A CAMPAIGN to remember a Second World War hero has been warmly welcomed by the daughter of an airman he died trying to save.

Colleen Bacon, of Toronto, Canada, is backing The Northern Echo's appeal to have a £40,000 statue of Pilot Officer Andrew Mynarski erected at Durham Tees Valley Airport.

The 27-year-old plunged to his death after trying to free her father, fellow gunner Pat Brophy, from the back of a flak-hit plane over France in 1944.

The Lancaster bomber crew set out on their mission from the Royal Canadian Air Force base at Middleton St George, near Darlington, which is now the airport.

Brophy miraculously survived the crash after he was thrown clear of the plane and was helped to safety by the French Resistance.

He married Sylvia back home in Canada in November 1944 and the couple had Sherry, now 59, Colleen, 46, and Patrick, 43.

"I think the appeal and the idea of a statue is wonderful," said Ms Bacon, adding that her siblings also backed the campaign. "I think it has to be one that is representative of everything that was done by those who fought for freedom.

"The only reason the story is famous in Canada is because my dad lived to be able to tell it. How many more of those stories happened?"

She said the crash and the death of his best friend had a profound effect on her father, though he never discussed the tragedy with her.

"The crew was a close group. When they were at Middleton St George, they were living together, they were doing everything together. The camaraderie that comes from that, the sense of community, is incredible.

"Those that survived stayed in touch, though I don't think that they dwelt on it."

Ms Bacon, whose father died 13 years ago, plans to come to the North-East for the statue's unveiling.

"I'd be really interested in making the trip over," she said. "I think the whole embodiment of what Andy Mynarski did is a pretty incredible thing.

"I wonder sometimes if we really recognise, in our generation, how absolutely fortunate we are."

* Anyone who wishes to make a donation can send a cheque, made payable to The Northern Echo's Forgotten Hero Appeal, to: The Forgotten Hero Appeal, Newsdesk, The Northern Echo, Priestgate, Darlington, DL1 1NF.