WW2 bomber navigator, 100, pays tribute to comrades

Centenarian Clifford Storr paid tribute to fallen comrades at the International Bomber Command Centre in Lincoln

One of the last surviving air crew from World War Two Bomber Command said it is important to keep "memories alive" after honouring fallen soldiers.

Clifford Storr, 100, fulfilled his wish to visit the International Bomber Command Centre (IBCC) to pay tribute to those who served with him.

Mr Storr, from Banbury, laid a wreath and observed a moment of silence to remember his fallen comrades.

Paying tribute to those who served with him he described it as "humbling".

The centenarian travelled in a limousine from his Oxfordshire care home, Seccombe Court, to the IBCC in Lincoln on 2 November where he saw the Memorial Spire and Walls of Names.

Mr Storr served as a Flt Lt navigator on bombers based at RAF Coningsby in Lincolnshire

Mr Storr said: "It was a day to remember. It was such a thrill to be taken to the IBCC. Keeping these memories alive is so important.

"Meeting other retired RAF personnel was an honour as well as being able to lay a wreath for all the fallen soldiers, especially locating the names of two of my crew members who did not survive, and placing a poppy for them was humbling."

Mr Storr, who survived a crash landing uninjured and completed two tours in Germany as well as more than 50 operations, said the hardest part of the war was losing his friends.

He is one of the last surviving air crew from WW2 Bomber Command

He said he "never knew if it was his turn next and would see the empty places at breakfast the next morning".

The IBCC, in Lincoln, recognises the contributions of Bomber Command and hopes to teach future generations about its role in World War Two.

Mr Storr was greeted by IBCC chief executive Nicky van der Drift as well as former air chief marshal Sir Michael Graydon, retired air vice-marshal Paul Robinson and former RAF officer Sidney MacFarlane.

Wojciech Kuczkowski, general manager Mr Storr's care home, Seccombe Court, said: "It was important for us to help grant his wish to honour those who have served in the military just like he has."

Follow BBC South on Facebook, X, or Instagram. Send your story ideas to [e-mail].