Unsung hero of air battle honoured

Veteran fighter pilots, military figures and politicians gathered to pay tribute to an "unsung hero" of the Battle of Britain.

Air Chief Marshal Sir Keith Park, a New Zealander, commanded the squadrons that defended London and the South East in the summer of 1940.

Wing Commander Bob Foster, 90, and Sir Keith's great-great-niece Leigh Park, unveiled a bronze statue to the commander in Waterloo Place, central London yesterday in a ceremony attended by 14 of the 80 survivors of the battle.

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Terry Smith, chairman of the Sir Keith Park Memorial Campaign, said: "It's taken 70 years to the day since the Battle of Britain to give expression to our collective thanks for what Sir Keith Park achieved."

He said the statue also recognised the pilots under Sir Keith's command.

The statue depicts Sir Keith pulling on his flying gloves, with his goggles on his head and wearing a life jacket.

It is in view of New Zealand House and faces the direction pilots in 1940 would have looked towards their enemy.

A total of 544 RAF personnel from Fighter Command died defending the UK from the Nazis in the Battle of Britain 70 years ago.