Memorial to Hercules crew planned

Three designs are being considered for a memorial to the crew of a Hercules plane who were killed in Iraq.

The Hercules, from RAF Lyneham in Wiltshire, was shot down north west of Baghdad in January 2005, killing all 10 servicemen on board.

Now local people and staff at the base are working on plans for a way of marking their deaths.

A garden of remembrance, a stained glass window and a carved memorial are all under consideration.

'Greatly appreciated'

The RAF is working with the families of those who died as well as the Lyneham Old Boys Association and Wootton Bassett Royal British Legion to decide which will be the most fitting tribute.

Station commander Group Captain Paul Oborn said: "The response from the local community has been overwhelming and is greatly appreciated."

The Lyneham crew members who were killed were Flt Lt David Stead, 35, Flt Lt Andrew Smith, 25, Flt Lt Paul Pardoel, 35, Master Engineer Gary Nicholson, 42, Chief Technician Richard Brown, 40, Flt Sgt Mark Gibson, 34, and Sgt Robert O'Connor, 38. Cpl David Williams, 37, was also based at Lyneham and also on board.

The ninth RAF man on board, Sqn Ldr Patrick Marshall, 39, was from Strike Command Headquarters at RAF High Wycombe, Buckinghamshire. Acting L/Cpl Steven Jones, 25, was a soldier serving with the Royal Signals and was a Hercules crew member.

E-mail this to a friend

Printable version