The Airman's Grave Remembrance service on Ashdown Forest is at 11am on Sunday 8 November. Crowborough Road shuts 9am to 1pm, with free parking on the B2026.

The Remembrance service at the Airman’s Grave on Ashdown Forest will start at 11am on Sunday 8 November. The Ashdown Forest Conservators announced the arrangements on 27 October. (Ashdown Forest, Remembrance service at the Airman’s Grave memorial 2026)

The memorial is on the southern slopes of the forest, near Nutley and Duddleswell, about five miles south-west of Crowborough. It clashes with the town’s own service: Crowborough’s parade and wreath laying at Chapel Green are at the same hour, and are covered on our Crowborough Remembrance Sunday page.

The road closure

Crowborough Road on the forest will be closed from 9am to 1pm. Despite its name, this is not a road in Crowborough. It links the A22 at Nutley with the B2026 at Duddleswell.

  • the closure runs from the cattle grid at Marlpits to the cattle grid at the Duddleswell crossroads, where it meets the B2026
  • a signposted diversion will be in place
  • the closure applies to cyclists too: anyone coming to the service by bike must get off and walk between the barriers
  • riders not going to the service should follow the diversion

Where to park

Parking will be free in the car parks along the B2026 from King’s Standing to Shepherds, for the length of the service and one hour either side. The Conservators list them as:

  • King’s Standing
  • Waterholes
  • Pylons
  • Smugglers
  • Roman Road
  • Duddleswell
  • Shepherds

People going to the service can also park in the car parks along Crowborough Road itself. Hollies car park is kept for disabled parking. Box car park is closed to horse boxes and trailers during the closure; the nearest alternative for them is Black Hill.

Laying a wreath, dogs, horses and drones

  • Wreaths: anyone who wants to lay one should contact the Conservators before 5 November to be added to the order of service, at Conservators@ashdownforest.org or on 01342 823583.
  • Dogs: the service is well attended, and the Conservators ask for dogs to be kept on short leads throughout.
  • Horses: riders with a valid riding permit are welcome if their horse is happy in a crowd, but should stay apart from it.
  • Drones: not allowed. Flying one on the forest breaks its byelaws, and that applies during the service.
  • No poppy drop this year, the Conservators say.

The Information Barn and cafe at the Forest Centre at Wych Cross will be closed during the service. The public toilets and the Changing Places toilet there stay open.

Why the Airman’s Grave

Nobody is buried there. The memorial marks the spot where a Royal Air Force Wellington bomber crashed on the night of 30 to 31 July 1941.

According to the International Bomber Command Centre’s losses database:

  • the aircraft was Wellington II W5364 of 142 Squadron, flying from RAF Binbrook in Lincolnshire
  • it was returning from an attack on Cologne
  • it “crashed in Ashdown Forest, near Nutley in Sussex”, with the port engine feathered
  • all six crew were killed

The second pilot, Sergeant Victor Ronald Sutton, was 24. A stone cross in a walled enclosure carries a plaque to “Sgt. P.V.R. Sutton and his crew of 142 Sqn. 31/7/41”. A second plaque on the wall remembers “the crew of Wellington Mk2 W5364 of 142 Sqn. R.A.F.” The database lists the other five as Flight Sergeant H A V Vidler, Flight Sergeant A E Cave, Flight Sergeant L Saunders, Sergeant W S Brooks and Sergeant T S Hathaway.

The Conservators publish a two-mile circular walk that passes the memorial, which can be started from any one of five car parks. (Ashdown Forest, Walk 2: Airman’s Grave)

What it means for you

  • Driving across the forest on the morning of 8 November? Avoid Crowborough Road between Nutley and Duddleswell from 9am to 1pm and follow the diversion signs.
  • Going to the service? Park free on the B2026 and arrive in good time: it is well attended.
  • Want to lay a wreath? Email or phone the Conservators before 5 November.
  • Travelling by train that day? No trains run between South Croydon and Uckfield on Sunday 8 November: see our roadworks and travel page.