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Battle of Britain pilot Maurice Mounsdon dies aged 101

Maurice Mounsdon was one of the last surviving members of "The Few", who fought the Nazis in WW2.
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One of the last surviving pilots who fought in the Battle of Britain during World War Two has died aged 101.
Flight Lieutenant Maurice Mounsdon was one of only four remaining members of The Few - a group of 3,000 airmen who defended the skies above southern England from the Nazis in 1940.
The head of the RAF, Air Chief Marshal Mike Wigston, said Mr Mounsdon's bravery should never be forgotten.
The Battle of Britain led to the deaths of 544 RAF pilots and aircrew.

Their bravery and sacrifice in withstanding the greater numbers of German pilots of the Luftwaffe and a possible invasion was recognised by then Prime Minister Winston Churchill.

"Never in the field of human conflict was so much owed by so many to so few," he told MPs.
Churchill's "Few", as RAF crew, who included Polish, Canadian and New Zealand pilots among others, became known, have been celebrated ever since.
Mr Mounsdon was described by his nephew, Adrian Mounsdon, as a "great man" who would be missed by his family, the Daily Mirror reported.
ACM Wigston said he was "deeply saddened" by Mr Mounsdon's death, saying the veteran had "fought for and won our freedom".
"His was a remarkable story, which will continue to inspire this and future generations of the Royal Air Force, his bravery and sacrifice should never be forgotten," he added.
In 2015, Mr Mounsdon told the BBC he was serving with 56 Squadron out of North Weald when he was sent out to intercept some bombers on 31 August 1940.
He managed to shoot at one of them, but then a German cannon shell hit the fuel tank of his Hawker Hurricane.
"I was on fire. There was only one thing to do and that was to get out as fast as possible," he told the BBC.
"I was badly burned, but I rolled the aircraft over and came down by parachute from 14,000ft."

He said it was the first time he had used a parachute and he was "jolly lucky".
Mr Mounsdon, who had terrible burns to his legs and hands, landed in a field in the village of High Easter, Essex, where he was found by local people.
He spent a number of years in various hospitals, where he had skin grafts.
While in hospital, he married his childhood sweetheart Mary.
The couple moved to the Spanish island Menorca in the late 1970s and lived there until she died in 1993.

For Mr Mousdon's 100th birthday in September last year the Red Arrows paid tribute to him with a flyover off the coast of Menorca.
The three surviving members of the Few are Flt Lt William Clark, 100, Wing Commander Paul Farnes, 101, and Flying Officer John Hemingway, 100.
 
And what happened afterwards still makes me very cross, with nobody taking responsibility and no one prosecuted. The fund raised was taken to clear the mess, the deaths were deemed an accident. The parents were initially offered compensation of Ā£50 per child but eventually had Ā£500 per child after an outcry.
 
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Battle of Britain ace fighter pilot Paul Farnes dies aged 101

Wing Cdr Paul Farnes, the last surviving "ace pilot", died peacefully on Tuesday.
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The last surviving Battle of Britain ace pilot from World War Two has died aged 101.
Wing Cdr Paul Farnes was among the 3,000 airmen - The Few - who defended England's skies in 1940.
He died at his home in Hampshire on Tuesday morning, the Battle of Britain Memorial Trust said.
Paying tribute, it described him as a "distinguished man - who was generous with his time in support of the trust".
His battle victories made Wing Cdr Farnes an ace, a term taken to mean any fighter pilot credited with shooting down five or more enemy aircraft.
His tally was six enemy aircraft destroyed, one probably destroyed and six damaged, the trust said.
There are now thought to be only two surviving members of The Few - Flight Lieutenant William Clark and Flying Officer John Hemingway, both aged 100.
The trust added Wing Cdr Farnes was the last member of The Few fit enough to be able to attend the aerial conflict's memorial day in 2019.
It said he had "proudly" represented his RAF colleagues at the service of commemoration just a week before his 101st birthday, in July.
The trust said Wing Cdr Farnes was "very proud" of his Distinguished Flying Medal (DFM), which he received for his exploits in the Battle of Britain.
In 2015, the then retired Sqn Ldr described the "moving" moment he and his comrades were spontaneously applauded during a service at Westminster Abbey to mark the 75th anniversary of the Battle of Britain.

Mr Farnes, who flew a Hurricane during the war, said: "It was very emotional today because, when we walked out of the abbey, the audience applauded and it's never happened before at the annual service and I was very moved by it.
"It is amazing that the Battle of Britain has caught on with the public and I am very proud to have been a part of it."
Mr Farnes joined the Royal Air Force Volunteer Reserve in 1938, later joining RAF No 501 Squadron and fighting in the Battle of France in 1940.
After the Battle of Britain, he was commissioned as an officer and served as an instructor and fought in Malta with No 229 Squadron as well as serving in North Africa and Iraq.
As World War Two ended, he was in command of two squadrons in the UK.
Remaining in the RAF until 1958 when, having been appointed Sqn Ldr, he retired, retaining the rank of Wing Cdr.
 
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