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Counting the Cost

Aviation Discuss Counting the Cost in the World War II - Aviation forums; I dont know if any of you are aware of (or if any of you have seen) the American Air ...

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    Senior Member CRASHGATE3's Avatar
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    Counting the Cost

    I dont know if any of you are aware of (or if any of you have seen) the American Air Force Memorial at Duxford Air Museum here in the UK.
    Its called Counting the Cost and its by artist Renato Niemis.It consists of 52 glass panels each 6.5 feet high by 4 feet wide and etched onto them are every American aircraft lost flying from UK air bases in WW2.
    It states..
    8th AF....6346
    9th AF....692
    US Navy..24

    Thats 7062....

    The first panels are the most densely engraved remembering the 91st and 96th Bomber Groups of the 8th which together lost almost 400 B17s (each with an average ten men)
    The panels that follow commemorate the fighters lost by the 8th.
    The other side of the entrance commemorates the 9th Air Force and the 8th support groups and the Navy.
    I think the Museum puts it well when it says "This Memorial contrasts the power of the aircraft inside the museum with the cost of their use"



    When somebody says to you "Seven thousand and sixty two".....its just a number.But when you look at 7062 little aircraft it really hits you.

    I just thought I would share this with you.....the pics are by me.
    Attached Thumbnails Attached Thumbnails Counting the Cost-wall1.jpg   Counting the Cost-wall2.jpg  

    Counting the Cost-wall3.jpg  

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    Senior Member comiso90's Avatar
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    Thanks for the info. It's nice to see our guys remembered. There is so much that is taken for granted.

    I doubt there will be a monument depicting Humvees in Bahgdad.
    Last edited by comiso90; 04-24-2007 at 06:37 PM.

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    Senior Member pbfoot's Avatar
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    What about the Canadians and Aussies and Kiwis or did we get lumped into RAF

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    Senior Member lesofprimus's Avatar
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    Lumped Im sure...

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    the old Sage Erich's Avatar
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    I wonder and in fact I know what an RAF monument in glass would look like .....

    is this present anywhere in the UK gents ?

    Crash thanks for this .............. ~

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    Actually, there are well tended German POW graves in many of the bases/posts in the States.


    Not a monument per se, but then we didn't start this one!

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    Senior Member mkloby's Avatar
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    Thanks Crash
    If the Army and the Navy ever look on heaven's scenes, they will find the streets are guarded by United States Marines



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    Senior Member Heinz's Avatar
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    Nice shots


    a profound tribute to those brave souls..........

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    Senior Member amrit's Avatar
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    Quote Originally Posted by pbfoot View Post
    What about the Canadians and Aussies and Kiwis or did we get lumped into RAF
    There is the RAF monument in Plymouth. The inscription reads:

    ROYAL AIR FORCE
    COMMONWEALTH & ALLIED AIR FORCES
    1939 - 1945
    TRIBUTE
    TO ALL MEN AND WOMEN OF GREAT BRITAIN
    AUSTRALIA, CANADA, INDIA, NEW ZEALAND
    RHODESIA AND SOUTH AFRICA
    BELGIUM, CZECHOSLOVAKIA, DENMARK,
    FRANCE, GREECE, THE NETHERLANDS,
    NORWAY AND POLAND
    THE UNITED STATES OF AMERICA,
    THE UNION OF SOVIET SOCIALIST REPUBLICS,
    AND THOSE OF MANY OTHER NATIONS WHO SERVED
    IN ALL COMMANDS OF THE ROYAL AIR FORCES
    DURING THE SECOND WORLD WAR.

    THEIR COURAGE, SKILL AND DEVOTION TO DUTY
    WAS OF THE HIGHEST ORDER,
    BY WINNING THE BATTLE OF BRITAIN, THE MEN
    SAVED THE COUNTRY FROM INVASION IN 1940.
    "NEVER IN THE FIELD OF HUMAN CONFLICT WAS SO MUCH OWED BY SO
    MANY TO SO FEW" CHURCHILL

    COASTAL COMMAND PLAYED A VITAL ROLE IN
    KEEPING THE SEA LANES OPEN
    THE COMMANDS IN THE MIDDLE EAST, AFRICA AND
    THE FAR EAST, MADE GREAT CONTRIBUTIONS
    TOWARDS FINAL VICTORY.

    FROM THE OUTBREAK OF THE WAR THE BOMBER
    OFFENSIVE STEADILY INCREASED AND AFTER
    THE FORMATION OF THE PATHFINDER GROUP IN 1942
    VERY SEVERE DAMAGE WAS INFLICTED ON THE
    ENEMY BY THE CONSTANT NIGHT AND DAY
    OPERATIONS CARRIED OUT BY BOMBER COMMAND
    AND THE UNITED STATES AIR FORCE.

    CONTROL OF THE SKIES OVER EUROPE IN 1944
    WAS A VITAL FACTOR TO THE SUCCESS OF THE
    NORMANDY LANDINGS, THE COMBINED EFFORTS OF
    TACTICAL AND BOMBER COMMANDS AND
    THE UNITED STATES AIR FORCE THEN SPEARHEADED
    THE ALLIED ADVANCE ACROSS EUROPE.

    THE INSPIRED LEADERSHIP OF BENNETT, DOWDING,
    HARRIS, PORTAL, SLESSOR AND TEDDER OF THE
    ROYAL AIR FORCE AND ARNOLD, EAKER AND SPAATZ
    OF THE UNITED STATES AIR FORCE, PAVED THE WAY
    TO VICTORY IN 1945.
    "NOW AT LAST THE BOMBER COMMANDS HAVE WON THE AIR BATTLES OF
    EUROPE, OPENING THE PATH FOR VICTORY AND FREEDOM FOR THE
    ENSLAVED COUNTRIES OF EUROPE" CHURCHILL 1945

    HONOUR
    107,000 MEMBERS OF THE ROYAL AIR FORCE
    84,000 MEMBERS OF THE UNITED STATES AIR FORCE
    42,200 MEMBERS OF THE SOVIET AIR FORCE
    WHO MADE THE ULTIMATE SACRIFICE

    THEY FLEW BY DAY AND NIGHT
    AND GAVE THEIR LIVES TO KEEP FOREVER BRIGHT
    THAT PRECIOUS LIGHT
    FREEDOM

    Pictures from: Roll of Honour - Plymouth - National Memorials, Naval, Marines & Falklands.
    Attached Thumbnails Attached Thumbnails Counting the Cost-plymraf1.jpg   Counting the Cost-plymraf2.jpg  

    Counting the Cost-plymraf3.jpg  

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    Glock Perfection Matt308's Avatar
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    Thankyou, Crash. We should all be humbled. A cause that truly was a world effort. I am passionate about the continued support of the WWII allies. However, some misconstrue this passion for US arrogance. I would like to believe that others beside myself would sacrifice well being and/or economy to help the allies again, God forbid, if such a situation ever arose.

    "Some people spend an entire lifetime wondering if
    they made a difference in the world. But, the [U.S.]
    Marines don't have that problem."
    -- Ronald Reagan

    Master of Duplicate Posts

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    Senior Member Soundbreaker Welch?'s Avatar
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    52 panels? Wow. One panel looks like tons. I guess years of day to day bombing will do that.

    107,000 MEMBERS OF THE ROYAL AIR FORCE
    84,000 MEMBERS OF THE UNITED STATES AIR FORCE


    I didn't realize you Brits lost more than we did.

    (Humbled)
    "His motor's conked out!"
    "What's the differance, they're all Nazis!"
    "Luke, shut up!"
    "Fear the hook!"
    "Oh.....I wanna fly."
    "You mean the kind that go under water and fly up the stairs?"
    "What you doing? Oh Nooooo!"

  12. #12
    Pacific Historian syscom3's Avatar
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    Does that 84,000 include the losses in the PTO and CBI?
    "Pilot to copilot..... what are those mountain goats doing up here in the clouds?"

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    Senior Member Wildcat's Avatar
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    ..and how many of the 107 000 are "commonwealth" airmen?

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    For christ sake what's this crap about 'lumping in' or commonwealth airmen ?
    Where in RAF does it mention England or Britain ?

    Why can't we just respect the sacrifices made and leave it at that without being devisive.. ..

    Raf Squadrons were cosmopolitan in their nature.. I quote

    "Many of the newcomers, as the months passed, came from abroad. During 1941, 609 squadron had pilots from Belgium, France, Poland, Canada, the United stated, New Zealand and Rhodesia pass through its ranks. The most cosmopolitan squadrons distilled a new spirit from the mix of nationalities and it is noted that they were often the most happy and succesful"

    and a bit more..

    "Virtually every squadron was enriched by a dash of over seas blood. Of the 2,917 airmen who flew in Fighter Command between 10 july and the end of October 1940, 2,324 were British, 124 were Polish, 126 from New Zealand, 98 from Canada, 88 from Czechoslovakia, 33 from Australia, 29 from Belgium, 25 from South Africa, 13 from France, 11 from the United States, 10 from Ireland, 3 from Rhodesia and 1 each from Jamaica and Newfoundland"

    and the cost ?

    "Of the 2,917 men who fought in Fighter Command the air battles of the summer of 1940, 544 were killed, Another 795 died before the war was over."


    Simon
    Last edited by bomber; 04-26-2007 at 07:48 AM.

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    Last edited by Cyrano; 07-20-2011 at 11:55 PM.

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