The dates have shifted to the right but the events will remain as before. We owe a debt of gratitude to the Station Commander, Gp Capt Lorriman-Hughes, who has once again allowed us to use some of the facilities at RAF Waddington. So, as in previous years, the Meet and Greet on Friday evening will take place in the Officers’ Mess, as will the dinner the following evening. A programme of events is outlined below.


Friday 19th May.

The first event of the weekend will be a meet and Greet in the bar of the Officers’ Mess, starting at 8pm. As last time, there will be no provision of snacks so you are strongly advised to eat before coming. Transport will leave Damons Hotel for Waddington at 7.30 pm, returning from the mess at the slightly earlier time of 10.30 pm.
 

Saturday 20th May.

The daytime event will be a visit to the Lincolnshire Aviation Heritage Centre at East Kirkby. This centre has evolved considerably over the years and now houses a unique collection of World War II aircraft, including the ground-running and taxiable Lancaster ‘Just Jane’ and the ultra-rare De Havilland Mosquito NF11. Visitors will be able to browse at leisure the wide range of exhibits in the hangar museum, including the Hampden restoration project, visit theWWII control tower, the RAF Escape Museum and take refreshments in the ‘NAAFI’ cafe. It is hoped that there will be Merlin engine runs and possibly a flypast by an aircraft of the Battle of Britain Memorial Flight. There will be a charge levied for entry to East Kirkby of ￡8 per person. However, free coach transport will be laid on from Damons Hotel,  with a further pickup from the Officers’ Mess car park at RAF Waddington.
 
The annual Association dinner will take place Saturday evening, at 7 for 7.30 pm, in the Officers’ Mess at RAF Waddington. Red and white wine will accompany the three-course meal and a round of port served with coffee. Coach transport will also be provided to and from this event.
 
 
Sunday 21st May.

A service of Remembrance will be held at the Dunholme Lodge Farm memorial, followed by lunch at the IBCC. As last year, there will no coach transport for Sunday’s events.


Transport Timetable.

The transport timetable to and from reunion venues is as follows:

Date: Friday 19/05/23

Pick up: 7.30pm
Drop off: 8.00pm
Destination: Damons Hotel to Officers’ Mess, RAF Waddington

Pick up: 10.30pm
Drop off: 11.00pm
Destination: Return to Damons Hotel

Date: Saturday 20/05/23

Pick up: 9.30am
Drop off: 9.50am
Destination: Damons Hotel to Officers’ Mess Car Park, RAF Waddington

Pick up: 9.50am
Drop off: 10.40am
Destination: RAF Waddington to East Kirby

Pick up: 3.00pm
Drop off: 4.00pm
Destination: Return to RAF Waddington/Damons Hotel

Pick up: 6.30pm
Drop off: 7.00pm
Destination: Damons Hotel to Officers’ Mess, RAF Waddington

Pick up: 11.15pm
Drop off: 11.45pm
Destination: Return to Damons Hotel

* Please note, there will be no coach transport on Sunday 21/05/23.

Mr. P J Leckenby
40 Eagle Rd., North Scarle, Lincoln, LN6 9EW
E-mail: ­­news44sqn@me.com

Please note that in these constrained times, caterers tend to be much less flexible than in the past and the deadline for numbers attending the dinner has to be 2nd May 2023.
 
Coach Transport.
 
If you intend to use our free bus transport, please clearly annotate the form accordingly for each of the Friday and Saturday events. Accurate numbers are important as the number of seats required will dictate the size of bus we will hire from the travel company.