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Memorial details

Memorial type
Composite
District
Tonbridge And Malling
Town
West Malling
County
Kent
Country
England
Commemoration
Second World War (1939-1945)
Ceremony
  • Unveiled
    Date: 9th June 2002
    Attended by: Air Marshal Sir Ivor Broom KCB CBE DSO DFC AFC; Air Chief Mashall Sir Christopher Foxley-Norris, Air Chief Marshall Sir Lewis Hodges
  • Unveiled
    Date: 9th June 2002
    Attended by: Rev. Donald Bish & Rev. Brian Stevenson/Local Clergy/Dignitaries
  • Unveiled
    Date: 9th June 2002
    Attended by: Relatives of the Fallen
  • Show More (2)
Lost
Not lost
WM Reference
48786

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Current location

King's Hill
Gibson Drive
West Malling
Tonbridge And Malling
Kent
ME19 4LG
England

OS Grid Ref: TQ 67102 55514
Denomination: Undefined

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Description
Four upright stone tablets and a figure of an airman with dedicatory tablet placed at his feet set around a paved area. Crest of the RAF and West Malling airfield depicted on the first tablet. Profiles of five aircraft which served at RAF West Malling are depicted on tablet two and four. An airman is depicted running to his aircraft with his parachute held in his right hand.
Inscription
ROYAL AIR FORCE/ WEST MALLING/ 1939 - 1945 THIS MEMORIAL, UNVEILED ON 9TH JUNE 2002/ MARKS THE SITE OF/ ROYAL AIR FORCE WEST MALLING/ AND STANDS AS A TESTAMENT TO THE/ MILITARY AND CIVILIAN PERSONNEL/ WHO SERVED HERE./ AFTER ACTING AS A LANDING AREA DURING WORLD WAR I,/ THE AIRFIELD SERVED CIVIL AVIATION - IT IS RECORDED/ THAT AMY JOHNSON FLEW FROM HERE./ IN THE EARLY DAYS OF WORLD WAR II, R.A.F. WEST MALLING/ WAS A SATELLITE STATION IN THE BIGGIN HILL SECTOR./ IN 1940, THE STATION SUSTAINED HEAVY ENEMY BOMBING./ AFTER REPAIRS, R.A.F WEST MALLING RE-OPENED AS A/ FULLY OPERATIONAL NIGHT FIGHTER BASE./ FAMOUS AVIATORS STATIONED HERE INCLUDED/ WING CDR. PETER TOWNSEND, WING CDR. BOB BRAHAM,/ WING CDR JOHN "CATS EYES" CUNNINGHAM AND/ SQN LDR GUY GIBSON (LATER OF DAM BUSTER FAME)/ WHO SAID OF WEST MALLING/ "OF ALL THE AIRFIELDS IN GREAT BRITAIN, HERE, MANY SAY,/ INCLUDING MYSELF, WE HAVE THE MOST PLEASANT." AN EVENTFUL NIGHT IN APRIL 1943/ CONTRIBUTED TO AVIATION HISTORY/ WHEN THREE ENEMY AIRCRAFT/ LANDED HERE BY DEFAULT BELIEVING/ THAT THEY HAD CROSSED/ THE ENGLISH CHANNEL AND WERE IN FRANCE/ IN PEACETIME, AIRCRAFT CONTINUED TO FLY FROM WEST MALLING./ AFTER SERVING WITH DISTINCTION IN CONFLICTS ABROAD, KENT'S OWN/ 500 ROYAL AUXILIARY AIR FORCE SQUADRON,/ THE FIRST TO FLY JET AIRCRAFT, WAS BASED HERE 1946-1957./ WHEN THE RAF STOOD DOWN THE STATION IN 1961/ THE AIRFIELD SERVED AS A NATO/ AMERICAN NAVAL AIR FACILITY UNTIL 1964./ THE SPIRIT OF AVIATION LIVED ON/ THROUGH A NUMBER OF COMPANIES,/ AIR SHOWS AND THE/ 618 RAF VOLUNTEER GLIDING SCHOOL/ WHO TRAINED CADETS HERE/ UNTIL FLYING CEASED IN 1995./ DEVELOPMENT OF THE RESIDENTIAL/ AND BUSINESS COMMUNITY OF KINGS HILL/ BEGAN IN 1989. WESTLAND LYSANDER III/ RECONNAISSANCE AIRCRAFT/ THE FIRST SQUADRON TO BE BASED AT/ WEST MALLING/ GLOSTER JAVELIN F.A.W.2/ THESE NIGHT FIGHTERS WERE THE LAST/ R.A.F. SQUADRON TO BE BASE AT/ WEST MALLING (SEE CO-ORDINATORS COMMENTS SECTION)
Inscription legible?
yes
Commemorations
  • Second World War (1939-1945)
    Total names on memorial: 0
    Served and returned: 0
    Died: 0
    Exact count: no
    Information shown: Undefined
    Order of information: Undefined
Components
  • Figure
    Measurements: height 1500 mm, width 450 mm
    Materials: Bronze
  • Tablets
    Measurements: depth 150 mm, height 1500 mm, width 600 mm
    Materials: Granite - Black
Listing information
Condition
Costs

Memorial: £40,000

Trust fund/Scholarship
No
Purpose: Unknown or N/A
Sponsorship
Corporate

This record comprises all information held by IWM’s War Memorials Register for this memorial. Where we hold a names list for the memorial, this information will be displayed on the memorial record. Please check back as we are adding more names to the database.

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© WMR-48786

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