On Saturday 28 August the Battle of Britain commemorative flight took place and I was lucky enough to be on board.

The flight was organised by the Battle of Britain Historical Society to mark the 70th anniversary of the Battle this year and was sponsored by findmypast.co.uk, along with the John Lewis Partnership and Serco.

Amy Sell, findmypast.co.uk's marketing executive

Fourteen Battle of Britain veterans attended, all of whom are now in their 80s and 90s. There were also 15 war widows on board and members of the Women’s Auxiliary Air Force who also played an important role in the Battle of Britain.

Here’s Battle of Britain veteran William Walker with findmypast’s marketing manager Debra Chatfield:

The specially chartered British Airways flight took off from Heathrow Terminal Five. We flew over the areas in which the RAF was engaged in combat with the Luftwaffe during the Battle of Britain. The plane flew over the coast of Southern England and the English Channel.

Two surviving fighter planes - a Spitfire and a Hurricane - joined the flight for part of the way. The pilots had flown these aircrafts during the Battle of Britain. Here you can see the Spitfire and Hurricane alongside our plane:

My colleagues Debra Chatfield (findmypast’s marketing manager) and Paul Yates (head of findmypast) were also on board the flight, as well as our two lucky competition winners Sally Hayward and her guest Stuart.

There were a few other notable figures on board the flight: defence minister Dr Liam Fox, South African High Commissioner Dr Zola Skweyiya, Belgian Diplomatic Counsellor Pascal Gregoire, actor Edward Fox and Battle of Britain Historical Society supporter Bamber Gascoigne.

We took this photo of Edward Fox speaking at the champagne reception:

It was a fascinating and memorable day and a fitting tribute to the bravery of the men who fought for our country.

See more photos of the flight on our Facebook page.

In findmypast.co.uk’s July newsletter, we asked you to search our fully indexed birth records and tell us how many people in Hampshire are registered with the last name ‘Britain’. Thanks to all of you who entered - the lucky winner is Sally Hayward from Canterbury, Kent who correctly answered 16.

Sally wins two tickets to the Battle of Britain commemorative flight on 28 August 2010. Congratulations Sally!

The Battle of Britain Historical Society has organised this commemorative flight over the Battle of Britain area to mark the 70th anniversary of the Battle of Britain this year. You can read more information about the flight here.

To mark the 70th anniversary of the Battle of Britain this year, the Battle of Britain Historical Society has organised a commemorative flight over the Battle of Britain area on 28 August 2010 and you could be a part of it.

Findmypast.co.uk is sponsoring the flight, along with the John Lewis Partnership. British Airways have provided an Airbus A320 which will fly the Battle of Britain veterans over the areas in which they fought in their Hurricanes, Spitfires, Blenheims and Defiants in the summer of 1940.

As well as the veterans and their family members, celebrities and TV and press reporters, there are some seats now on offer to members of the public on a ‘first come, first served’ basis. Ticket holders will meet up with the veterans and celebrities at Heathrow at 1pm on Saturday 28 August 2010 for pre-flight drinks and lunch prior to take off at 2.30pm.

The flight will last around two hours and will fly over the Isle of Wight, Hampshire, Sussex and Kent, before proceeding up the English Channel and across the North Sea to the coast of Holland, returning to Heathrow via Belgium and France. Tickets are £475 each, paid for by cheque, or via Visa, Mastercard, Maestro or Switch.

If you’re interested in being a part of this amazing event, please contact Bill Bond M.B.E., General Manager, Battle of Britain Historical Society, Gunthorpe, Melton Constable NR24 2NS. Tel: 01263 861476 or email: billatbobhs@aol.com