In 17 pictures: Service held in honour of Polish crew of bomber aircraft which crashed near Battle during Second World War

On the night of May 27 and May 28, 1941, a Vickers Wellington bomber from the 304 Polish Squadron, primarily comprised of Polish crews, crashed near Netherfield, just outside Battle.

The aircraft, which was tasked with bombing Boulogne in occupied France, suffered damage and an engine fire after releasing bombs.

The pilot tried to return to England but despite his best efforts, the remaining engine misfired, and the crew began to bail out.

Two crew members survived, but the aircraft crashed near Darwell Hole in Netherfield.

The survivors were Sgt. Nilski and Stanislaw Jozefiak.

F/Lt. Kusczysnki, P/O Waroczewski, F/O Wieczorek, and Sgt. Drozd died in the crash.

A memorial to the airmen of the Wellington bomber was later erected near the crash site in Darwell Hole.

The memorial, a dark grey brick construction, features a bronze plaque with an engraved Polish eagle and the names of the deceased and two survivors.

The service is held annually on a Sunday in late May, tracking closely to the anniversary of the crash.