The Queen opens new Battle of Britain visitor centre

  • Meridian
The Queen officially opened a centre dedicated to the Battle of Britain Credit: ITV MERIDIAN

The Queen has arrived in Kent to officially open a new visitor centre dedicated to the Battle of Britain.

She opened The Wing, new £3.5 million visitor and education centre which is home to an interactive experience, in Capel-Le-Ferne near Folkestone.

The Queen also met some of the last surviving Battle of Britain pilots from the Second World Wa.

This afternoon, she will unveil two statues of herself and the Duke of Edinburgh at Canterbury Cathedral.

The centre follows the wing plan of R J Mitchell's best-known fighter, the Supermarine Spitfire - one of the two aircraft credited with doing the most towin the battle in 1940.

The Queen followed in the footsteps the Queen Mother, whounveiled the memorial at Capel-le-Ferne, near Folkestone, on July 9, 1993.

A flypast of a Hurricane, Spitfire and Typhoon was due to take place but had to be cancelled because of bad weather.

More than 500 of the 3,000 or so men of RAF Fighter Command died in the Battle of Britain between July and October 1940.