A tragic, and mostly forgotten, piece of Estevan's history is receiving some fresh light due to the efforts of local organizers and Darren Jones, known as the craftsman of the Soldier Tree.

In 1946, an aircraft carrying 20 RCAF pilots and a ground crew member crashed at the Estevan Airport, which at that time was located south of town. All souls on board perished in the incident, and now Lester Hinzman has made it his mission to ensure that they are remembered.

"These young men that died, they were all seasoned pilots. One flew 150 missions over Europe, another flew 50. Some flew in Burma. They were all decorated, many by the King of England himself. They died here, and nobody remembered them," he expressed, pointing out that they survived the horrors of war, only to die an accidental death at home.

The aviators were on a return flight to Estevan after ferrying aircraft south of the border. The Douglas DC-3 aircraft they were on was pulling up to conduct a second approach to the runway when it then stalled, crashed and burned. 

The monument will stand roughly 17 feet high, and 11 by 11 feet wide. It will feature the individual carvings of the face of each man, as well as an Avro Lancaster bomber on top. It is expected to be finished by the 10th of September, and will then be brought to Estevan from it's construction site in Alberta.

So far, they are able to complete 17 of the 21 faces, as they still have no photos to follow for the other four.

"He's going to build it out of Douglas Fir and Cedar. The Douglas Fir is 500 years old, so the trees have histories of their own," Hinzman said. 

For him personally, the project has additional significance, due to close family members having served in the war.

"It's deep within our souls. This is very emotional for me, as these guys were my heroes."

The crash is considered as one of the worst aviation disasters in Western Canada, and the second worst in Canadian aviation history at the time.

The unveiling of the monument will take place during the Living Skies Airshow at the Estevan Airport on September 17th, and will include a flyover with the missing man formation.