2026 – A new direction for the project
The discussions that began in 2025 brought us back to the actual crash site at the Brückerbach in 2026. Here, Werstener Jonges members Dr Viktor Jörgens and Detlef Diesing began considering a new approach: instead of the large monument originally planned for the “Auf’m Rott” site, a small steel stele with a QR code could commemorate the events of 24 December 1944. The QR code would provide access to a trilingual website telling the story.
Dr. Viktor Jörgens had already advised the Baum family in 2021 and 2022 and had also organised the family’s journey to France.
Dr. Viktor Jörgens at the crash site
The great advantage of the actual crash site would be its location directly at the historic site itself – in a more dignified setting and without the paper and glass recycling containers near the previously planned memorial location.
However, only a considerably smaller monument could be installed here, for example a simple steel stele. This could become a separate project for the future.
Crash Site and Memorial Location
Cart showing both
- Blue circle with a cross: actual crash site at the Brückerbach.
- Red circle: the location proposed by the City of Düsseldorf in 2022 for the memorial.
What happens next ?
- Dr Viktor Jörgens and Detlef Diesing agreed to document the history of the project in an online timeline. You are currently viewing this timeline having been programmed by Detlef Diesing. It will also be made available to our British and French project partners in their respective languages.
- Together with the restorers and our project partners, we want to discuss which selected parts of the engine could be restored and displayed indoors in the future. Different stages of restoration could deliberately be shown as part of the exhibition.
- In addition, Detlef Diesing will seek curatorial and legal advice on the project during the summer of 2026.
The project is therefore not finished. The original idea of a large outdoor monument has gradually given way to a new question: how can we best bring together the historic site, the personal story of the French soldiers, and the remarkable engineering of the British Bristol Hercules engine – in 2026 and beyond?