EIGHTY-FIVE years of co-operation and friendship were marked in Coningsby yesterday with the planting of a young oak tree, donated by RAF Coningsby’s Officers’ Mess.
Members of Coningsby Town Council met with personnel from the Lincolnshire Station on an overcast afternoon at the town’s Allan Barker Sports Ground. As a deciduous species, oak trees are bare in the winter months, and the slender sapling was planted with care in a safe space and surrounded with mulch.
Councillor Paddy Donnellan represented Coningsby Town Council. In his speech he said:
“The partnership between RAF Coningsby and Coningsby town remains strong, and together we will ensure that the legacy of service and mutual support continues for generations to come.”
Flying operations began at RAF Coningsby in March 1941, with its first flying unit being No 106 Squadron, equipped with Handley-Page Hampden bombers. By 1945, five other squadrons, including the ‘Dambusters’ of 617 Squadron, had served here.
In the post-war period there was initially a succession of bomber squadrons based here, including the Vulcans of the Coningsby Wing, before a switch to fast jets, the Phantom, Tornado, and now the Typhoon.
Flying Officer Ellen Staniforth was the project officer. She said:
“It was a pleasure to arrange this. The oak was planted as a small but lasting gesture of our connection with Coningsby. We hope it becomes part of the town’s shared landscape, growing alongside the community it belongs to.”
Coningsby itself is not short of history. The Lincolnshire town derives its name from the Old Norse ‘konungr’ meaning “king”, and ‘by’ meaning “settlement” giving “settlement of the king”.
Councillor Donnellan was joined by fellow councillors Derek Mulholland and Ray Evison. Station Commander Group Captain Andy Hampshire was accompanied by Squadron Leader Phil Bishop, Flight Lieutenant James Macintosh, and Flying Officer Ellen Staniforth.
Group Captain Hampshire said:
“Institutions have often marked their relationship with the places around them by planting trees. These are quiet symbols of continuity, responsibility, and a shared future. This oak reflects RAF Coningsby’s enduring connection to the town and our gratitude to its people for 85 years of steadfast friendship.”
