Special Fundraising event at Tangmere Military Aviation Museum, 18th October 2025.

From Sheryl Green, Friend of Secret WW2 and Chair of the Tangmere Military Aviation Museum (TMAM)

This event was in aid of a memorial dedicated to two Special Duties pilots, Stephen Hankey and James
McBride, who died when their aircraft crashed due to fog as they attempted to return to RAF Tangmere.
Hankey’s two BCRA agents died with him, while McBride’s French Resistance passengers miraculously
survived. Despite their valiant attempts, they couldn’t save their pilot. The two BCRA agents were the highlydecorated Albert Kohan and Jacques Tayar. They are buried at Brookwood Cemetery, while Hankey is buried in St. George’s churchyard, Crowhurst and McBride in Chichester Cemetery.

Guests to the private event in the afternoon included the sons (and one daughter and one nephew) of some of the 161 (Special Duties) Squadron pilots and several representatives of SECRET WW2. Over lunch they were able to mingle, and it was lovely to see old acquaintances refreshed and new ones formed.

After lunch, Ian Titman-Read and Anne Alexandre gave their presentation, their second performance of the
day as it had been made available more generally in the morning. With their combined knowledge and Ian’s
IT skills, creating a ‘hybrid’ presentation of film clips, stills and audio, this was a superb presentation. Ian
and Anne had invested many hours creating it, editing it, rehearsing, then re-editing: a most generous
commitment of their time and effort. Everyone was enthralled and deeply moved. Even people who pride
themselves on their knowledge of the subject went away delighted to have discovered new details and stories.

It was then time to move to the Memorial Garden for the unveiling of the memorial in a short but sweet
ceremony. In my comments as the stone was about to be revealed, I was careful to state that while this
memorial was dedicated to these particular pilots and agents, at the Tangmere Museum the memory of all the SD pilots, and the various agents they ferried, is held dear and revered. This applies to both those who did and did not survive the War, for all were all prepared to take the same risks and faced the same danger. Stephen Hankey’s nephew and his wife were visibly moved by the memorial, as they had been by the presentation, when for the first time they learned about the circumstances of his crash including the location of the crash site. Unable to trace any relatives of McBride, he was represented by Iain McGowan of Strathalan school where in the 1930s McBride and his brother had studied.

Once dispersed from the Memorial Garden, a few of us went on to Chichester Cemetery to lay a wreath on
young McBride’s grave. A poignant moment, for at last this unsung hero had been fully and appropriately
recognised for his sacrifice.