Fund holds Bomber Command Memorial Service paying tribute to 55,573 WW2 airmen

On Sunday 30 June, the annual Bomber Command Memorial Anniversary Service was held at the Bomber Command Memorial in Green Park, London.

The service was a poignant tribute to the 55,573 Bomber Command airmen from across the UK and the world, who lost their lives in the Second World War.

As guardians of the Bomber Command Memorial, the RAF Benevolent Fund held the annual service in the company of Bomber Command veterans, supporters of the Fund and the Memorial, and representatives from the Commonwealth and Allied nations involved in Bomber Command.

Veterans in attendance included 103-year-old Colin Bell (DFC AE FRICS), a former Mosquito Bomber Pilot who carried out 40 bombing raids over Germany during the war. George Dunn (DFC L’dH), 101, was also present – George flew his first tour from May to October 1943 on Handley Page Halifax bombers with 76 Squadron, during one of the most intense periods of bombing of the war. Dr James Burt, 101, who was a Medical Officer at RAF Waddington and RAF Scampton from 1946-48, looking after the Dambusters 617 Squadron, also attended. Each veteran laid a wreath at the memorial, paying respect to their lost comrades.

The service was led by Rev (Sqn Ldr) Andrew Chapman, Station Chaplain at RAF High Wycombe, and included stories of Bomber Command crew read by members of the University of London Air Squadron, as well as a minute’s silence and wreath laying in memory of all those lost and fell. The service took place on the twelfth anniversary of the unveiling of the Memorial.

Richard Daniel, Chairman of the RAF Benevolent Fund, said: "As guardians of the Bomber Command Memorial, we were proud to host the service once more to keep the memories alive of those who served in Bomber Command, especially those that paid the ultimate sacrifice. The memorial provides us with the opportunity to remember the 55,573 who lost their lives and remember the families whose lives were forever changed by war."

You can continue to honour the memory of those who bravely served by supporting the Fund's Bomber Command Remembrance Fund, to help the veterans they served alongside, and the serving personnel who follow in their footsteps, going through difficult times today.