This tour of Southeast England visits many of the front-line airfields and bases that would have been familiar to the men of No. 11 Group RAF during the Battle of Britain. Overlooking the English Channel, we will hear of the heroic deeds of the likes of Billy Fiske and Arthur Clowes and imagine their desperate aerial duals in the skies above. We will enjoy exclusive access and special guided tours of superb collections of Spitfires, Hurricanes, ME 109s and a host of other aircraft and relevant artefacts: you will even get to sit in a Spitfire cockpit where you will have the controls explained to you (agility required). 

In the early summer of 1940, RAF Fighter Command was faced with the dilemma of bolstering the crumbling defence of France or withholding its resources in order to defend the United Kingdom. Fortunately, under the leadership of Air Chief Marshal Sir Hugh Dowding, those precious resources were husbanded, developed and refined into what became known as the ‘Dowding System’. This ‘system’ was to prove its worth later that summer when the German Luftwaffe sent sortie after sortie across the English Channel with objective of destroying the RAF and thus clearing the skies in preparation of a full-scale invasion of Southern England. Vastly outnumbered during those frenzied months, nearly 3000 young men flew multiple daily sorties against the mighty Luftwaffe but despite horrendous casualties they ultimately prevailed through inspirational leadership, professionalism, technological innovation and the dedication of a myriad of supporting ground crew. As Sir Winston Churchill famously said, “never in the field of human conflict has so much been owed by so many to so few”.

Day 1 – Introduction

Meet at our Harrow hotel at midday for sandwich lunch, introductory talk and check-in for one night. Visit the RAF Museum at Hendon amongst whose collection are four authentic Battle of Britain fighter aircraft—the only such collection on display anywhere in the world. (L,D)

Day 2 – Command

Drive via the Polish War Memorial to (former) RAF Uxbridge where we descend 76 steps into the bunker to discover the Operations Rooms of No. 11 Group laid out just as they were on 15 September 1940. Travel to Bentley Priory, the home to Fighter Command during The Battle of Britain where we visit Dowding’s Office and explore the exhibitions dedicated to the pilots and ground crew. Continue to Chichester where we spend the night. (B,D)

Day 3 – Dogfight

After a brief visit to the former RAF Westhampnett, with its statue of Douglas Bader, we visit the forward fighter station of Tangmere with its superb aviation collection, in particular the recovered aircraft in the BoB hall. At nearby Boxgrove Priory we see the memorial window and grave of American pilot Billy Fiske killed during the battle on 17 August. Thence to Seven Sisters and then Beachy Head for an evocative description of the duals that took place over England’s south coast and discuss the pivotal role that radar would play. Continue to Eastbourne where we check-in to our hotel for one night. (B,D)

Day 4 – Scramble

We drive through Romney Marsh to hear of individual deeds of courage and daring at numerous crash sites such as that of Arthur Clark. Thence to the satellite airfield of RAF Hawkinge which today houses an incredible period collection of artefacts from hundreds of crashed aircraft, each one with its own story to tell. We enjoy lunch at The Jackdaw Inn, with its BoB memorabilia and itself a location from the eponymous film. We pay our respects at the Battle of Britain Memorial at Capel-le-Ferne where we enjoy superb views over the Channel and the ‘Scramble Experience’. Continue to Folkestone where we check-in to our hotel for one night. (B,L,D)

Day 5 – Biggin Hill and Kenley

We visit the famous Biggin Hill airfield where we explore the Memorial Museum and chapel and enjoy a guided tour of the many Spitfires found in the Heritage Hangar. Thence to the vitally important Sector Station of RAF Kenley, a priority target for the Luftwaffe, which we explore on foot to learn of its experience during the ‘hardest day’, explore the blast-pens and see its monuments. Return to our Harrow hotel for the last night of the tour. (B,D)

Day 6 – Duxford and Sit in a Spit

Our hotel is less than an hour’s drive from the Imperial War Museum’s Duxford airfield, its period buildings immersing you into the wartime atmosphere. Here we visit the Battle of Britain exhibition which includes two Hurricanes, a Spitfire and a crash-landed Messerschmitt as well as the historic Operations Block. As a finale to the tour we travel to RAF Hendon where we have the opportunity to sit in a Spitfire cockpit for a flavour of what it must have felt to fly the most famous airplane of the Second World War. Return to the Harrow hotel where we say our farewells. Depart or perhaps extend your stay. (B)