Control tower circa 1970s   Photograph of the Control Tower taken, we believe in the early 1970s  One of our volunteers has recently discovered this from his collection of photos taken over the years.   The photo shows the chance light building still standing at the time, with the rear wall of the fire engine ambulance shed Nissen hut in front of it.

B-17 ‘Fever Beaver’ standing on No 10 Hard Stand showing a long line of mission bomb symbols and very worn paint work.  The squadron and aircraft code are barely visible.  Under the wing, is a very large tree stump that had just been left on the grass and one of the airfield’s Tannoy speakers.  We don’t know why the tree stump had been left there! Photo 3 Photo 3 was taken between Hard Stands No 9 and No 10 and shows a B-17 on the runway, a truck on the perimeter / taxiway an

Christmas approaches after another busy season at Thorpe Abbotts. Visitor numbers this year have not quite hit the highs of last year but have still been much above average. What has been particularly satisfying is to see a significant increase in Veteran’s families coming over from the United States, many of whom have only just realised what their father/grandfather went through during the war after watching Masters of the Air’. There have also been increased numbers of Tour

Since opening our online store back in April 2025, we’ve been thrilled to share our growing range of specially designed merchandise with our supporters. Whether you’ve been with us since day one or you’re discovering us for the first time, we’re excited to remind you that the festive season is just around the corner — and our collection offers the perfect way to surprise someone special. Our store, created in partnership with Empire Clothing, features a distinctive blend of m

100th Bomb Group Memorial Museum Launches Online Store with Empire Clothing

I’m writing this update just under two weeks from our opening day on March 1st. It hardly seems that winter is over (or not) before we...

Veteran family visit - on her recent visit to Thorpe Abbotts Christina is pictured with Ron Batley outside the Visitor Centre. She is the granddaughter of waist gunner Sgt Harold Osban, who flew for both the 350th & 351st squadrons in 1944. His planes included Quittin’ Time, My Gal Sal, Humpty Dumpty, Mason and Dixon - altogether he amassed well over 30 missions.

The Tee family stand is the same place where hardstand 8 and their father's plane used to be. The Tee family at Hardstand 8 on the airfield, the same place where their father, T/Sgt Winfred Tee appears in the wartime photo. T/Sgt is at bottom right in the original photo with his crew and their aircraft Piccadilly Lily II. Winfred’s daughters and their partners had an emotional visit to Thorpe Abbotts. Their father flew with the 351st Bomb Squadron as a Radio Operator/Gunner o

Veteran family visit - we opened up the museum on Sunday 8th December 2024, so that Scott and Adriana O’Brien could visit and walk in the footsteps of Scott’s Grandfather, Sgt James O’Brien, 350th Bomb Squadron Communications. Sgt. James O'Brien James O’Brien was part of the detachment which came to the airfield in advance of the Group to prepare for their arrival. A touching moment was when Scott identified his Grandfather in a photo in the Sad Sack Shack at the museum (phot