Shoreham Airport, founded in 1910 when flying was in its infancy, is the oldest civil airport in the world.

A biplane took off from the flat field then serving as the airport to launch the venture but the first real activity took place in 1911.

Pioneer aviators took part in a race from Brooklands motor-racing track to Brighton, while the first commercial flight in the world was from Shoreham to Wish Park in Hove.

That year, Shoreham was officially named the Brighton Aerodrome but more important to the airport's future was the arrival of Cecil Pashley.

This great aviator and his brother, Eric, established a flying school and a works for building planes, But when the First World War broke out in 1914, Shoreham was requisitioned by the War Office and business stopped temporarily.

Eric, who joined the Royal Flying Corps, was killed in an accident in 1917, while Cecil trained pilots.

After the war, Shoreham reopened and Pashley started the Southern Aero Club but business was not good.

At one stage, the airport was put up for sale but there were no takers.

The famous female aviator Amy Johnson stopped off at Shoreham in a biplane in 1930 and received a civic reception.

Two years later, the first scheduled passenger flights took place and ever since then there have been efforts to run air services between the Sussex coast and nearby destinations.

The Channel Islands have always been a favourite but Shoreham is also handy for Continental towns such as those in northern France.

A new terminal building was constructed soon afterwards and opened in 1936 by the mayors of Brighton, Hove and Worthing.

Once again, Shoreham was taken over during the Second World War and this time it was used much more intensively because of the advances in aviation.

It played a role during the D-Day landings in 1944 as a base for back-up aircraft but generally was employed on air-sea rescues.

Pashley served as an instructor throughout the war and probably taught more people to fly than anyone else.

By the end of his long life (he died aged 77 in 1969) he had lodged 20,000 flying hours.

Brighton, Hove and Worthing Councils jointly ran the airport from 1971 but, unfortunately, the councils covering Shoreham were not included.

This caused problems when it came to proposing development.

For many years, the councils made a loss on the airport, although eventually it began to make modest profits.

The grass runway proved inadequate for use, particularly during bad weather, but there was strong local opposition to a hard runway.

Eventually one was approved after three public inquiries and it opened for use in 1982. It heralded an immediate and permanent increase in flying movements.

Meanwhile, the Art Deco terminal building became something of a star in its own right.

It has been used for many films and TV series, including episodes of Poirot, the popular series based on Agatha Christie's Belgian detective.

Many plans have been produced for expanding the airport, which could be a useful hub for shortdistance trips.

But there has always been opposition, even though the runway could never been lengthened sufficiently to take large jet aircraft.

It also became clear that the three councils could never afford the millions of pounds needed for Shoreham to invest in the future.

Shoreham continues to be a popular base for business and leisure flying. Firms associated with the airport provide hundreds of jobs.

There are well-patronised air shows every years and the airport has also been the base for the Sussex police helicopter.

Shoreham's centenary is coming up in only four years' time. A special event is needed to commemorate those magnificent men in their flying machines.