A MEMORIAL has been designed to remember those who died when a plane crashed into a North Yorkshire village.

Tockwith Parish Council have been given permission to build a monument to mark the 70th anniversary of a Stirling Bomber crashing into Marston Road at 1.34am on October 9, 1945.

The village postmaster, Arthur William Carlill, and all six crew members were killed, and 19 houses were wrecked.

Local firm Stage One Creative Services - who built the Olympic 2012 cauldron - and local builder Joe Wilson have been commissioned to build the memorial, which will be unveiled on Sunday, October 11, the closest Sunday to the 70th anniversary on October 9.

Jim Tinsley, from Stage One, which is based in a hangar on the old RAF Marston Moor Airfield, said: "Not only is it nice to have the opportunity to get involved with a community project like this, but it’s also something of an honour to be asked to help.

"The very sad human tragedy at the centre of the memorial is part of the larger story of the local community and how the life of the airfield and the village of Tockwith became interwoven.

"With our workshops being based in some of the old Second World War aircraft hangars, the story resonates with us and we are glad to be able to lend our skills to a piece of local history that deserves to be heard and suitably commemorated."

The memorial will also include the names of all crew members - pilot P/O S.H. Bunting, engineer Sgt R.V. Viall, navigator Sgt R.A. Alexander, bomb-aimer Flight Officer H Griffiths, wireless operator Sgt A.E.Boness, and air gunner Flight Officer J Cantle-Jones.

Descendants of those killed, along with the bishop of Selby and representatives from the RAF, police and fire service are expected at the ceremony. There will also be an exhibition about the crash in Tockwith Church on Saturday, October 10, when local historian Brian Lunn will answer questions.

Parish Council Norman Waller said: "The site chosen for the monument is close to where the main impact of the crash was; in fact some of the nearby trees are reputed to have pieces of the crashed aircraft still in them. It is felt that the monument is very striking and will have sufficient impact to act as a long overdue lasting memorial.

"When the exhibition was first considered I thought that we would be displaying a few photographs but we now have information about the RAF site. It would be nice to be able to record the memories of those the remembered the crash as well so it would be good to hear form those people in particular."

York Press:
 Damage caused to buildings in Tockwith when a Stirling bomber crashed in 1945 

Because the crash happened after the Second World War ended, there were no grants available to the parish council for the monument, so the cost had to be met through local generosity.

Anyone with information on descendants of those killed should phone Norman Waller on 01423 358588.