Today saw the opening of the Hayling Island World War 2 Heritage Trail.
The Trail crosses land which which was taken over by the military during the war and there are 6 information boards which tell the story of preparations for the D-Day landings and the construction of Mulberry Harbours on Hayling Island.
Starting with a talk by Laurie Noble on the use of Hayling Station during the war to bring in material and equipment, including anti-aircraft guns, for military use, there followed a short slide presentation by the driving force behind the trail, Robin Walton. This included pictures of the construction of the 6,000 ton Mulberry Harbour units.
Unveiling the information board
Ferret Scout car
The unveiling of the first Heritage Trail information board was performed by Douglas Sharp who, as a young Royal Marine Captain, trained specialist landing craft crew members on one side of the Hayling Island Sailing Club while, on the other side, members of the Combined Operations Pilotage Parties were being trained.
In the car park of the Station Theatre several ex-military vehicles were on show, including a Jeep and a Ferret Scout car.
The Mayor of Havant's blog 