A new international centre is now being built in Lincolnshire which will, for the first time, tell the full story of those who served, supported or were affected by Bomber Command’s campaigns.

The project, run by the Lincolnshire Bomber Command Memorial Trust (LBCM) and the University of Lincoln, has been awarded a £3.1million grant by HLF. This will pay for interactive displays and the creation of an archive that digitises and preserves hundreds of personal stories and documents including the recollections of some of the few remaining survivors. The costs for building the centre and memorial have been raised through other means.

[quote= Dan Show, TV historian] "This centre will be a world leader" [/quote]

The Dutch and Norwegian governments have supported the new centre reflecting the international make-up of Bomber Command - over 60 countries were represented in personnel lists and European refugees including Poles, Czechs, and Germans made significant contributions.

Lincolnshire is a fitting home from which the story can be told as many of the most well-known operations flew from bases in the county and 46% of all those killed had been based in the so-called ‘Bomber County'.

TV historian Dan Snow welcomed the funding, commenting: “Lincolnshire needs a proper memorial to the service personnel who faced appalling conditions as they did their bit to liberate Europe from fascism. There is no other centre in Britain or any other country where the history of the bomber offensive can be preserved, gathered, curated, studied and debated. This centre will be a world leader.”

Construction work will start in December 2014 with the first phase completed by June 2015, to coincide with the 70th anniversary of the end of the Second World War.