THE RAF Harrowbeer 70th Anniversary Group has borrowed a page from history and launched a 'Spitfire Fund' to help raise money for the airfield's anniversary celebrations next month.

The group, comprising the RAF Harrowbeer Interest Group, RAF Harrowbeer Archives and Chris and Debby Henderson, was disappointed recently after failing to secure lottery funding for the event.

It needs to raise more than £5,000 to pay for the weekend's flying displays by the Spitfire, Hurricane and Lancaster of the Battle of Britain Memorial Flight and the Fairey Swordfish of the Historic Flight from RNAS Yeovilton.

All donations to the Spitfire Fund will be gratefully received, but a £10 donation will qualify for a specially created, limited edition badge in the shape of a Spitfire, with the inscription 'RAF Harrowbeer' on it.

A gold-plated version of the badge can be obtained for a £25 donation.

The design copies the style of the wartime 'Spitfire Fund' badges that were used to raise funds to buy Spitfires for the war effort.

Anniversary group chairman Michael Hayes said: 'We have had a number of personal donations for the event and thought that the creation of the Spitfire Badge was a nice way of saying thank you for those donations.

'We wanted to celebrate RAF Harrowbeer's 70th anniversary in spectacular style and have put together what we hope will be a superb weekend of activities and events.

'As everything takes place on the open moor we cannot charge for entrance or car parking and so all the costs have to be met from funding bids, sponsorship by local businesses and donations.

'We are very grateful to all who have supported our plans so far but we still have a long way to go to meet the planned costs.'

The anniversary celebrations will take place over the weekend of August 13 and 14.

To make a donation and to receive a badge if qualified, visit Knightstone Tea Rooms in Yelverton, Buckland Computers in Horrabridge, the Yelverton and Tavistock offices of Mansbridge and Balment, or contact the RAF Harrowbeer Interest Group via the website http://www.rafharrowbeer.co.uk">www.rafharrowbeer.co.uk or 01822 855336.

More information on the anniversary event can be found on the dedicated website http://www.rafharrowbeer-dartmoor.org.uk">www.rafharrowbeer-dartmoor.org.uk