Like Rolling20, I too will be raising a glass in memory tonight.
Other factors in this debate are missing, ACM Dowding as AOCinC of Fighter Command had numerous things to his advantage, by his foresight he developed an air defence system that exists to this day, was in receipt of ULTRA information, a privilege accorded to few very senior commanders and was able to have a subordinate commander in the shape of AVM Keith Park who was able to prosecute the battle. Radar allowed for aircraft to be ground based so standing patrols fatiguing aircrew were not required. The range of the ME 109 did not allow them to have enough time over the combat area to protect their bombers when north of London and their loss of pilots when over the UK.
Fighter sweeps over France during the Battle would have caused costly losses to both pilots and aircraft which at the time would not have allowed replacement and led to a draining of Fighter Command's strength, Dowding was right to refuse to deploy any more aircraft beyond the AASF to France before and during Dunkirk as they too would have been lost.
The Luftwaffe, had the problems of cross channel flights, as mentioned relatively short combat range of its fighters, loss of pilots as bombers usually at the start had two rated pilots in each crew and lastly political interference. After the Luftwaffe bombed London (Croydon) accidentally RAF bombed Berlin leading Hitler to order a change in bombing from tactical against radar stations and airfields and onto strategic, against the cities. Their advantage was numbers but not necessarily the correct aircraft ME 110 and JU 87 comes to mind, useful against an inadequate air defence system, many squadron commanders had had combat experience in the Spanish Civil War, Molders and Galland to name two.
Apart from the pilots I will raise a glass in memory of Sir Hugh Dowding, the man who fought and won the most significant battle this country has faced since the Battle of Hastings in terms of invasion threat. A man forgotten by most, who was cr***d on by political manoeuvrings and machinations of the people above him in the RAF.
AVM Park went to to command the air defence of Malta, and we know how that battle turned , same result as the Battle of Britain, showed the system worked.
From what I have read and seen of her, maybe also raise a glass as well to Air Commodore Joan Hopkins, a modern day AVM Park.
Last edited by air pig; 15th Sep 2014 at 11:14.