Close-up of British trainee paratroopers alongside an Armstrong Whitworth Whitley of No 295 Squadron, Royal Air Force, at RAF Netheravon in October 1942. (Official photographer, Public domain, via Wikimedia Commons)
Airborne training route marches and exercises have been identified, historic airfields researched, heritage-linked accommodation identified and 2,400 maroon tulips planted as Airborne Tulip Memorials.
Bringing heritage to colourful life
For KS2 pupils, the Soldiers from the Sky digital education pack offers a wealth of opportunity across the STEM curriculum coupled with important aspects of Remembrance. Click here for more information:
A full education pack encourages engagement for KS2 pupils both those studying World War II and as a building block towards Remembrance commemorations. Click here to download the Education Pack:
The front cover of the Heritage Trail Feasibility Study.
Support celebrating Airborne Heritage
The Arnhem 1944 Fellowship has been invaluable in the development of the ‘Soldiers from the Sky’ project as a living Airborne Forces’ heritage trail.
The Fellowship, whose aims include assisting in the preservation of heritage connected with the battle of Arnhem, funded the initial Feasibility Study into the concept, thanks to a grant from South Kesteven District Council’s UK Shared Prosperity Fund.
The study identified the potential scope and value of Airborne heritage that would otherwise pass from memory, the diverse and scattered locations of information, the sheer scale of the Airborne forces’ presence in South Kesteven and surrounding area in 1944, remaining sites and the opportunities the project offered for wider awareness and understanding.
The Feasibility Study proved a powerful document in the project’s successful application to The National Lottery Heritage Fund.
For more information about the Fellowship, and how to become a supporter of its work, please click here:
ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS
HERITAGE ADVISOR TO THE PROJECT: SQN LDR BRIAN RILEY RAF (Retd)
No heritage project on this scale could succeed without the help and support of many individuals and organizations.
We would like to take this opportunity to express our sincere thanks and gratitude to all our friends below, who helped us bring this Project to fruition:
Wg Cdr Mike Ainsworth, RAF (Retd):
Creator of the Cycling and Driving Routes
Christopher Ashwell:
Official Historian,314th Airlift Wing, USAF
Jon Baker:
Curator, Airborne Assault Museum, Duxford
Ray Bennett:
Saltby Airfield Research Group
Adam Berry:
Military Historian specializing in the US IX Troop Carrier Command, and author of 'A Breathtaking Spectacle: A Written and Pictorial History of IX Troop Carrier Command in England During WWII'
Andy Blow:
Videographer
Darren Bond:
Military Historian specializing in the US 82nd Airborne Division
Dave Bristow:
Author, ‘What Happened to You, Lazy Lou?’
Dr Holly Carter:
Executive Director and Dean of Harlaxton College
Richard Chancellor:
Military Historian specializing in the US 313th Troop Carrier Group
WO2 Ian Chick, 4th Battalion, Parachute Regiment:
Liaison between the Project and the current British Airborne Forces
Sir Fred and Lady Ursula Cholmeley:
Easton Walled Gardens
Dr Tim Clack:
Chingiz Gutseriev Associate Professor, School of Anthropology and Museum Ethnography & School of Archaeology, University of Oxford; Archaeological Advisor to 'Soldiers from the Sky'
Jim Counsell:
Freelance Designer
Lt Col Richard Dixon-Warren, Royal Logistics Corps (Retd):
Councillor, South Kesteven District Council
Alix Fane:
Owner, Fulbeck Manor
Mark Fisher:
IT Support & Infrastructure Lead, South Kesteven District Council
Mike Frankel:
Videographer
John Gerring:
Secretary, The Arnhem 1944 Fellowship
Beryl Guest:
Story Contributor
Lt Gen Andrew Harrison, Parachute Regiment (Retd):
Former Colonel Commandant of the Parachute Regiment and narrator of the Project’s promotional film
Mark Hickman:
The Pegasus Archive
Ben Hill:
Deputy Curator, Airborne Assault Museum, Duxford
Bob Hilton:
Historian of British Airborne Forces
Gary Jucha:
Historian of the 1st Polish Independent Parachute Brigade
David Kavanagh:
Aviation Historian
Jenny Leadbetter:
Architectural Heritage and Conservation Specialist
Prof Carenza Lewis:
Professor for the Public Understanding of Research, Lincoln University
Terry Musson:
Barkston Heath Research Group
Grant Newell:
Historian and author of the books, 'Airborne to Arnhem - Personal Reminiscences of the Battle of Arnhem, Operation MARKET, 17-26 September 1944' (Volumes 1-3)
Sqn Ldr James Nightingale, RAF:
SO2 Communications, Engagement and Heritage, RAF College Cranwell
John O'Reilly:
Historian of the 156th Parachute Battalion and author of 'From Delhi to Arnhem: the 156th Parachute Battalion'
Daniel Pearce:
Aviation Historian
Lt Col Steve Pedone, USAF (Retd):
Aviation Historian
Mark Pitt:
Military Historian and specialist in the history of the 89th (Parachute) Field Security Section, Intelligence Corps
Stuart Riley:
Videographer
Dr Jack Talley:
Psychologist and son-in-law of 82nd Airborne veteran
Sue Talley:
Daughter of US 82nd Airborne Division veteran
Rosie Thompson:
Saltby Airfield Research Group
Col Mark Vlahos, USAF (Retd):
Historian and author of 'Men Will Come: A History of the 314th Troop Carrier Group 1942-1945'
Maj David Winn, Royal Regiment of Fusiliers (Retd):
Battlefield Guide and Volunteer Guide for the Commonwealth War Graves Commission
