Relatives of two of the Few were welcomed to the Memorial site recently, with Trustee Andy Simpson showing them around the clifftop tribute.
Amanda Service was joined by husband Tom and friends Peter and Lindsey Traill on her first visit to the memorial at Capel-le-Ferne to donate a uniform and books that had belonged to her father, Group Captain Sir Hugh ‘Cocky’ Dundas. She was also remembering her uncle, Flying Officer John Dundas.
Hugh Dundas was a Flying Officer during the Battle of Britain, serving with No 616 Squadron. He was shot down but survived, wounded, after baling out. He returned to flying in 1941 but was shot down again, necessitating a forced landing at Hawkinge. Later in the war he served with No 610 and No 56 Squadrons and in North Africa and Sicily.
After retiring from the RAF as a Group Captain after the war, he joined No 601 Auxiliary Air Force Squadron while working as a defence correspondent for the Daily Express and for Rediffusion, where he became managing director and then chairman. He was a Deputy Lieutenant for Surrey and High Sheriff in 1989.
Hugh Dundas’ brother John was a member of No 609 Squadron. He was particularly successful during the Battle of Britain, destroying or damaging numerous aircraft. However, shortly after the official end of the battle, in November 1940, he was shot down and his aircraft crashed into the sea south of the Isle of Wight. His body was never recovered.
The donated books will be placed in the ever-growing library in Hunting Lodge at the Memorial site and the uniform will be held for future display in the planned extension to Hunting Lodge for which the Trust is currently raising funds.
Our second visitor was Lynn Church, who visited the Memorial with some photo albums which had belonged to her grandfather Kenneth Dewhurst.
Kenneth Dewhurst was a Pilot Officer in the Battle and flew with No 234 Squadron. He was quite successful in the Battle, damaging or destroying several aircraft. He was unhurt when forced to bale out after an attack caused his engine to catch fire.
His career path during the later stages of the war and after his release from the RAF is unclear, but the photo albums suggest that he may have joined an Army unit and that he was in Egypt and the Sudan at some point in the early 1950s.
“We were pleased to welcome these relatives to the Memorial and to be able to rekindle contact with these members of the Few,” Andy commented.
