L’APPEL du 18 JUIN Le 18 juin marque le jour, il y a 81 ans, où Charles de Gaulle prononça depuis Londres son célèbre discours pour rallier les Français à sa cause. Ce discours est connu sous le nom de ‘l’Appel’. Ce jour là, des milliers de Français entendirent la voix de cet inconnu pour […]
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18th June 1940 – l’Appel
18th June 1940 – l’Appel 18th June marks the day, 81 years ago, when Charles De Gaulle delivered his famous speech from London to rally the French people to the resistance movement. This speech is known by the French as l’Appel (‘the call’). Across the Channel, thousands of French people heard his voice for the […]
On this day, 77 years ago, the D-Day landings took place.
‘La France, on ne la voit pas, on la sent’ ‘You can’t see France but you can feel it’ (words of a French pilot in the RAF on a night bombing mission over Normandy in June 1944) Halifax bomber taking off from Elvington, 5th June 1944. On the 5th of June 1944, the Allied Armies […]
Neill Watson – In Memoriam
Neill Watson, 23rd January 1965 – 13th April 2021 IN MEMORIAM Neill Watson, Digital Media Manager, Yorkshire Air Museum. During the past 5 years, Neill Watson worked diligently behind the scenes to create the Yorkshire Air Museum’s digital profile and own unique voice on many social media platforms. Many will remember Neill for his friendly […]
Halifax Friday the 13th Comes to Life
Today we are finally able to announce the most exciting news. This morning our beloved Halifax Friday the 13th came to life for the first time. Throughout the winter, our engineering team, under strict secrecy, have been finalising the overhaul of the Bristol Hercules engines of our Halifax as we work towards CAA approval to […]
Le Yorkshire Air Museum réaffirme le statut européen du Mémorial des Forces Aériennes Alliées.
Le Yorkshire Air Museum a pu réaffirmer cette semaine le statut européen du Mémorial des Forces Aériennes Alliées. Situé dans l’enceinte du musée, le Mémorial existe depuis plus de 35 ans pour honorer la mémoire des forces aériennes alliées durant la Seconde Guerre mondiale et durant les conflits successifs à travers le monde. La Directrice […]
The Yorkshire Air Museum Re-Affirms Allied Air Forces Memorial European Status
The Yorkshire Air Museum was able to re-affirm the European status of The Allied Air Forces Memorial this week. Located in the grounds of the Museum, the memorial is part of an ongoing, 35 year old quest to honour the memory of the Allied Air Forces of World War Two and subsequently in conflicts around […]
Robert Pleming Remembered
The aviation heritage community was deeply saddened this week by the sudden passing of Professor Robert Pleming of Vulcan to the Sky Trust. Our Chair of Trustees for the Yorkshire Air Museum, Martin Withers DFC, shares his thoughts and memories of the man who was instrumental in enabling us all to enjoy Vulcan XH558 in […]
1944 and The French Squadron’s Toy Story
In December 1944, the war in Europe was intensified following D Day and here at RAF Elvington, the French Squadrons were flying missions in support of the offensive. Flying from the UK to free their homeland, these were intense times for the French airmen and ground crews. It must have been worrying to not know […]
Remembrance Day 2020
This year marks 75 years since the Elvington based French Squadrons finally made their journey home to Bordeaux in France. We would loved to have welcomed our Groupes Lourds friends to the museum on this Remembrance day, however this sadly cannot be the case. Instead, we’ve created this short film to express our gratitude and […]
Barbara George appointed Honorary Vice President of Association des Anciens et des Amis des Groupes Lourds.
More than 60 years ago, the Groupes Lourds Association was founded in France to remember the sacrifice of the French aircrew who flew Halifax III Bombers from RAF Elvington near York on missions to liberate Europe between 1944 and 1945. The museum enjoys a great bond of friendship with the association and we work together […]
The French Squadrons Homecoming, 1945
In October 1945, the French Heavy Bomber Squadrons based here at Elvington were finally able to return home to Bordeaux. President of the Groupes Lourds Association Paul Bogaert recounts the return of 346 and 347 Squadrons as they fly from Elvington to Bordeaux in October 1945. After 23 months of operations from the RAF Station […]
