...But it is, perhaps, the end of the beginning..."

We took our case to the Planning Panel and made them very aware that they were voting on flawed 'evidence' but in the end they had to approve, or not, based on the application and the reports they had received and sadly the vote went against us.

It wasn't unanimous and we're grateful to those who spoke in support and the one Councillor who voted against the application. Grateful too for the comments from one of the Panel who sought us out afterwards and was practically apologising for having voted to approve. We may well have found some allies for future battles and the plans of the Spitfire Makers Charitable Trust to place commemorative plaques at the sites of what we know to be over 30 places within Southampton (and many more beyond) where Spitfires continued to be made after the main factories were put out of action. Please check out the website: https://spitfiremakers.org.uk/  and its links to The Supermariners: https://supermariners.wordpress.com/  for more info about these places. Some, like the Flight Shed, are still standing but also under threat. They may have been tiny by comparison but they all had a role in producing the parts to be put together in the Supermarine Assembly Hangars at Southampton Airport before they were tested in the Flight Shed

That one unique site on the Planning Panel's agenda yesterday, the Original Spitfire Flight Shed, will now, due to a "mitigation" clause in the application, have an information board erected nearby to explain the significance of what used to be there!

It may not be the end of the campaign however... We've been battered and beaten up but we're still airborne and we're not bailing out quite yet!

Lots to ponder and consider about future tactics and targets before we return to base...

I feel so sorry we didn't manage to put a halt to this demolition madness and can't quite bring myself to break this news to all you wonderful, equally angry people who have signed, and are still signing, this petition. As I write this we are just ONE signature short of 50,000! And it's now 50,009! Brilliant!

Thanks to you all and please check out the Spitfire Makers Facebook page for any further updates: @SpitfireMakers