CLOUDY skies greeted the Prince of Wales and Duchess of Cornwall when they paid a visit to one of Harrow's most historic sites last week.

The Royals arrived by helicopter from the Three Counties Show at Malvern on Friday afternoon and were welcomed by members of the Battle of Britain Fighter Association (BBFA) for the annual summer gathering at RAF Bentley Priory in Stanmore.

This year's get together for veterans and their family members was particularly poignant as the future of the site is undecided and deemed "surplus" to the RAF's requirements, who will be relocating to RAF Northolt in the coming months.

For many, Bentley Priory is the spiritual home of the survivors of "The Few", the aircrew who fought in the 1940 Battle of Britain, as it was here that Air Chief Marshal Lord Dowding led the battle that turned the tide of the war in the Allies favour.

It is hoped that The Bentley Priory Battle of Britain Trust - established last year - will be able to raise enough money to ensure the preservation of key areas of the site and the Priory, creating an education centre using original artefacts to allow the history of the building to remain.

The Royal visitors sat with the veterans who shared their memories of the past.

Squadron Leader Jocelyn Millard, 92, who served from 1937 to 1947 enjoyed a cup of tea with Prince Charles. He told the Harrow Times: "I always come here, I don't do bingo, my social life is all the Air Force."

Accompanied by his neighbour, Sq Leader Millard said: "I have spoken to Prince Charles before when we went to Clarence House last year, and then we went to Buckingham Palace and I had a nice talk with his wife.

"The RAF is my life."

The afternoon reception was held in the Officers' Mess and was organised by the trust as well as serving RAF members.

For Squadron Leader Kerr Macintosh, this was his last summer gathering as, after three years at the Stanmore site he is being posted to Basra, in Iraq, for four months.

He said: "Prince Charles has had a very close association with the BBFA. His grandmother had a particular fondness for this place and for the fighting association."

At 94 years old, Hertforshire-based Flight Lieutenant William Louis Buchanan Walker was the oldest veteran at the summer gathering and was joined by two generations of his family.

He said: "It is always nice to catch up with people here. They are the only ones who share my memories and the only ones who understand what we went through.

An impressive fly-past involving a BBFA Hurricane and a Spitfire followed the tea.

There are only 145 surviving members of the BBFA, which was formed in 1958.

Harrow Council is working with The Bentley Priory Battle of Britain Trust to secure the site's future. A public consultation began earlier this month to gage local residents' opinions of what the land should be used for.