The eagle monument and Air Force memorial commemorate members of the Finnish Air Force who died in the wars of 1939 to 1944. The eagle monument was designed by the Estonian aviation pilot veteran and artist Kalju Reitel. It depicts a landing eagle which symbolises a homecoming.
The monument was unveiled during the annual Air Force veterans’ day on September 7 1997, at Utti Square (Finnish: Utin aukio), the former parade grounds of the Finnish Air Base founded by Carl Gustaf Mannerheim in 1918 and today home of the renowned Utti Jaeger Regiment.
Behind the eagle memorial stand five granite memorial tablets engraved with the names of 466 victims who served and lost their lives in the Air Force between 1939 and 1944. The tablets were unveiled by Reitel on September 7th, 2000, three years after the unveiling of the eagle memorial.
Visit
The eagle monument and Air Force memorial are located at Utti Square, adjacent to the Utti Jaeger Regiment garrison grounds, along Highway 6 near Kouvola, Finland. You can freely visit the memorials near the gas station and Utti Square, though walking further into the active garrison area is restricted.
At the square you can also find the “Utti” Messerschmitt Bf 109 G-6 MT-452 in its glass display and the ErP 4 monument for the Detached Battalion nr. 4 special forces unit.
