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3.9 miles away
North Yorkshire
Burn — 578 Squadron RAF Memorial Panels, Burn Methodist Chapel
Burn, Selby, North Yorkshire
Partial Record
The Memorial
This board/plaque/tablet — 11 stainless steel plaques on glazed backboard was erected by Burn Village Council and dedicated on 16 May 1999.
Type
Board/Plaque/Tablet — 11 stainless steel plaques on glazed backboard
Erected By
Burn Village Council
Dedication Date
16 May 1999
Inscription
Names all 219 aircrew killed serving with 578 Squadron from RAF Burn, January 1944 to March 1945. Also records 79 POW and 45 aircraft lost.
LocationApproximate Location
Burn Methodist Chapel, Main Street, Burn, Selby, North Yorkshire YO8 8LJ
OS Grid Ref: SE 59388 28517
What Happened
578 Squadron formed at RAF Burn in North Yorkshire in January 1944 and flew Halifax bombers until the end of the war. In just fourteen months of operations from Burn, 219 aircrew were killed, 79 became prisoners of war, and 45 aircraft were lost — a savage toll for a single station. The memorial panels in Burn Methodist Chapel were dedicated in May 1999, fifty-four years after the squadron's disbandment. Eleven stainless steel plaques mounted on a glazed backboard record every name of those killed. The memorial is maintained by Burn Village Council and stands as a permanent record of the human cost of Bomber Command operations from this quiet North Yorkshire village. RAF Burn — now farmland — saw many notable operations including crew of the Farnsfield Halifax MZ519 (also 578 Squadron) who flew from this station.
Community Connection
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Share this memorial's storyRemembrance
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Share remembrance informationAircraft & Operation Details
Squadron
578 Squadron RAFStation
RAF Burn
Crew
219 aircrew killed, 79 taken prisoner, 45 aircraft lost — 578 Squadron at RAF Burn January 1944 to March 1945
Further Reading
IWM War Memorials RegisterRetrieved 2026-04-07
IWM register entry for the 578 Squadron memorial panels in Burn Methodist Chapel. Records eleven stainless steel plaques on glazed backboard naming all 219 aircrew killed from RAF Burn between January 1944 and March 1945. Dedicated 16 May 1999.
What you'll find: Detailed records of 219 aircrew from RAF Burn, killed in action between 1944-45, enshrined on eleven stainless steel plaques.
IWM reference 11819219 aircrew killed named on 11 stainless steel plaques79 POW and 45 aircraft also recordedDedicated 16 May 1999 by Rev Owain WilliamsMaintained by Burn Village Council
Nearby Memorials
Sources
IWM War Memorials Register (retrieved 2026-04-07)
Credits & Acknowledgements
Record compiled by
Holly (PAI) — Squadron Deep Dive research
Last updated 2026-04-09
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