With a large propeller and large white wall of dedication this memorial is to the Service Personnel that manned Steeple Morden Airfield during World War II.
There are numerous crests and squadron insignia and a map of the old airfield layout. Two large lists of the names of fallen men are listed on either side of the main wall. The inscriptions are detailed below.
On a piece of granite from the old airfield control tower:
'355TH FIGHTER GROUP
AAF STATION 122
STEEPLE MORDEN
JULY 1943 - JULY 1954'
On the left hand side below an outline of a P-47 THUNDERBOLT:
'MEMORIAL
355TH FIGHTER GROUP
AND
SUPPORT UNITS
U S A A F
8TH AIR FORCE
ACTIVATED ORLANDO FL 12 NOV 42
ARRIVED UK 6 JUL 43
FIRST COMBAT MISSION 14 SEP 43
LAST COMBAT MISSION 25 APR 45
OVER 1500 E/A DAMAGED-DESTROYED
DISTINGUISHED UNIT CITATION 5 APR 44
OVER 2000 AMERICAN AIRMEN SERVED HERE
DEDICATED 12 MAY 1981'
On the right hand side below a P-51 MUSTANG:
'UNITS ASSIGNED OR ATTACHED
AAF STATION F-122
355 FG HQ
354 FS
357 FS
358 FS
2 SF
1 SG HQ
5 SS
14 SC
18 WS
151 QM
441 ASG
641 AMS
817 AES
1066 SC
1104 QM
1181 MP
1447 ORD
1754 ORD
2005 FF
2028 FF
ARC
RAF
RCAF'
A brass plaque reads as follows:
'In Honor Of
THE SCOUTING FORCE
(EXPERIMENTAL)
Based at Steeple Morden
24 May - 20 September 1944
Commanded by Colonel Budd J. Peaslee,
Volunteer 8th Air Force Bomber & Fighter Pilots
pioneered the scouting concept. They led the bomber
force through the weather, scouted the targets and
defended the bombers. They served as a prototype for
the 1st, 2nd and 3rd Scouting Forces.
Those who gave their lives in this cause include
John Bergerson, Robert T. Bennett, William S. Burtt,
Vincent G. Dressendorfer, Teleschor Lojewski,
Gerald C. Price and Charles Wright.
Presented by the Scouting Force Association
August 1997.'
The memorial was re-dedicated in 2000 please see the newspaper article here (
visit link)
Another brass plaque from the year 2000 reads:
'In Honor Of
THE 2ND SCOUTING FORCE
Flight Operations and Ground Personnel
who served at Steeple Morden
with the 355th Fighter Group
YF OS WR
Volunteer Bomber and Fighter Pilots of the 2SF
flew hundreds of weather scouting sorties,
from 26 September 1944 through 25 April 1945.
Led by Lt. Col. John A. Brooks III
The Scouts made a major contribution
to the success of the 8AF heavy bombing campaign.
In Memory Of
Those who gave their precious lives
Robert Bertelson, William Hornickel,
Leonard Monefeldt and James Stauder
Presented by the Scouting Force Association
In the Year 2000'
There are a few more plaques on the wooden gates which lead into the memorial area detailed in the gallery.
The memorial lies along the Litlington Road where the remains of Steeple Morden Airfield can still be seen today. A few huts at the nearby farm are now utilised for agricultural storage. The map of the airfield next to the memorial on a plinth shows where everything used to be and you can envisage where the runways were with the lay of the land as the fields stretch our before you.
The Steeple Morden village website has some historic information about the airfield: (
visit link)