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Press and Journal
21-05-2025
- Sport
- Press and Journal
Red Arrows to stage RAF Lossiemouth display
Aviation fans will have another chance to see the Red Arrows in action during a flying display at RAF Lossiemouth. Staff at the Moray military base have today shared details of the spectacle, which will take place next month. The aerobatics display team, which is based at RAF Waddington in Lincolnshire, will take to the skies on June 7 alongside Typhoons from Lossiemouth. The spectacle has been organised to mark the base's upcoming friends and families day. RAF Lossiemouth has issued safety advice to those hoping to catch a glimpse of the teams in action. In a statement, posted on social media, they write: 'We want everyone to enjoy the day, so please 'spot safely'. 'If you are coming to the area, then adhere to the road closures and safety information provided in this post. 'Be respectful to the local community and our neighbours.' Onlookers are encouraged to stand at the north end of the airfield, towards the West Beach, to keep out of the display area. People are being urged to stay away from the 05 end of the runway or Drainie Road. The display marks the Red Arrows second appearance in Moray this year. In February, the team took to the skies over the base for a week of training ahead of the display season. To date, the team have flown more than 5,000 displays in more than 57 countries.
Press and Journal
20-05-2025
- General
- Press and Journal
Remembering the day an RAF bomber crashed into Lossiemouth homes, killing 11
On May 20 1945, Lossiemouth was a town revelling in peace. World War Two was over in Europe. The daily diet of death, fear and insecurity was gone. It doesn't take much to imagine the joy and relief in people's hearts. Then abruptly, that quiet Sunday morning, tragedy struck the town. A Wellington bomber on a test flight from RAF Lossiemouth fell from the sky and hit a row of council houses. It resulted in the loss of eight civilians, six of them from the same family, and three RAF air crew. From a town celebrating the end of the war less than a fortnight earlier, Lossie was now a town in mourning. Lossiemouth's war had already had profound effects on the humble fishing town. RAF Lossiemouth opened in 1939 and played vital part in the war effort, particularly as a strategic base for bombing missions. The war came close to home on October 26 1940, when the base was attacked by the German Luftwaffe, killing one RAF officer and two air crew. A four-man German crew also died and were buried in Lossiemouth. Less than a year later, on July 11 1941, a German Junkers 88 fighter dropped four bombs over the town, possibly mistaking it for the RAF base. The first bomb hit Kinneddar Street resulting in injuries to members of the Souter family. The second bomb hit 6 Dunbar Street, killing Mr and Mrs John Wilson and their house guests Mr and Mrs Joseph Leighton, who had fled Portsmouth and come to Lossie to try and escape the worst of the war. Their daughter was married to an RAF officer at the base. Two more bombs were dropped that night, one fell on King Street, the other in a nearby quarry. But all that trauma was rapidly becoming history after VE day, and the community was looking forward to the future. Just before 10am on Sunday May 20, at RAF Lossiemouth, a Wellington bomber crewed by RD Rickard from Manchester; DR Cameron and CGW Mawby from South Ealing were preparing to take off on a test flight. At the same time, the Flood family were stirring at home in their upper council house on the block 43, 45 and 49 Church Street. John Flood and his 11-year old daughter Jeanie decided to treat the rest of the family to tea in bed, and were in the kitchen. Mum Joey Flood and her other five children were at the other end of the house. Their next door neighbours upstairs, Judith Allan, 66 and her adopted daughter Vera were also having a lazy morning before church. Meanwhile things were going wrong on the test flight. An eyewitness said the plane failed to gain height as it flew over Coulard Hill in an easterly direction, and was struggling, its engines cutting out. He told the P&J: 'The pilot was obviously making a supreme effort to get the bomber clear of the own and make for the sea. 'But the plane whirled three times, the engines suddenly became silent and the machine dropped like a stone on top of a block of flatted municipal houses. 'Part of the fuselage fell in front of the building and the other part in the garden at the rear. The plane completely disintegrated. There was a loud explosion and in a matter of seconds the plane and the block of houses were enveloped in flames. 'Had it gone three yards farther the plane would have missed the houses and fallen in the open space formed by the old Market Square.' In an instant, 11 people lost their lives. Vera Allan died in bed. Her mother Judith, who had lost a son in France in 1940 and whose surviving son was serving with the Seaforths in India, was charred and barely recognisable when she was found. Downstairs, other residents scrambled to safety. The fate of the Flood family was unimaginable. Mum Joey Flood and five of her six boys were trapped in their blazing home and perished in the flames. John Flood threw Jeanie, 11, out of the window, a 15ft drop, saving her life. He grabbed his youngest, three year old David and headed for the window, but the wall caved in from the force of one of the explosions. The boy, David, was wrenched out of his hands and died, while at the same time John Flood was blown out through the window. He and Jeannie were the only survivors from their family of eight. Joey, aged 37, Jack, James, Sinclair, Michael and David died. The boys ranged in age from three to 15. Fire tenders from the RAF base rushed to the scene along with wartime National Fire Service detachments from Lossiemouth and Elgin and civil defence personnel, but their efforts were in vain. Immediately after the crash, the Women's Voluntary Service went into action, seeing to the homeless and organising food and clothes for the survivors. The Floods were a well-known Lossie family. John, 38, was employed as a carter with Miller Alexander carting contractor in Ogston Place. A few days later came a funeral for all eight civilian victims. The Evening Express reported that practically the entire community turned out for the tragic occasion. 'The funeral took place from the old and now disused Chapel of Ease which serves as a public mortuary and where the bodies had rested. 'Fisherwomen in deep morning, many of them with young children in their arms, along with their menfolk, man of who had come straight from the fishing grounds earlier than usual to attend the funeral were amongst the crowd. 'Many wept openly during the funeral obsequies outside the Chapel where a short but impressive service was conducted by the Rev N M Sammon, of the High Church. 'The three young children were in white coffins. 'Behind them lay banks of wreaths. 'A tragic figure during the service was the bereaved husband John Flood, who in carpet slippers and able to walk with the aid of a walking stick, and his relatives, remained seated during the service, his eleven year old daughter Jeannie who was the only one of the family saved, clasped to his side.' Afterwards RAF personnel bore the coffins to RAF vehicles as the band, with muffled drums played Flowers of the Forest. Behind the cortege to Lossiemouth cemetery came 200 school boys, many friends of the Flood boys. 'Then followed a car with Mr Flood, his young daughter and mother and father. 'Then members of the Town Council and next of kin, detachments from the RAF rescue party, NFS coastguards and postmen with the general public taking up the rear. ' A memorial stone of the site of the tragedy was erected in 1995, with funds from the RAF, local clubs and Grampian Region councillors. At that time, survivor Jeannie then aged 60 and living in Hawick came to Lossie to carry out the unveiling. She said: 'I have never forgotten my mother and brothers. I was only 10 years old but it is still as fresh in my mind as the day it happened.' Her father John, who brought her up after the accident, died in 1965 when he fractured his skull falling down the stairs. To mark the 80th anniversary of the tragedy, Tuesday, May 20 2025, Lossiemouth Men's Shed have organised a wreath-laying ceremony. An RAF Lossiemouth detachment will attend, as will Lossiemouth Men's Shed and the chaplain and pupils from St Gerardine's school. Assembly at Mercator Green, Church Street, Lossiemouth is at 9.30am, with two minutes silence at 9.52am, followed by the wreath laying and dispersal at 10am. If you enjoyed this story, you may also like: Was your Aberdeen street hit by tragedy in WW2? Our map shows addresses of more than 1,000 victims
Daily Record
05-05-2025
- Health
- Daily Record
Ex-Scots RAF serviceman suddenly lost hearing and balance overnight
Philip McDonald, 62, told how his life changed dramatically in 2015. A former Scots RAF serviceman who lost his hearing overnight has praised a Scottish charity for helping him regain his independence. Philip McDonald, 62, from Elgin, told how his life changed dramatically in 2015 when he woke up one morning to find he was unable to hear anything. When he managed to make it to his doctor for an emergency appointment, he was diagnosed with sudden onset hearing loss, which also caused tinnitus. Philip recalled: 'I woke up at 5am to a loud crashing noise, and got up to check what had caused it. I was staggering all over the house, and put it down to being half asleep. 'I went back to bed, but when I woke at 8am, I was still staggering and bouncing around. I thought I would turn the volume on the TV up, but still couldn't hear anything. 'I realised I couldn't hear my feet on the floor, I couldn't hear the kettle, I couldn't hear anything, and I started to panic. 'I managed to get a taxi to the GP, where the doctor and other staff had to communicate with me by writing things down. All I could hear was a loud whistling in my ears from the tinnitus. 'Over time, some of my hearing did come back, but all I can hear now is really low bass notes in one of my ears. Sometimes the tinnitus is so bad I can't hear anything else.' The same condition also brought up severe vertigo, which resulted in Philip losing his job in a nursing home as he was deemed unable to provide safe care. Sharing his story at the start of Deaf Awareness Week, which begins today, he continued: 'It causes nausea and sometimes vomiting. I tell people that it makes me unpredictable as I may have to cancel appointments at the last minute. 'I lost my previous job as a carer in a nursing home because the vertigo was beginning to make me unsafe. I can't predict when it flares up, but I have learned that there are some common triggers, like sudden head movements, or walking down steps. 'There have been times when I've reacted to a loud noise, which made me turn my head suddenly, triggering my vertigo and causing me to fall and land in the middle of the street, on two occasions with cars coming towards me. If I get an inkling of vertigo, I don't go out until it's passed.' Philip previously served in the RAF for 22 years, working as a technician at both RAF Lossiemouth and RAF Kinloss. After his diagnosis he decided to move back to Scotland. Struggling to cope with the sudden changes in his life, he contacted North East Sensory Services (NESS), which provided him with a range of valuable support. The charity supports thousands of blind and deaf people, and those with visual and hearing impairments throughout the North and North-East of Scotland. Join the Daily Record WhatsApp community! Get the latest news sent straight to your messages by joining our WhatsApp community today. You'll receive daily updates on breaking news as well as the top headlines across Scotland. No one will be able to see who is signed up and no one can send messages except the Daily Record team. All you have to do is click here if you're on mobile, select 'Join Community' and you're in! If you're on a desktop, simply scan the QR code above with your phone and click 'Join Community'. We also treat our community members to special offers, promotions, and adverts from us and our partners. If you don't like our community, you can check out any time you like. To leave our community click on the name at the top of your screen and choose 'exit group'. If you're curious, you can read our Privacy Notice. Its main objective is to help people with sensory loss to live as independently as possible. Among the practical things that the charity helped with were a flashing doorbell he could see anywhere in his house, as well as a flashing and vibrating smoke alarm. A social worker at the charity also helped him apply for the Adult Disability Payment, which has given him crucial financial support as he is now unable to work. He also joined one of NESS's lipreading classes, which he described as 'amazing' and 'a real turnaround' as it helped him meet others going through the same thing. Philip said: 'I know I can phone NESS any time during the day if I'm feeling lonely. The social isolation is the worst, and they helped me so much with that. I've found that telling people about my hearing loss really helps, and explaining that hearing aids don't magically fix your hearing, they are only there to support you. 'It's really important for people to look at you when they are talking, so you can lip read. I find it difficult when people join in a conversation I am having. I can follow one person, but I can't follow two or three people at the same time. If you are having difficulties with your hearing, and are diagnosed with hearing loss, I would always recommend going to NESS.' Carla Marchbank, statutory services manager at NESS, said: 'Philip's story shows just how devastating sensory loss can be. At NESS, our staff understand people need different things along their journey, and we try to support them in whatever way they need at the best time for them. 'This can be on a practical level, through providing equipment or applying for benefits, or responding with the emotional support that people need as they adapt to their new normal. 'Gaining new skills, such as lipreading, can help people regain control of their situation. Members of groups like the lipreading class also provide each other with peer support, sharing their experiences and expertise with others who are at the start of their journey.'
Yahoo
06-02-2025
- Climate
- Yahoo
Christmas trees used to shore up beach dunes
Hundreds of Christmas trees are being used to shore up sand dunes at Lossiemouth in a bid to keep coastal erosion at bay. Lossiemouth Community Council is behind the project at the Moray town's East Beach. They have been assisted by personnel from RAF Lossiemouth and volunteers from the local community. Having already being collected and carried to the beach, a trench will now be dug and the trees put in place. The plan is that grass will later be sewn, and that sand will catch, forming new eco-systems. At the end of last year, the community council made a plea asking for people to donate their discarded Christmas trees for the coastal erosion project. The trees have been collected over the past few weeks. More stories from North East Scotland, Orkney and Shetland Listen to news from North East Scotland on BBC Sounds Carolle Ralph, who is the chairwoman of Lossiemouth Community Council, told BBC Scotland News a micro digger will be used for the trench and trees, after matts are used to get it across a beach bridge. "The last thing we want to do is damage the bridge," she said, after it opened in 2022. Of the East Beach erosion project, she said: "It's the first time we have done this so we didn't really have a full concept of what was needed." She explained: "We first spoke about it at the end of Covid times. Coastal erosion is a problem. "Building the dunes back up to restore them is something of little cost and it is also recycling trees." The aim is for children to get involved in the next stage of volunteering when marram grass will be sewn in a bid to knit the trees together. "The hope is the trees and grass will catch the sand and new eco-systems can develop," she said. "The trees will be at a 45-degree angle, facing the sea and wind. We will pack the trees down thoroughly. "We may lose some but we will take evidence over the next few months. "We have tried to involve as many people as possible." She described the RAF Lossiemouth help as a "welcome sight" both in terms of planning as well as pure physicality when they were moving the trees into place. RAF Lossiemouth said it was "proud" to have been helping, on a voluntary basis. It said the project was "aiding in conservation activities to benefit future generations". "The 'Team Lossie' ethos we have here on station often emphasises the importance of our personnel spending their time wisely and contributing back to the local community that give us so much support daily," a statement said. Moray Council added: "While Christmas is long behind us now, it's heartening to see the festive spirit and a local commitment to recycling make a real impact in efforts to protect dunes at Lossiemouth East Beach from the ongoing threat of coastal erosion." New £1.8m bridge opens up beach access again
BBC News
06-02-2025
- General
- BBC News
Christmas trees used to shore up Lossiemouth beach dunes
Hundreds of Christmas trees are being used to shore up sand dunes at Lossiemouth in a bid to keep coastal erosion at Community Council is behind the project at the Moray town's East have been assisted by personnel from RAF Lossiemouth and volunteers from the local already being collected and carried to the beach, a trench will now be dug and the trees put in place. The plan is that grass will later be sewn, and that sand will catch, forming new eco-systems. At the end of last year, the community council made a plea asking for people to donate their discarded Christmas trees for the coastal erosion trees have been collected over the past few weeks. Carolle Ralph, who is the chairwoman of Lossiemouth Community Council, told BBC Scotland News a micro digger will be used for the trench and trees, after matts are used to get it across a beach bridge."The last thing we want to do is damage the bridge," she said, after it opened in the East Beach erosion project, she said: "It's the first time we have done this so we didn't really have a full concept of what was needed." She explained: "We first spoke about it at the end of Covid times. Coastal erosion is a problem."Building the dunes back up to restore them is something of little cost and it is also recycling trees."The aim is for children to get involved in the next stage of volunteering when marram grass will be sewn in a bid to knit the trees together."The hope is the trees and grass will catch the sand and new eco-systems can develop," she said."The trees will be at a 45-degree angle, facing the sea and wind. We will pack the trees down thoroughly."We may lose some but we will take evidence over the next few months."We have tried to involve as many people as possible."She described the RAF Lossiemouth help as a "welcome sight" both in terms of planning as well as pure physicality when they were moving the trees into place. RAF Lossiemouth said it was "proud" to have been helping, on a voluntary said the project was "aiding in conservation activities to benefit future generations"."The 'Team Lossie' ethos we have here on station often emphasises the importance of our personnel spending their time wisely and contributing back to the local community that give us so much support daily," a statement Council added: "While Christmas is long behind us now, it's heartening to see the festive spirit and a local commitment to recycling make a real impact in efforts to protect dunes at Lossiemouth East Beach from the ongoing threat of coastal erosion."
