This week we remember the lives on the nine Downside pupils, and one fighter plane pilot who sadly lost their lives 79 years ago.
Remembered as one of the saddest moments in Downside history, on the afternoon of Saturday 15th May, 1943, two Sea Hurricanes from RNAS Yeovilton were spotted training in the skies. As the boys played their game of cricket it became apparent that one of the training pilots was getting too close to the ground. It was then that his right wing hit the ground, taking the lives of nine pupils and his own.
It is important that every year we remember those who lost their lives and those who bravely helped in the aftermath. As we begin to lose those who witnessed the incident, we hear of their stories of their continued life for themselves and those who they lost.