Bomber Command Memorial
Went to Green Park today and was pretty emotional tbh with a wide range of people there.
In fact some the poppies were packed a little tightly which made it pretty exciting too!!
Heroes those men were.
In fact some the poppies were packed a little tightly which made it pretty exciting too!!
Heroes those men were.
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WG Cdr Bill Simpson
Sadly Bill Simpson passed away in Auckland about 2 years ago.
He was a great mover in the New Zealand Bomber Command Association.
I first met him when he was a Flt Commander on the staff at RAF Halton in the very early 50's.
Regards,
HectorusRex
He was a great mover in the New Zealand Bomber Command Association.
I first met him when he was a Flt Commander on the staff at RAF Halton in the very early 50's.
Regards,
HectorusRex
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Very moving. Good job chaps.
BBC News - Poppies dropped as act of remembrance
BBC News - Poppies dropped as act of remembrance
Good punchy speech by CAS. I had the temerity to say so to him 
Tornadoes (Sp?) Time Over Target spot on.
Some amazing, stirring tales by the (too few) old boys we spoke with.
It was a very warm day and they must have been feeling the discomfort.
Air Commodores look much younger than they did when I was in. The lady Air Cdre I mentioned this to did a
Tornadoes (Sp?) Time Over Target spot on.
Some amazing, stirring tales by the (too few) old boys we spoke with.
It was a very warm day and they must have been feeling the discomfort.
Air Commodores look much younger than they did when I was in. The lady Air Cdre I mentioned this to did a
Last edited by Basil; 28th Jun 2012 at 19:47.
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As is often commented on these boards it got quite dusty today around my television and I've asked Mrs. S37 to take appropriate action.
The simple and quiet dignity with which the ceremony was conducted and the appearances by the veterans left me speechless. I could only watch, listen and reach frequently for the tissues.
The simple and quiet dignity with which the ceremony was conducted and the appearances by the veterans left me speechless. I could only watch, listen and reach frequently for the tissues.
With 50hrs-ish on the BBMF Lanc I can still only sit in awe of the tremendous bravery of these chaps that were just half my age. My own 3-dozen or so op missions on Tornado seem just a walk in the park in comparison. I guess I should count myself lucky that I can relate in the very smallest of ways of what they went through, and when I meet those magnificent men on occasion, offer to buy them a beer, be there to share their story and try to make them feel it was all worth it.
Today is a very special day for me...
Lest We Forget...
Today is a very special day for me...
Lest We Forget...
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I listened to the service on Radio 5 Live.
I think the memorial is definitely needed especially as they said 50.000 'crews' had died..........That's a lot more than we all thought !
What did annoy me is the way that is was talked about as being a controversial memorial. It is very easy in the safe streets of the UK for short memoried folks to say we should not have this item, but I feel none of the detractors would have been born without the efforts of the (be prepared for a word that is not adequate) brave crews who died to give life and safety to a world in crisis.
Sorry for the rant, but I get very angry when commentators mention how these lads killed civilians, while ignoring a rather infamous chap and his pals across the channel who thought chucking folks into ovens and gas chambers was a good idea!!!
In regards to the bomber command lads the sentence that starts "Greater love hath no man" comes to mind, but even more so when you may be scared witless yet still go on raid after raid.
I think the memorial is definitely needed especially as they said 50.000 'crews' had died..........That's a lot more than we all thought !
What did annoy me is the way that is was talked about as being a controversial memorial. It is very easy in the safe streets of the UK for short memoried folks to say we should not have this item, but I feel none of the detractors would have been born without the efforts of the (be prepared for a word that is not adequate) brave crews who died to give life and safety to a world in crisis.
Sorry for the rant, but I get very angry when commentators mention how these lads killed civilians, while ignoring a rather infamous chap and his pals across the channel who thought chucking folks into ovens and gas chambers was a good idea!!!
In regards to the bomber command lads the sentence that starts "Greater love hath no man" comes to mind, but even more so when you may be scared witless yet still go on raid after raid.
Last edited by barnstormer1968; 28th Jun 2012 at 22:30.
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"Sorry for the rant, but I get very angry when commentators mention how these lads killed civilians, while ignoring a rather infamous chap and his pals across the channel who thought chucking folks into ovens and gas chambers was a good idea!!!"
As well as lobbing bombs and rockets onto London and other English cities,
a fair amount of which was directly targeting civilians.
I think it is a magnificent memorial and the coverage of the old bomber command boys was great to see and tear jerking.
As well as lobbing bombs and rockets onto London and other English cities,
a fair amount of which was directly targeting civilians.
I think it is a magnificent memorial and the coverage of the old bomber command boys was great to see and tear jerking.
Last edited by 500N; 28th Jun 2012 at 22:44.
Just watching it now. Very moving.
Thanks for that poem Shackman - not read that before, excellent. I was suprised to learn from the commentator that Prince Philip has over 6,000 hrs in his pilot logbook.
The Guardian manages to be sniffy about the monument in a way that boils blood so effortlessly and efficiently:
Bomber Command memorial
WWW
Thanks for that poem Shackman - not read that before, excellent. I was suprised to learn from the commentator that Prince Philip has over 6,000 hrs in his pilot logbook.
The Guardian manages to be sniffy about the monument in a way that boils blood so effortlessly and efficiently:
Bomber Command memorial
WWW
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As well as lobbing bombs and rockets onto London and other English cities,
a fair amount of which was directly targeting civilians.
a fair amount of which was directly targeting civilians.
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WWW:
Thanks for the link. Frankly I would have not expected much else from it, and no doubt the piece will sit happily on the breakfast tables of much of its readership. But that is surely the point? 55573 good men gave their lives so that Mr Rowan Moore might have the freedom to write such a sneering and loftily superior diatribe. If you don't like what they publish then don't buy the Guardian. Simples!
Unfortunately the same does not go for its broadcasting cousin, the BBC. We are all obliged, if we wish to watch any TV at all, to subsidise its editorial slant. It may not be as explicit as the Guardian but they are both birds of a feather. Either the Beeb should do what it is supposed to, ie be a National Broadcaster, or it should pack it in and hand over the reins to one that is prepared.
Yesterday, just when I was beginning to think, "Well, that didn't go too badly", the Beeb position was spelled out in a talking heads voice over at the conclusion of the unveiling and dedication of the BC Memorial OB:
" Of course, many of the veterans now feel guilty about what they did".
Says who?
Why the Beeb of course, the voice and conscience of our nation.
In its dreams!
The Guardian manages to be sniffy about the monument
Unfortunately the same does not go for its broadcasting cousin, the BBC. We are all obliged, if we wish to watch any TV at all, to subsidise its editorial slant. It may not be as explicit as the Guardian but they are both birds of a feather. Either the Beeb should do what it is supposed to, ie be a National Broadcaster, or it should pack it in and hand over the reins to one that is prepared.
Yesterday, just when I was beginning to think, "Well, that didn't go too badly", the Beeb position was spelled out in a talking heads voice over at the conclusion of the unveiling and dedication of the BC Memorial OB:
" Of course, many of the veterans now feel guilty about what they did".
Says who?
Why the Beeb of course, the voice and conscience of our nation.
In its dreams!
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I loved the humility of one gentleman who stated that he had completed 29 trips, not 30 because he was shot down on his 30th and didn't complete it!
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www - I would say that the Guardian piece wasn't effortless - that poor scribbly was so incensed, he even ended up having a pop at something on the architect's website. Still, he can justify being out of step with public opinion as a consequence of having the 'niche' view. And it is a niche view - if you look at the Guardian's plummeting circulation figures. To his enlightened mind, he might hold the moral high ground, higher than the Lanc in fact, but he and his increasingly pointless rag are definitely in the weeds as far as the public is concerned.
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.. and brothers in arms, literally.
http://www.abc.net.au/news/2012-06-29/b ... ed/4099744
http://www.abc.net.au/news/2012-06-29/b ... ed/4099744
Two Australian brothers who flew together in the same bomber speak about their experiences.
WAR is a dirty business full stop!
Chug
We could talk all day about 2 wrongs don't make a right, etc. But it annoys me when people indulge in a la carte remorse/indignation exemplified by that line
We had a very good family friend who died 3 years ago. He was a tank driver with the 4/7 Dragoon Guards and landed in one of the earliest waves on D day and fought through France and Holland. Although he survived there was a shadow over the rest of his life because he had lost his beloved 15 yr old only sister in an air raid on Lowestoft in 1942.
We could talk all day about 2 wrongs don't make a right, etc. But it annoys me when people indulge in a la carte remorse/indignation exemplified by that line
" Of course, many of the veterans now feel guilty about what they did".
I thought I was a hard nosed old bugger, but I have to admit there were tears in my eyes as I watched the ceremony. The bronze statues of the bomber crew are superb, but I do have some misgivings about the size of the gold inscription along the side of the plinth.
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As tempted as I am to get involved it the debate about the moral side of this issue I don't think this is the time or place.
Seeing the pictures and reading the report in my electronic issue of the telegraph I can only express my total respect for those in Bomber Command who each time they got into an aircraft faced such long odds.
I also have a lot of respect for those who erected the memorial in the face of opposition from those PC types who have no idea of the price of the fredom that they enjoy.
Seeing the pictures and reading the report in my electronic issue of the telegraph I can only express my total respect for those in Bomber Command who each time they got into an aircraft faced such long odds.
I also have a lot of respect for those who erected the memorial in the face of opposition from those PC types who have no idea of the price of the fredom that they enjoy.