Sibsey Lancaster Memorial Trust
Donation protected
On 29th January 1943 a Royal Air Force Lancaster aircraft, ED503, on a training flight from Royal Air Force Waddington, with a six man crew on board, crashed into a field at Sibsey Northlands, near Boston in Lincolnshire. One member of the crew was recovered and is buried in Scotland. The other members of the crew and the aeroplane could not be saved, despite desperate efforts, and they lie where they fell.
After the war the families of the crew, with the permission of the owner of the land, built a Memorial on the exact spot of the crash.
It is known as the Memorial in the Field.
A Trust was formed, dedicated to maintaining the Memorial and the commemoration of the crew, in perpetuity. Two of the founder members still serve on the Trust Committee.
Every year we hold a Service at the Memorial on the first Sunday in October. Every ten years we hold a service on the exact date of the fatal crash – the 29th January. We are joined by members of the families of the crew, local dignitaries and loyal supportive members of the public.
We are trying to raise £2,500 to pay for an engraved stone to be added to the International Bomber Command Centre (IBCC) Ribbon of Remembrance.
The crew of ED 503 on 29th January 1943 were:
Flight Lieutenant Robert FROOD LIND RAF (VR) (Pilot)
Pilot Officer Charles W H COCKS RAF (VR) (Bomb Aimer)
Sergeant Donald A BROWN RAF (VR) (Air Gunner)
Sergeant John DORAN RAF (Flight Engineer)
Sergeant Thomas HENRY RAF (VR) (Wireless Operator)
Sergeant Thomas WISHART RAF (VR) (Rear Gunner)
On the day in question a navigator had not been assign to Flight Lieutenant Lind's crew and following the cancellation of an operational mission to raid the German U-Boat pens at Lorient in France, they were assigned an engine and airframe test flight incorporating a fighter affiliation exercise with a lone Spitfire.
The names of the crew are captured on individual name panels at the IBCC and at Runnymede but nowhere are they captured together.
Your kind donation will go towards the purchase of the stone for the Ribbon of Remembrance and any funds remaining will be used for the ongoing maintenance of the Memorial in the Field.
The names of all those who contribute and help us achieve our objective will be read out at the next Memorial Service and placed on our Facebook page.
The Sibsey Lancaster Memorial Trust thank you for your support.
Mr Fred Hunt
Chairman
After the war the families of the crew, with the permission of the owner of the land, built a Memorial on the exact spot of the crash.
It is known as the Memorial in the Field.
A Trust was formed, dedicated to maintaining the Memorial and the commemoration of the crew, in perpetuity. Two of the founder members still serve on the Trust Committee.
Every year we hold a Service at the Memorial on the first Sunday in October. Every ten years we hold a service on the exact date of the fatal crash – the 29th January. We are joined by members of the families of the crew, local dignitaries and loyal supportive members of the public.
We are trying to raise £2,500 to pay for an engraved stone to be added to the International Bomber Command Centre (IBCC) Ribbon of Remembrance.
The crew of ED 503 on 29th January 1943 were:
Flight Lieutenant Robert FROOD LIND RAF (VR) (Pilot)
Pilot Officer Charles W H COCKS RAF (VR) (Bomb Aimer)
Sergeant Donald A BROWN RAF (VR) (Air Gunner)
Sergeant John DORAN RAF (Flight Engineer)
Sergeant Thomas HENRY RAF (VR) (Wireless Operator)
Sergeant Thomas WISHART RAF (VR) (Rear Gunner)
On the day in question a navigator had not been assign to Flight Lieutenant Lind's crew and following the cancellation of an operational mission to raid the German U-Boat pens at Lorient in France, they were assigned an engine and airframe test flight incorporating a fighter affiliation exercise with a lone Spitfire.
The names of the crew are captured on individual name panels at the IBCC and at Runnymede but nowhere are they captured together.
Your kind donation will go towards the purchase of the stone for the Ribbon of Remembrance and any funds remaining will be used for the ongoing maintenance of the Memorial in the Field.
The names of all those who contribute and help us achieve our objective will be read out at the next Memorial Service and placed on our Facebook page.
The Sibsey Lancaster Memorial Trust thank you for your support.
Mr Fred Hunt
Chairman
Organizer and beneficiary
Stu Davidson
Organizer
Victoria Clark
Beneficiary