At the end of his visit, the author presented Southampton's CO, Commander Richard Morris, with a section of rope from the 18th-Century HMS Invincible which was lost in the eastern Solent in 1758.

He said: "Solent Airport at Daedalus is a particularly poignant location for commemorating D-Day. On June 6, 1944, the then HMS Daedalus airfield was the busiest in the country. More than 400 ...