Founded on April 1st, 1918 as the world's first independent air force, Britain's Royal Air Force celebrates it's 90th birthday today. The RAF's "finest hour" came during the Battle of Britain, 3 long months that Hitler's Luftwaffe spent trying to destroy the RAF squadrons & pave the way for the invasion of Britain. The heroic battles of the young RAF pilots prompted Winston Churchill to proclaim that "never in the field of human endeavor has so much been owed by so many to so few." And few they were; at the onset the RAF could count 1,100 pilots from 13 nations and by the end, 70% of these flyers had been killed or injured. However, this thin line of defense in their Spitfires and Hurricanes overcame the best equipped and best trained air force in the world. The Luftwaffe's plans for unimpeded bombing access to Britain and Hilter's invasion ambitions were thwarted.Happy Birthday R.A.F!
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