Today marks ten years since the Shoreham Airshow disaster, one of the darkest days in Sussex’s recent history.
On 22 August 2015, a Hawker Hunter jet taking part in a display failed to complete a loop manoeuvre and crashed onto the A27.
Eleven men lost their lives in the tragedy, which shocked the nation and left a lasting scar on the local community.
Commemorations are taking place to remember those who died. A service of remembrance is being held at St Nicolas Church in Shoreham, where candles are being lit in their memory. Later, people will gather on the Shoreham Toll Bridge at 1pm, followed by a two-minute silence at 1.22pm — the exact time of the crash.
For the families, friends, and wider community, the pain of that day remains vivid even a decade on. Many have spoken of anniversaries as particularly difficult moments, but also as important opportunities to reflect and remember together.
The disaster claimed the lives of eleven men from Sussex, including 23-year-old Brighton & Hove Albion staff member Matt Grimstone and his close friend Jacob Schilt, both semi-professional footballers who were travelling to a match. Their deaths, along with those of the other victims, continue to be deeply felt.
Lives Lost
Mark Trussler, 54, from Worthing
Matthew Jones, 24, from Littlehampton
James Mallinson, 72, from Newick
Daniele Polito, 23, from Goring-by-Sea
Anthony Brightwell, 53, from Hove
Richard Smith, 26, from Hove.
Dylan Archer, 42, from Brighton
Jacob Schilt, 23, from Brighton
Maurice Abrahams, 76, from Brighton
Matthew Grimstone, 23, from Brighton
Mark Reeves, 53, from Seaford
As the tenth anniversary is marked today, Brighton & Hove Albion confirmed yesterday that they will create a permanent memorial garden in tribute to all eleven victims.
The garden will be built and maintained by the club at New Monks Park, close to the crash site. Albion’s chief executive and deputy chairman Paul Barber said it was the right moment to create a lasting public memorial.
“The club has always privately honoured the memory of those affected, not least our colleague Matt Grimstone, and his close friend, Jacob Schilt, whom we had also got to know well. However, as we approach the tenth anniversary of the tragedy, it feels like the right time to create a lasting and meaningful tribute that is more public,” he said.
The memorial garden will be shaped in consultation with the victims’ families, who have welcomed the initiative. Adur District Council is also supporting the project, which will offer a peaceful space for reflection and remembrance for generations to come.
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