MORE than 100 people attended a ceremony to honour the 75th anniversary of the self-sacrificing bravery of a Canadian airman who won the Victoria Cross flying from RAF Middleton St George.

A wreath was laid beside the statue of Pilot Officer Andrew Mynarski by the commanding officer of his squadron, Lt-Col “Moose” Marks, who had flown in from Canada for the occasion.

The mayors of the Tees Valley and Darlington also laid wreaths to remember the 1,159 aircrew – more than 900 of them Canadians - who were killed in operations from the airfield during the Second World War.

Mynarski won the VC on June 13, 1944, when rather than jump from a burning Lancaster bomber to safety, he crawled through the flames in the fuselage in a bid to save the rear gunner, Pat Brophy, who had become trapped. Mynarksi did not survive his burns, but Brophy was amazingly thrown clear without a scratch when the plane crashlanded in northern France to tell the story.

“Today means a lot,” said Lt-Col Marks, who follows the tradition set in 1941 of all 419 “Moose” Squadron commanding officers having the call sign “Moose”. “Our squadron is built on its history. It is a central theme. It helps create the identity of the squadron, and Mynarski is a big part of that. He’s everywhere. He’s our number one hero.”

The ceremony took place outside the former officers’ mess – most recently the St George Hotel - where Mynarski was billeted. In 1985, a memorial cairn was laid outside its doors by members of the Middleton St George Memorial Association and in 2005, with the help of The Northern Echo, a statue of Mynarski was created.

In the mid-1960s, RAF Middleton St George was transferred from military to civilian use. It is now called Durham Tees Valley Airport and its ownership has recently passed into the public hands of the Tees Valley Combined Authority.

The mayor of the Tees Valley, Ben Houchen, said: “It is one thing to look to the future and the exciting plans but it is equally important to look back at the history of where it started, and having our colleagues from the Royal Canadian Air Force with us to commemorate the amazing story of Andrew Mynarski makes it a special day.

“This airport isn’t just about flights to Alicante. It is about the history, the community and the important role it played in the war. In the 75th anniversary week of Mynarski’s act, it is really pleasing to see such a big turnout for such an important event.”

The borough of Darlington was represented by its mayor, Cllr Nick Wallis. He said: “Since I became mayor in May, I have attended a lot of events connected to the 75th anniversary of D-Day which have been at the forefront of everyone’s minds. I have met some truly amazing veterans and it is important to remember the sacrifice of men like Andrew Mynarski who sadly didn’t return.”

Mynarski died on a bombing raid to support the D-Day landings in Normandy. At the same time as the memorial event was taking place at the airport, a party of Darlingtonians were laying a wreath on Mynarski’s grave in Méharicourt which is near the town’s twin town of Amiens.