MILITARY aviation enthusiast and author Dilip Sarkar was presented with a MBE at Buckingham Palace last week for his services to aviation history.

Dilip, who has written 17 books on topics including the Spitfire and Spitfire pilots, received his MBE at an investiture held by the Prince of Wales.

"It was an awesome experience for me and my family. We had a fantastic time and my daughter in particular loved it, so that made it even more special," he said.

Mr Sarkar, a police officer who worked at Malvern Police Station for 18 years, said his interest in military aeroplanes began when he was a child.

"My uncle used to build model Spitfires and I saw the film The Battle of Britain as a child and my interest grew from there. The Spitfire in particular is such a lovely plane and it became a symbol of freedom," he said.

Research and writing began in earnest in 1986 when Mr Sarkar founded the Malvern Spitfire Team to recover the remains of a Spitfire which crashed near Madresfield during the war.

"The honour reflects well upon all of those kind people all over the world, including veterans and the relatives of casualties, who've supported our work over the years," said Mr Sarkar.

His passion for military history is as strong as ever and his son James shares his interest.

Mr Sarkar has recently been invited to dive the German battleship, the Admiral Graf Spee, scuttled outside Montevideo in Uruguay during the Second World War.

"I hope James will be able to come with me as he's recently qualified as a diver," said Mr Sarkar.

Mr Sarkar said he didn't know how he had managed to fit in all the research and book writing with his busy job in the police force.

"I don't watch much television. I also get up early and go to bed late," he explained, adding that he was more selective now in which projects he took on.

Mr Sarkar attended the investiture with his family, his wife Anita, who is involved with publishing his writing, James and Hannah.

Mr Sarkar is a detective with the Family Protection Unit at Worcester CID, responsible for the Malvern and Pershore sections.