cairns who has since worked to keep the memory of those three men alive.

Along with other volunteers, including local historian Brian Cuthbert-Imrie, he helped place a memorial near the crash sit to honour the pilots.

Chris, who works at Dollar Academy, is also hoping to put together a documentary ahead of the 75th anniversary in 2017.

He said: "I've always had an interest in history and one day at work I came across a memoir of a pupil at the school from the 40s.

"I read it over and I started looking into the story. I then got in touch with Brian Imrie, a bit of a local historian, now my friend, and in 2009 we built a cairn to sit at the site of the crash.

"Every year we go up there on January 16 as a mark of respect. We usually arrive for around 12noon.

"On previous occasions we have had the families of the two pilots up at the cairn; they came over from Canada and Australia to see it."

Brian added: "The King's Seat Hillbillys are a small group of like-minded people who decided that the sacrifices of these young airmen should not be  forgotten.

"The cairn is a permanent reminder and it is hoped that your readers will visit it and our Facebook page.

"This is a moving story which has brought family members from Canada and Australia to the Wee County to visit the Cairn.

"Bud, Gordie and Vin travelled to Scotland from the corners of the Empire, seeking adventure and to do their bit. It is easy to forget that both Bud and Gordie remain here, buried in Grandsable Cemetery.

"The building of the cairn, the research and the Facebook page have really been a collective effort and one in which we should all be very proud."

Last Saturday, a handful of climbers tackled the snow-covered hill to pay their respects but the hope is by 2017 that they will be able to release a documentary about what happened in the skies above Dollar that afternoon.

With the use of aerial drones, a wealth of historical material, and items found on the crash site, Chris and co hope to retrace the fateful events in order to provide an insight into the three men's stories.

For more information, and updates on the work the group is doing, visit www.facebook.com/ksh.spitfires

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