Aviation Heritage Centre missed

I was surprised in your April edition that the article about the Bomber Command memorial in Lincoln didn’t mention that the largest and best in Bomber Command museum in Lincolnshire is the one at East Kirkby called the Lincolnshire Aviation Heritage Centre ( lincsaviation.co.uk/ about). It has a preserved Lancaster Bomber called Just Jane that is renovated and taxis up and down the runway (not yet flying again).

The Lincolnshire Aviation Heritage Centre is a privately owned museum and was set up by two brothers, Fred and Harold Panton. It has been built up as a memorial to Bomber Command and primarily as a tribute to their eldest brother, Christopher Whitton Panton, who was shot down and killed on a bombing raid over

Nuremberg on 30/31 March 1944. For a short time after the war there was interest from the brothers to visit Christopher’s grave in Germany, but their father denied them the chance as he wanted “nothing more to do with the war”. Until, in the 1970s Mr Panton called Fred over and told him to “get off to Germany and bring me a photograph of his grave” which of course Fred did as soon as he could. This reignited Fred’s interest in the war and when NX611 came up for sale it was eventually purchased by the brothers and brought to their land at East Kirkby.

Even though they had planned to keep it only for their private collection it was suggested that they should make it into an exhibit for the public and this museum was set up with the Lancaster and Control tower as its centrepieces.

The Lincolnshire Aviation Heritage Centre opened in 1988 and we are all very proud of the accomplishments of the centre, which is one of the biggest independent museums receiving no funding or Lottery grants. Beverley Wardle by email