One of final living Battle of Britain pilots dies aged 101

One of the last surviving members of The Few - the pilots who defended the country in the Battle of Britain during World War Two - has died.

Battle of Britain pilot Maurice Mounsden (right) with Red 1, Squadron Leader Martin Pert

Flight Lieutenant Maurice Mounsdon died on Friday aged 101, family members said.

"He was a great man and will be missed by his nephews and nieces," nephew Adrian Mounsdon told the Daily Mirror.

Mr Mounsdon's passing leaves only three remaining members of The Few, the 3,000 airmen who fought off the Luftwaffe in the skies above southern England over three-and-a-half months in 1940.

A Red Arrow flyover in Menorca had marked Maurice Mounsdon's 100th birthday

The surviving trio are Flt Lt William Clark, 100, Wing Commander Paul Farnes, 101, and Flying Officer John Hemingway, 100.

Mr Mounsdon was honoured on his 100th birthday in September last year with a flyover by the Red Arrows off the coast of the Spanish island of Menorca, where he had lived since the late 1970s since retiring there with his wife Mary, who died in 1993.

The Battle of Britain claimed the lives of 544 RAF pilots and aircrew.