THE village of Canewdon marked the 75th anniversary of a local Second World War radar station with a celebratory fun day.

The event was held on the former RAF Canewdon site, off Lambourne Hall Road, to mark the anniversary of the opening of the first operational RAF Chain Home Command Radar Station.

The installation was the first radar station in the world to track an aircraft – the one carrying Prime Minister Neville Chamberlain on his flight to Munich in 1938 in an attempt to broker peace with Adolf Hitler.

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The station went on to play a key role in the Battle of Britain, the subsequent Allied bombing raids on Germany and occupied Europe and into the Cold War.

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A highlight of the fun day was the flypast of a Spitfire and Hurricane from the RAF’s Battle of Britain Memorial Flight.