A display at the Ingrebourne Valley centre in Hornchurch Country Park organised by local Rainham historian Richard Smith marked the 110th Anniversary of the aerodrome.
The story starts in 1915 as a Royal Flying Corps base set up to deal with the menace of German Zeppelin airship bombing raids on London.
Three pilots based at Hornchurch became national heroes when they shot down Zeppelins over the Thames, including Lieutenant William Leefe Robinson who destroyed the first raiding airship and was awarded the VC.
The aerodrome was used by 65 Squadron that served on the Western Front until the 1918 Armistice.
It was given back to the land-owner Tom Crawford in 1919 — then reopened in the 1930s as RAF Hornchurch as the Second World War loomed, later used to defending the Dunkirk evacuations in 1940 and defeating the Luftwaffe in the Battle of Britain that followed.
The air base continued into the 1950s as an RAF recruiting centre until 1962 when the land was used to create Hornchurch Country Park.
The anniversary display included 3D graphic simulations showing how the aerodrome looked through the years. Taking part were Elm Park air cadets, the Royal British Legion’s Romford branch and the Spitfire Society.
