On Sunday, Sept. 20, 15 Wing commemorated the 80th anniversary of the Battle of Britain. The Battle of Britain raged over London and the English countryside between July 10 and Oct. 31, 1940, and was pivotal in stopping the Nazi invasion of the British Isles.

Over 100 Canadian pilots participated in the conflict and 23 lost their lives. Another 35 who participated in the battle would later die before victory was achieved. In the ceremony, World War II veteran Flight Lt. Al Cameron read the Honour Roll, the list of names of the deceased, including Pilot Officer C.R. Bonseigneur from Gull Lake, who was killed in action on September 3, 1940. Wreaths were also laid while the Last Post was played.

In a speech, 15 Wing Commander Colonel Ron Walker, described the seemingly insurmountable odds facing the Allies.

"Limited resources and short time meant that some pilots had spent as little as 20 hours in their airplanes. The average age of a Spitfire pilot at the time was 22 years old and their average life expectancy was just four weeks long. With most of these pilots only having fired on a moving target once, the Canadian pilots now had to face the fearsome Luftwaffe with little experience."

At the time, the Luftwaffe was undisputedly the most experienced and formidable air force in the world, having already defeated the air forces of Poland, France, Belgium and the Netherlands. The Allies were outnumbered 5 to 1. 

"It was a baptism by fire...Roughly half of the approximately 100 Canadian pilots who participated in the Battle of Britain never came home from overseas."

Only after 9 months of bombing in which 14,286 civilians were killed and another 20,325 wounded, were the Allies able to build their forces enough and finally rebuff the Axis air superiority. Colonel Walker commented on what the Battle of Britain has come to mean for him.

"Time has claimed most of the remaining pilots, and we believe that our last one living in Canada, Flying Officer John Stewart Hart, passed away last year on June 18 at 102 years-old...The heroes of the Battle of Britain represent the very best of what it means to be Canadian...Our airmen and airwomen draw strength from our past and perform their missions today with pride."

The live-streamed ceremony can be viewed in full here.