Lancaster ME699 - A Bomber crew at war

ME699 Memorial, Laversines, Oise, France

On the 6th July 2024, close to the 80th anniversary of the loss of ME699, a memorial to the crew was unveiled in the village of Laversines, Oise, France, where the aircraft came down. The village is between Beauvais and Bresles.

The project was co-ordinated by the local group of World War two researchers Groupe National de Recherche 1939-1945 and the Mayor and town of Laversines.

The  memorial is close to the existing War Memorial in the centre of the village as the actual crash site is not suitable for this purpose.

The Memorial

The memorial is just behond the exisiting French village war memorial.

It is the format of an information panel in French telling the story of the loss of ME699 on the night of the 4th/5th July 1944 and the fate of the eight men on board from the UK, Canada and Australia, and is shaped like the tailplane of a Lancaster bomber.

It serves as a tribute to the men and women of the French Resistance who hid the two survivors in the Summer of 1944.

The dedication of the Memorial took place on the 6th July 2024 and was attended by relatives of the crew's families, the 44 Squadron Association and the town of Broken Hill, New South Wales as well as political representatives from Oise and Laversines. Many from the village of Laversines also came out at what was an emotional and poignant ceremony.