Lancaster ED877 (AJ-A) Memorial, Castricum aan Zee

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AJ-A was one of nineteen Lancasters that took off from RAF Scampton on the night of 16/17 May 1943 to carry out Operation Chastise, the attack on the Ruhr valley dams. Sqn Ldr Young's aircraft successfully delivered its Upkeep mine against the Möhne dam on the outbound leg.

On the return flight, crossing the Dutch coast near IJmuiden at low level, ED877 was struck by fire from Marineflakbatterie 816 and came down on a sandbar near beach pole 47 at Castricum aan Zee at approximately 02:58. The aircraft was, in the words of one account, 'well past the last gun battery and only a few hundred yards from safety.'

Young was already a decorated veteran with two DFCs and had survived a previous North Sea ditching — hence the nickname 'Dinghy'. All seven crew died. Their bodies were carried south by the tide and came ashore over the following two weeks; all seven are buried together at Bergen General Cemetery in North Holland.

Local remembrance gathered momentum through the 617 Squadron Netherlands Aircrew Memorial Foundation. The stone plaque unveiled in 2018 was the first formal permanent marker at the crash site. The 2026 Standing with Giants installation — seven steel silhouettes on the dunes facing the sea — transformed the memorial into something visible from a distance. The Castricum version is unusual among Standing with Giants installations in giving each figure individual facial characteristics drawn from surviving photographs, making it one of the most personalised of the charity's works.

Note: the seed data named 'Charlie Maynard MP' as attending the 2026 dedication. Research found the attending MP was Paul Maynard. These may be the same person (Paul Charles Maynard) but could not be confirmed; the verified name Paul Maynard is used here.

617 Squadron Netherlands Aircrew Memorial Foundation funded and organised the 2018 stone plaque unveiling. Local organiser Jan van Dalen coordinated the 2018 ceremony, which was attended by family members. Stichting Oud-Castricum and Castricum municipality co-operated on the 2026 Standing with Giants installation. British MP Paul Maynard attended the June 2026 dedication ceremony representing Standing with Giants.

Do you know of any commemorative events or annual services held at this memorial? We would love to hear from local communities who remember.