A HISTORIC flight came to an end at the Imperial War Museum Duxford on Sunday, when a 70-year-old plane completed the circuit of Britain.

Pilot Jeff Boyling set out on the flight in World War Two seaplane Catalina G-PBYA from the South Cambridgeshire airfield five days ago. After covering 1,600 miles, he landed at Duxford at 4.34pm on Sunday

Mr Boyling decided to undertake the challenge to mark the 100th anniversary of the Circuit of Britain, which was first attempetedy by aviation pioneers Harry Hawker and Harry Kauper in 1913. He was raising money for the Royal Air Force Benevolent Fund and the Imperial War Museum, where the Catalina is based.

He said: “It’s fantastic that we’ve achieved what we set out to achieve. The Circuit of Britain has been accomplished 100 years after Harry Hawker set out to complete it. We’re delighted that the Catalina has raised awareness of IWM Duxford across the country and has also highlighted the importance of the Royal Air Force Benevolent Fund.”

“It’s been long days and a lot of early starts. Project Hawker has not finished, we need to see the photos and the film that we’ve been taking along the journey, thank people who have helped along the way and see how much we’ve raised for our chosen charities. Lots of people have helped out every step of the way and have made the flight possible – we’d like to thank them all.”