May 15, 2014 4.07 pm This story is over 117 months old

Lincoln Bomber Command Memorial designs revamped

Fresh look: The trust behind the Lincolnshire Bomber Command Memorial on Canwick Hill in Lincoln have altered the designs for the monument after public consultation.

The trust behind the Lincolnshire Bomber Command Memorial on Canwick Hill in Lincoln have altered the designs for the monument after public consultation.

They have concluded that there would be issues with the ability to read names towards the top third of the Spire, so they incorporated a new Memorial Spire design.

The new design is based on two wing fragments: tapering as they rise towards the sky to form an asymmetrical conical shape, echoing the church spires found across the Lincolnshire landscape.

Instead of having the names on the spire, they would be on adjacent walls.

Visitors to the Memorial Park will also be able to visit the Chadwick Centre, a state-of-the-art interpretation and education centre, and seven acres of landscaped grounds incorporating two gardens of remembrance and the Memorial Avenue.

It is anticipated that the park will attract visitors from all over the world, and as a result will contribute an annual average of £1.6 million into the local economy.

The overall height of the memorial is 102ft (31.09m), which is the wingspan of the Avro Lancaster; the width at the base is 16ft/5m, which is the overall width of a Lancaster wing.

The arrangement of smooth, jointed external skin with the internal faces having an exposed supporting structure echoes the thin-skinned framed structures found in aircraft construction.

Designer and Architect of the new Memorial, Stephen Palmer from Place Architecture in Lincoln said: “Separating the names from the spire element of the memorial has enabled us to develop this design concept with formal relevance to Bomber Command using aircraft imagery and a symbolic reference to flight.

“The original public consultation demonstrated a preference for a spire form for the memorial design and we wanted to incorporate the brilliance of the Avro design, recognising the central role of the Lancaster and its iconic nature.

“Forming an integral element of the memorial design, the memorial walls placed around the central spire lead people to discover more of the Park and allow visitors to have direct contact with the names engraved on the walls.

“Stunning views of the Cathedral are revealed from within the spire, which turns the visitor towards the Cathedral from the approach along the memorial avenue,” he added.

The Spire and memorial walls will be constructed from Corten steel, which was used in the construction of the Angel of the North.

These walls will be arranged in a radial, asymmetrical pattern and will carry the names of all 25,611 names of those who sacrificed their lives as taken from the Rolls of Honour held in Lincoln Cathedral.

The Lincolnshire Bomber Command Memorial was initiated by the Lord Lieutenant of Lincolnshire, Tony Worth.

His grandfather was one of the very first members of the Royal Naval Air Service to fly, having been issued with licence number 76, and transferred to the RAF on its formation in 1918.

Tony’s father served in Bomber Command during the war in the Bombing Development Unit, returning to his farming activities in 1945.

With that family background and with a great passion for his county, he felt the time was right to create this memorial during his time as Lord Lieutenant.

Bomber Command had 125,000 aircrew serving during WW2, with an attrition rate of 42%, making it more dangerous to serve in the Command than as a Subaltern in WW1. Of those deaths, 46% flew from Lincolnshire never to return.