Smash-and-grab thieves stole paintings of Spitfires and Hurricanes worth more than £4,000.
They broke a front window of an art shop, grabbed the paintings from a display and drove off.
Two youths on mopeds and a man in a car were seen in the vicinity at the time.
Also stolen was an 18in bust of a pilot, made of black resin.
The raid happened at Spitfire Art! in High Street, Ditchling, at 3.30am yesterday.
Owner Arthur Rayner said the paintings would probably be taken out of their frames and sold on the black market.
They are by Birmingham artist Trevor Lay and are framed in antique yew wood.
One is a head-on view of a Spitfire, the second is a Spitfire and Hurricane flying over Beachy Head, another shows a Spitfire and Hurricane flying down a river valley and the fourth is a Spitfire over a valley with two children looking skyward.
Witnesses to the burglary or anyone with information about the paintings should contact police at Burgess Hill on 0845 6070 999.
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