WWII Memorial remembers brothers in arms - Sky News Australia

Updated: 03:27, Friday June 29, 2012

Some 4000 Australians are among the brave airmen honoured by a World War II Bomber Command memorial unveiled by the Queen in London.

And amid the pomp and ceremony, religion and royalty of Thursday's dedication ceremony came a story of comradeship from Down Under.

'I couldn't really see the Queen and the Duke (of Edinburgh),' said 89-year-old Canberra veteran Frank Ward from his wheelchair toward the rear of the crowd.

'But seeing the memorial and being surrounded by all these old codgers, it made me feel nostalgic.

'We came from all over the world, the members of Bomber Command: Australia, New Zealand, Canada, South Africa.

'Today my thoughts turned to a bloke I met all those years ago while training in Canada, a lovely Maori bloke. I don't even remember his name.

'We were great mates and he was my protector. Like so many of the great men I met during the war, I don't know what happened to him (or) whether he even survived.'

Stories like that of the 467 squadron navigator were aplenty on Thursday, and for some the emotion was too great, as tears flowed freely during the Last Post.

The STG3.5 million ($A5.4 million) stone monument in London's Green Park that includes statues of Bomber Command airmen poised in battle pays tribute to the 55,573 who lost their lives during the strategic raids on enemy territory.

More than 10,000 Australians, with an average age of 22, signed up for Bomber Command. Only about 6000 returned home.

One hundred Command veterans from across Australia travelled to London for the memorial dedication.

'There is a sense of relief that there has been a special recognition of their significant contribution to the defeat of the Axis powers during the war. They played a key part,' General Mark Kelly said of the Australian contingent present on Thursday.

Dressed in lilac, the Queen met two Australian veterans, Norman Deady and Dudley Hannaford, after unveiling the memorial.

'What an honour,' said Mr Hannaford, 88, from Sydney.

'And the fly-past by that old Lancaster (aircraft). Such a privilege to see.'