Celebrations marking the centenary of the UK’s first operational military airfield got under way in earnest with the weekend opening of a new Montrose Museum exhibition.
A host of special visitors joined Montrose Air Station Heritage Centre figures for the unveiling of the impressive display, charting the history of the base to the north of the town, and the stories of men and machines stationed there.
In attendance at Saturday’s gathering were people whose personal stories bridge the link between past and present, from those who served at the base to the current commander of No 2 Squadron, which established the Royal Flying Corps air station at Broomfield in February 1913.
Angus Provost Helen Oswald was ferried to the exhibition opening in the heritage centre’s vintage ‘staff car’ and told museum guests it was a “true honour” to open the event.
“In Angus, we are rightly proud of the ancient history of our county but this is an opportunity to celebrate our more recent but equally fascinating history by commemorating the pilots and aircraft of Montrose Air Station,” she said.
“The pilots, aircraft and support staff of Montrose Air Station, and the debt we owe them for their sacrifices in the lead-up to and during both world wars, should be remembered at all times and especially throughout 2013, the 100th anniversary of the air station.”
Her sentiments were echoed by Wing Commander Jez Holmes, recently returned from leading No 2 Squadron in a close air support mission to Afghanistan, which saw their Tornado GR4 aircraft complete some 700 sorties over 4,000 flying hours.
Wing Cdr Holmes and colleagues, including Squadron Leader Dominic “Dutch” Holland, made the trip from Norfolk’s RAF Marham to join the centenary celebration and the CO said it was “an absolute privilege” to be part of the Angus event.
“It is incredibly impressive what is going on to keep the history of Montrose Air Station alive and we are pleased to be part of that,” he said, after making the presentation of a framed photograph of the squadron’s current aircraft a multi-million pound technological quantum leap from the open-cockpit wooden machines which took more than 10 days to journey from Farnborough to Angus a century ago.
Montrose Air Station Heritage Centre chairman Alan Doe said: “This exhibition launches our programme of special events commemorating 100 years of Montrose Air Station.
“Over the next few months we expect thousands of people from across the UK and beyond to come along to Montrose Museum and to visit Montrose Air Station Heritage Centre and enjoy our centenary events while also finding out more about the air station, its aircraft and the personnel who were based there from 1913 onwards.”
The museum exhibition features a new diorama of the airfield in 1940, as well as personal letters from pilots who trained at the base to their loved ones, original RAF uniforms and accounts of Spitfires flying off across the North Sea to protect Britain from German bombers.