I WAS at a loss to understand why Freddie Johnson had not been invited to the dedication of the Bomber Command Memorial.

In the online comments to the original story, we once again had people condemning us for bombing which killed civilians. Civilians have been dying in wars since Ghengis Khan and probably before.

In 1066 when the Normans and the Vikings invaded almost at the same time, King Harold had to march his army up to Stamford Bridge, beat the Vikings and then march back to Hastings. En route they fed off the land and left several thousand starving peasants in their wake.

In 1918, Germany collapsed because people were starving due to the blockade of Germany by the Royal Navy. About the same number of civilians died then as were killed by Bomber Command in the Second World War.

So please get your facts right and read a few books. I would recommend Bomber Harris by John Searby, Bomber Harris His Life and Times by Henry Probert, Dresden by Frederick Taylor and John Terraine’s The Right Of The Line.

Mike Usherwood, Mendip Close, Huntington, York.

• On Tuesday we reported Mr Johnson will be able to attend the unveiling after all.