US Army Air Force in Nottingham in 1944


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There a nice memorial to the army/airforce at Stragglethorpe just on the border of Nottinghamshire/Lincolnshire (A17 crossroads for Brant Broughton/Stragglethorpe about 5 miles out of Newark heading east), I know a lot of planes took off from there for the D day landings, you might get some info by searching Mr G oogle

I've got a picture of the memorial somewhere and will post it if I can find it, failing that I think Beefsteak has some pics as well

Rog

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  • 2 years later...

Was there also a house in Mapperley Park for officers or MPs? I lived on Zulla Road and quite a few of the children used to be given Neckos, delicious sweets, by the soldiers and doughnuts from a canteen bus that used to stop outside the house nearby. I remember Johnny Palatierri who was a NY taxi driver in his former life and I think he wrote his telephone number in my Mum's address book. From the boots I think they were paras. Must have been 1943/44.

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  • 3 years later...

There you do oldphil, Polish war graves Newark, I think they were all airmen

 

P1050599.jpg

 

P1050600.jpg

 

Well worth a visit just to sit there and reflect

 

Rog

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Yes, Rog they were primarily airmen because of the multitude of airfields around the Newark area. One non-airman was the Polish leader in exile, General Sikorski. His body was exhumed from Newark Cemetery around 1993 where it spent a night in Newark Parish Church before being repatriated to Poland. The Polish war graves in the London Road cemetery are a moving sight and perhaps not very well known within Notts.

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3 hours ago, oldphil said:

were any polish pilots stationed in Nottingham?

Yes, at Gamston(Retford), Hucknall, Newton,  Orston, Papplewick Moor, Syerston, Tollerton, Winthorpe  and Worksop. There may have been others plus there were loads over the border in Lincolnshire. They liked to keep the Poles together because of language difficulties!

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The Polish 300 and 301 Squardons were at Syerston for a bit flying Wellingtons. When they moved in, there were no facilities at all.

 

They finished up at Faldingworth in Lincolnshire when they were given Lancasters. My wife's uncle was a F/Sgt radio op with 300 squadron, and her dad's best friend was the pilot on the same plane.

 

Incidentally, the Intelligence Officer for 300 was an Englishman called Michael Bentine, who went on to other things.

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Here are two photos taken at RAF Syerston during a visit by the Polish leader General Sikorski. He appears to be presenting an airman with his wings. The other picture shows the Polish Eagle painted on the hangar door.

 

Hucknall cemetery has graves of Polish airman killed when at Hucknall

 

Sikorski_at_Syerston.jpg

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