Reunion 2022
550 Squadron Association Reunion 2022
Photographs from the Association Reunion held in North Killingholme 8th - 9th July 2022.
Many thanks to all in North Killingholme who, as always, did everything to ensure the weekend was a success. Flags and bunting adorned the village, the Memorial Stone and surrounding area suitably flagged, large numbers of local people turned out for the flypast over St Denys' Church and the Remembrance Service at the Memorial Stone and in the church. Thanks also to all the Association members and others who attended from all over the UK, and The Netherlands, to make it a simply wonderful weekend.
 |
Most images are available in one resolution only, in which case click on the picture to view (they will launch in another window).
Where there is a picture available in a choice of resolutions then click on the offered link rather than the thumbnail image.
NB: Most of the pictures are not particularly large (ca. 2-4Mb), but a few are larger and if you have a slow connection they may take a while to download.
Anniversaries
The reunion this year marks a number of anniversaries significant in the life of the Association. This year is the:
- 30th anniversary of the first reunion at RAF Hendon, North London
- 40th anniversary of the unveiling and dedication of the Memorial Stone in Lancaster Approach, North Killingholme (31st July 1982)
- 25th anniversary of the unveiling of the Memorial Window in St Denys' Church.
All-in-all this a very significant year in the history of the Association!
Reunion Weekend Welcome Pack
| Document | Description |
|---|---|
 |
Reunion Weekend Friday 8th - Saturday 9th July: Booking Form |
Friday Evening, Dinner at the Ashbourne (informal)
Visitors sat down to an informal meal in the Fork and Spoon at 8PM.
Saturday Morning
Photos from the village green.
|
|
|
|
Parade to Memorial Stone
Lead by the Immingham Air Training Corps Band.
|
|
|
Service At the Memorial Stone
There was a short service at the Memorial Stone followed by the laying on wreaths and planting of poppy crosses.
Laying of the Wreaths At the Memorial Stone
The following photographs kindly made available by Mike Leeman.
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
Due to the heavy traffic from the industrial estate making it hard to hear the proceedings the service concluded after the wreath laying and the singing of only the first verse of the final hymn.
Parade Back to St Denys' Church
This was led by the Immingham Air Training Corps Band.
Flypast over St Denys' Church
The decision to conclude the service at the Memorial Stone after the singing of the first verse of the final hymn turned out to be a wise one! The Spitfire turned up four minutes early at 14:16. We were treated to three very low passes by the Spitfire which was much appreciated by all.
The following photographs kindly made available by Stuart Lombard.
|
|
|
|
The following video footage (large MP4 format file) of the flypast kindly made available by Matt Watson, via George Turner. It may not have been a Lancaster but nonetheless an impressive and important aircraft from the war years, with a very distinctive sound. Thank you BBMF for making our day!
|
Remembrance Service in St Denys' Church
Peter Coulter welcomed everyone to the service on behalf of the Association, and gave a brief summary of the events attended in 2022 by the Association.
The service was led by The Revd. Peter Green.
| Document | Description |
|---|---|
|
Order of Service |
|
Welcoming Speech and summary of significant anniversaries and events for the Association |
Photos from the commemorations in 2022 mentioned in the welcome address can be found at:
Tea in the Village Hall
Following the service everyone adjurned to the Village Hall for tea and cakes.
|
|
|
|
Saturday Evening, Reunion Dinner, The Ashbourne Hotel
About 30 people sat down to dinner on Saturday evening. After dinner George Turner gave the toasts, said a few words, and presented a plaque to Paul Batenburg visiting from The Netherlands (Paul has "adopted" the grave of 550 airman Leslie Wallace Harvey buried in Nederweert War Cemetery, The Netherlands).
Slide sets displayed over the weekend and during the dinner are shown below (these will download and need MS Powerpoint (MSOffice) in order to be viewed).
| Document | Description |
|---|---|
|
Reunion Dinner |
 |
550 Squadron and RAF North Killingholme Association
MS Powerpoint Slide Set NB: very large document (ca. 25 Mbytes) - may take a long time (up to a couple of minutes) to download depending on the speed of your internet connection |
|
Sunday Morning
Airfield Tour
George Turner took a small group of visitors for a guided tour of the airfield. Many thanks to Paul Batenburg for many the following photographs available.
|
|
|
Note in the first and last of this trio of photos the small piece of runway missing. This is now in The Netherlands where it will be used as a part of the memorial to Lesley Harvey RCAF (B/A) who left North Killingholme from this runway on the 101st sortie of 550 Squadron Lancaster PA995 / BQ-V ("The Vulture Strikes"), piloted by F/O Jones, which was shot down during the raid on Dessau on 7/8 March 1945. See: Nederweert War Cemetery (The Netherlands)