Historic Plane Flypasts for Air Forces Memorial Day

The 31st International Allied Air Forces Memorial Day takes place today at Yorkshire Air Musuem. The colourful spectacle will commemorate the Centenary of the Battle of the Somme, the first battle in history to feature dedicated military air campaigns.

The event will feature spectacular flypast displays by the WWII Lancaster bomber from the Battle of Britain Memorial Flight. The Hurricane and Spitfire fighters will provide a finale to the event during the poignant ‘Sunset Ceremony’, which will be accompanied by the Evening Hymn.

The occasion will also feature the Yorkshire Military Band and 40 other regional Service Association and Squadron Standards being presented on the day.

The parade will lead into the Drum Head Service in the main display hangar where the service will take place.

The Légion d’Honneur will be presented to 5 Normandy Veterans by Mr Jeremy Burton, the French Consul to Yorkshire and the French Defence Attaché Contre Amiral Patrick Chevallereau.

Diplomatic representatives from France, Netherlands, Finland, Australia, New Zealand, Canada, USA, South Africa and other nations will be attending the event.