The International Bomber Command Centre is currently under construction in Lincolnshire, and is due to open in 2016. The location is a fitting one because during World War II there were so many air force bases in the area that it was referred to as Bomber County. Over one third of all stations (27 in total) were based in the county over the course of the war.

The Chadwick Centre is set to be finished in 2016 and will feature a comprehensive record of the role that the bombers played in the war effort. There will be exhibitions of photographs, documents and other artefacts such as artwork. Personal experiences of war veterans will be included, too. The centre will be an educational space and help to preserve the memory of the people that contributed so much to the war effort.

The IBCC will also feature the Spire Memorial, a 102 foot tall memorial based on the design of the wing of a Lancaster Bomber. Walls of remembrance will surround the spire. Each of these will be inscribed with the names of the 55,573 people that passed away whilst serving in the Bomber Command.

The Spire Memorial is set to be unveiled on October 2nd. The organisers are inviting all veterans who served in the Bomber Command during WWII to attend the unveiling ceremony. The IBCC already has the names of 900 veterans but it is thought there are more whose names did not appear on any databases or squadron lists. They are asking for members of the public to contact them with information to help them find and invite those people who may have been missing from their lists.

The International Bomber Command Centre will be a beautiful site once it is finished. A landscaped peace garden honouring all 60 nations involved in the command will give visitors a quiet place to contemplate. The Spire Memorial will be particularly stunning and coincides with plans to install new memorials across the UK to commemorate the men and women who gave their lives during WWI and WWII. In the UK we have a proud tradition of memorialising the deceased in unique ways, and we seek to carry on this tradition by producing beautiful and personal memorial plaques, headstones and other products.

The post Unveiling the IBCC memorial appeared first on UK Memorial Service.