Queen Elizabeth praises Royal Air Force on 100th anniversary

By: The Associated Press

Sunday, April 1, 2018 9:05 AM

LONDON (AP) Queen Elizabeth II has sent congratulations to Britain's Royal Air Force on the 100th anniversary of its founding.

The queen's message was read at a breakfast reception held Sunday at a central London building that served as the RAF's first headquarters.

The Royal Air Force was created on April 1, 1918 through the merger of the Royal Flying Corps and the Royal Naval Air Service.

Its reputation is strongly associated with the extraordinary bravery and skill of the pilots who defended Britain against Germany's Luftwaffe during World War II.

Elizabeth said in her anniversary wishes that the RAF has "defended our freedom gallantly."

Top air force officers attended the reception, but the job of reading the queen's message fell to 16-year-old Aircraftsman Adam Wood, one of the RAF's youngest members.

Queen Elizabeth praises Royal Air Force on 100th anniversary

FILE - In this photo issued Sunday April 1, 2018, by Britain's Ministry of Defence showing two Hawker Hart light bombers of 39 Squadron at Miranshah on the North West Frontier, Pakistan in 1938, as part of a collection of images marking the centenary of the world's first independent air force. It was 100-years ago on April 1 1918 that the Royal Flying Corps and the Royal Naval Air Service merged to created the Royal Air Force. Queen Elizabeth II sent congratulations to the Royal Air Force on the 100th anniversary of its founding, with her message read out by 16-year old Adam Wood, one of the youngest members of the RAF. (Air Historical Branch/RAF via AP)

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Former Spitfire pilot Squadron Leader Allan Scott, 96-years old, prepares to fly as a passenger in a Spitfire as part of the RAF100 commemorations at Biggin Hill Airport in Kent, southern England, Sunday April 1, 2018. It was 100-years ago on April 1 1918 that the Royal Flying Corps and the Royal Naval Air Service merged to create the Royal Air Force. Queen Elizabeth II sent congratulations to the Royal Air Force on the 100th anniversary of its founding, with her message read out by 16-year old Adam Wood, one of the youngest members of the RAF. (Stefan Rousseau/PA via AP)

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A general view of the Founders' Day Service, to commemorate the centenary of the formation of the Royal Air Force at St Clement Danes Church, in London, Sunday April 1, 2018. It was 100-years ago on April 1 1918 that the Royal Flying Corps and the Royal Naval Air Service merged to created the Royal Air Force. (Steven Paston/PA via AP)

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FILE - In this photo issued Sunday April 1, 2018, by Britain's Ministry of Defence photo dated March 11, 1932 of an RAF Westland Wapiti IIa of 30 Squadron in flight over the city of Mosul in Iraq, as part of a collection of images marking the centenary of the world's first independent air force. It was 100-years ago on April 1 1918 that the Royal Flying Corps and the Royal Naval Air Service merged to created the Royal Air Force. Queen Elizabeth II sent congratulations to the Royal Air Force on the 100th anniversary of its founding, with her message read out by 16-year old Adam Wood, one of the youngest members of the RAF. (Air Historical Branch/RAF via AP)

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One of the youngest serving members of the RAF, Aircraftsman Adam Wood, 16, is handed the baton by Royal Air Force veteran, Air Commodore Charles Clarke, right, outside the Royal Courts of Justice in London, ahead of the first leg of the Baton Relay Launch, Sunday April 1, 2018. It was 100-years ago on April 1 1918 that the Royal Flying Corps and the Royal Naval Air Service merged to created the Royal Air Force. Queen Elizabeth II sent congratulations to the Royal Air Force on the 100th anniversary of its founding, with her message read out by 16-year old Adam Wood, one of the youngest members of the RAF. The baton will be carried to 100 sites around the UK in 100 days, in relay by RAF personnel, cadets and veterans. (Steven Paston/PA via AP)

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