A MAN who witnessed a Second World War bomber crash which killed seven airmen is seeking support to erect a memorial to the accident ahead of its 70th anniversary.

Craig Allison, 73, hopes to create a tribute to the men killed when an RAF Stirling bomber crashed on the outskirts of Shildon, County Durham.

The four-engined bomber got into difficulties during a training flight from RAF Wigsley, Lincolnshire and crashed at 5.15pm on Friday, March 31, 1944.  

Pilot Officer Stanley Wilson, of Newcastle, and six Canadians were killed.

A plaque was placed at the British Rail Staff Association, on Hackworth Road, Shildon, but Mr Allison believes there should be a more prominent memorial.

The former Merchant Navy seaman , of Whitby, North Yorkshire, said: “I lived with my grandparents on All Saints Road, Shildon, during the war.

“As we were sitting down for tea there was an almighty bang and everyone ran onto the streets. In the distance there was a big pall of black smoke and the windows were still shaking.

“No-one knew what it was. I saw the wreckage and it was smouldering. It was a horrific site for me as a four-year-old.

“I wondered about what caused the crash for many years and it would be nice to see a bigger memorial erected in the town to these men.”

Alan Ellwood, secretary of Shildon History Recall Society, said: “We can’t support the idea financially but we will give support in other ways."

Eye witnesses to the crash claimed that the aircraft passed low over the town engulfed in flames before the impact. 

The wreckage was scattered over a large area on the Co-operative Farm, near to where Jubilee Estate is now, and people searched for survivors despite exploding ammunition.

Mr Allison’s father, Norman Allison, was a member of the RAF ground crew during the war and serviced planes like the Stirling.