September 23, 1943, is etched in the mind of retired roofer Rhondda Watson.

As a ten-year-old boy he witnessed the dramatic crash of a Wellington bomber and the tragic death of seven Polish airmen.

He still recalls what he thought were uniforms hanging from trees near his home in Bradley, near Skipton.

Later, he came to realise those uniforms were the bodies of the young men, who died as the plane plunged to the ground and burst into flames at Craven Forge, close to the Leeds-Liverpool canal.

He revisited the site to tell his story again to Jim Hartley who with fellow military historian, Cross Hills butcher Peter Whitaker, is set to mark the spot with a plaque.

Mr Watson, 73, of Bradley, said: "I was returning to school on my bike from having dinner at home and saw the plane in the distance and then the wing fall off.

"The plane floated down like a piece of paper from side to side and then the fuselage took a dive and crash landed.

"I rode over to see what had happened. I think I was the first there. There must have been ammunition in the plane because there was a lot of banging and splattering, fire and smoke. As it cleared, I saw what I thought were uniforms hanging from the trees, obviously they contained bodies, which I didn't realise at the time."

All the crew died in the crash, and five were later buried in York, one in Blackpool and the other in Liverpool. They were on a training mission having taken off from Cumbria.

Former RAF man Mr Hartley, also of Bradley, and Mr Whitaker have been in talks with British Waterways about placing the plaque on the Leeds-Liverpool canal towpath, near to the crash site.

They also aim to place a wooden cross with the emblem of the Polish airforce on a tree stump which they believe took the original impact. Mr Hartley also has copies of the RAF accident report which says the crash was due to failure of the lower rear main spar boom caused by a crack.

He said: "Researching this tragic event and talking to people, we think this tranquil area, where such a devastating accident took place, should not go unrecognised."

Long term, he hopes to contact some of the Polish relatives of the dead airmen and invite them to the spot.

They were identified as pilots Franciszek Ciaston, 27, and Sierz Wladyslaw Ostrowski, 27, wireless operator/air gunners Boleslaw J Swieca, 28, and Boleslaw Rychel, 21, air gunner Jan Czyzewski, 23, Flight Lt Jozef Wolnik, 31 and Flight Sgt Sierz Abram Kawenski, 22.

Malcolm Mattock, of Bradley, was serving as an airframe mechanic with the RAF at Silloth, Cumbria, and recalls Wellington bombers were taken out of service while an investigation into the crash was carried out.

Anyone with further information about the crash can telephone Mr Whitaker on (01535) 633108 or Mr Hartley on (01535) 634688.

An account has been opened at Barclay's Bank in Cross Hills, near Skipton - the Polish Airmen Memorial Fund - into which people can contribute towards the financing of the plaque.

e-mail: newsdesk@bradford.newsquest.co.uk