Battle of Britain: World War II pilot remembered by his son 80 years later

A man born after his father’s death in the Battle of Britain has recounted how a letter written by his grieving mother allowed him to appreciate his father’s heroism.

Eighty years ago, RAF pilots flew to the skies for months in an effort to fight a Nazi invasion in the Battle of Britain.

These men, nicknamed “the few” by Winston Churchill, protected south-east England from Luftwaffe attack. Although the battle lasted from July to October 1940, September 15 is known as Britain’s Day of the Battle, as it was the date that the RAF Combat Command claimed a turning point in favor of Britain.

Among those pilots was flight officer Michael Doulton, who was shot down and killed over the Thames estuary during a dog fight in September 1940.

But a letter written by his grieving wife Carol to his father would allow his unborn child to read about his acts of heroism.

Flight Officer Doulton, who was 31 years old at the time of his last flight, took off in his Hurricane never to return and it was 44 years before the remains and his body were found during an excavation.

Their son Paul was born in April 1941 and thanks to his mother’s letter, which he still has in his possession, he was able to read about the 18 months that his parents spent together.

Mr. Doulton, now 79, said: “My mother told me a lot about my father, it was all very loving, because that was the nature of my mother. They were desperately in love, which is lovely to hear.

“I still read it over and over again. I find it so moving, rejoicing in a way over the marriage my mother had with my father.

“She was realistic and she was prepared for the fact that she might not be if he was killed.”

The couple met while skiing in Switzerland and married in March 1939.

In the summer of 1940, Officer Doulton was flying full time from Tangmere in West Sussex.

His squad, 601, based at RAF Tangmere in West Sussex, was dubbed the Millionaire Squad. They had a reputation for having a great life, but they were also formidable fighters.

On September 2, 1940, Ms. Doulton’s world fell apart with the news that her husband had disappeared while on a mission.

In his letter, he described the moment when a member of the squad visited the cabin they shared in Fontwell, West Sussex, and immediately knew something was wrong.

While the letter has been shared among historians interested in the 601 squad, it is the first time it has been publicized beyond.

Ms. Doulton wrote: “Although I will wait another 24 hours before I tell his family and get out of here, I am sure he is dead.

“I pray that it has gone down to the sea and that it just disappears. I have no wish for the horror of bodies and funerals to come between my last happy memories of Michael, young, strong, and confident.

“Don’t waste the pain on me. Remember that I have a child to look forward to and that I have had eighteen months of wonderful happiness. And I am too proud of Michael to be unhappy in a mean way.”

Mrs Doulton moved to the United States after the death of her husband and her son was born there, but they returned to the United Kingdom, settled in Sussex and remarried in 1949.

She was forced to relive her grief when the remains of her first husband and the remnants of his hurricane were discovered at Rainham Marshes in Kent in 1984.

Recalling her mother’s grief, Mr. Doulton said: “It was the first time I was so upset. It was something I was not prepared for.

“I needed to go not only to help my mother bury my father, but also to help my mother overcome the crisis.

“My father was a great presence in my life, he is always at the forefront of my mind.

“His memory lives in such a warm way.”

Michael Doulton is buried in the Sussex town of Salehurst and his wife Carol is near him, following his death in 2006.