Luton airport played a big role in the Second World War and battle of Britain, even being used in the blockbuster movie battle of Britain.

When the airport was first opened in 1938 converting 373 acres of farmland into Luton airport, the first aircraft stationed at Luton airport were RAF Gladiator fighter aircraft.

Luton was used by the RAFs 264 fighter squadron flying mainly RAF defiant aircraft, throughout the war the airport was used as an aircraft manufacturing base by the Percival aircraft company.

During the 1940 summer and autumn battle of Britain the RAF numbering just 1,963 aircraft to the Luftwaffe’s 4,074 destroyed 1,887 of the Luftwaffe’s aircraft to the RAFs 1,547 aircraft lost.

This amazing victory prevented Germany form gaining the air superiority that it needed to launch Adolf Hitler’s planned operation sea lion the amphibious invasion of Britain.

Although the battle of Britain is looked on as a great British victory the pilots involved came from all over the world including 145polish pilots, 127 pilots of the New Zealand air force, 112 pilots of the Canadian air force, 88 Czechoslovakian pilots, 28 Belgian pilots, 32 pilots of the Australian air force, 25 pilots of the south African air force, 13 free French pilots, 10 Irish pilots, 7 American pilots, one Jamaican air force pilot, one pilot from the British Mandate of Palestine (now Israel) and one pilot from southern Rhodesia (now Zimbabwe).

The Luftwaffe to a smaller extent also had an international element with the Italian air force flying early sorties with very little success.