Express & Star

RAF Cosford flies back to war years

[gallery]Crowds of visitors were treated to a flypast by a Spitfire during a Battle of Britain-themed weekend at the RAF Cosford Museum.

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The museum commemorated the Battle of Britain, considered the most important event in RAF history, with a nostalgic family weekend of events and activities on Saturday and yesterday.

Exhibitors got into the spirit of the occasion by dressing in 1940s period costume and displays included first aid equipment from the period, a land army re-enactment group digging for victory in a wartime garden, and a World War II operations room brought to life by members of the WWII RAF Group, which has members from across the West Midlands.

But the main highlight of the weekend was the flypast by the Battle of Britain Memorial Flight Spitfire, which flew over the museum on Saturday afternoon. The Spitfire is painted in the colour scheme and markings of the last RAF Spitfire to make an operational sortie, on April 1, 1954.

Martin Cant, from Albrighton, visited with his grandchildren. He said: "What a beautiful moment, watching the Spitfire weave between the clouds, and the the rumble of the engines. It was a wonderful day out." And visitors also had the chance to experience what it would be like to be a 1940s RAF pilot by sitting inside a full size replica Spitfire, complete with flying jacket and goggles.

One of the more unusual exhibits on display was a collection of 1940s caravans, brought along by the Historic Caravan Club.

Among the exhibitors were Club members Richard Eaves and Barry Lord, from Worthen, whose 1934 Winchester caravan proved popular with visitors, who wanted to take a look inside and see how the average family would have holidayed during the war years.

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