WWII Airmen Laid To Rest

An RAF Merlin helicopter was used to airlift a two-tonne stone from Lower Edge Quarry to be used for a memorial to fallen Second World War aircrews.

More commonly used to transporting troops and ammunition in Afghanistan, the 80ft long Merlin with rotor blades that span 60ft, hovered above where X marked the spot to pick up its special cargo.

The Yorkshire stone was to be used as part of a memorial, mounted by the propeller of a Halifax bomber from RAF Breighton near Selby that was shot down by the Luftwaffe on May 24, 1944, killing its crew.

Its mission had been to attack railway marshalling yards at Aachen, Germany, but on its return flight it crashed in flames near the Dutch village of Hank.

Two of the 78 Squadron crew were thrown clear on impact and buried by locals but the five remaining airmen were entombed in the wreckage which buried itself in the ground in the impact.

However, three years ago the local community of Werkendam not only raised funds to finally excavate the aircraft but also to ensure the five remaining crew were finally laid to rest – all seven of them now together at peace in the Jonkerbos War Cemetery in Nijmegen.

The stone was donated by Rand and Asquith as a mark of respect.