West Worcestershire MP Harriett Baldwin has celebrated the arrival of a new museum to celebrate the efforts of people who helped to win the Second World War from the heart of Worcestershire. The secret airbase at Defford led the development of top secret technology to help win the war including the creation of the radar system which helped Bomber Command to spot enemy aircraft. The base also housed scientists who helped to develop microwave technologies and the very first automated plane landing was successfully completed at the base in 1945. The museum is in the grounds of the popular National Trust property, Croome Court, and has been created with the support of local donors and the National Lottery Heritage Fund. Harriett was one of the first visitors to be treated to a tour of the museum where the story of RAF Defford is told. Harriett commented: “RAF Defford has always had an aura of secrecy and until quite recently, the work carried out there was a state secret. “Defford and the sister research facility in Malvern carried out nationally important work and it is great that we can now properly celebrate the efforts of the people who worked here. “It was inspirational to talk to the veterans who worked here during the war and the museum is a fitting tribute to the brilliant people who worked night and day to help secure a safe future for them and us. “Croome Court is now an increasingly popular attraction and more than 170,000 people now visit each year. “I congratulate the staff and volunteers who have put together such an impressive local resource and I hope local schools will be putting the museum on their list to visit in the near future.” Photo: Museum curator Dennis Williams explains the history of RAF Defford to Harriett Baldwin MP.