Some of ‘the few’
As part of the 70th anniversary commemorations for the Battle of Britain, a permanent bronze statue of New Zealander, Air Chief Marshal Sir Keith Park was unveiled on 15 September 2010 at a formal ceremony in Waterloo Place, London.
The unveiling was attended by some 1,000 invited guests that included Battle of Britain veterans, members of Sir Keith Park’s family such as Defence Force employee Colin Haywood, the Minister of Defence the Hon Dr Wayne Mapp, ACM Sir Stephen Dalton CAS, RAF and AVM Graham Lintott CAF, RNZAF. Also present were members of NZ Defence Staff currently serving in the United Kingdom, supporters of the Sir Keith Park Memorial Campaign and members of NZ No. 4 Ardmore ATC Squadron.
Sir Keith Park commanded 11 Fighter Group, during the Battle and was responsible for the defence of London and the South East of England.
Battle of Britain Commemorations
In New Zealand, Battle of Britain Commemorations took part in Wellington with a commemorative service at the National War Memorial and a flypast by Brendon Deere’s Supermarine Spitfire. Members of the public also had the opportunity to view for the first time at Te Papa, the Battle of Britain commemorative lace panel. The panel, which measures 4.5 meters x 1.62 meters, was one of 38 panels created to commemorate the battle. In Auckland, a special warbirds flight from Ardmore Airport over the Auckland War Memorial Museum took place on Sunday 19 September, while the weekend prior saw the RNZAF Base Auckland Band team up with the RNZN Band, the Royal Regiment of New Zealand Artillery Band and Auckland Police Pipe Band for a Battle of Britain concert at the Bruce Mason Centre.