Townsend Square was the marketing name for a private housing development of 4 and 5 bedroom detached homes at Kings Hill, West Malling, which were completed in the summer of 2002. Hillreed Homes Ltd chose the marketing name because of Group Captain Peter Townsend's close connections to the original West Malling Airfield. During the construction of their homes Hillreed discovered that the new square, where the sculpture now sits, marks the position of the original runway from where many midnight sorties were launched during World War II. They felt that it was of utmost importance to mark this very important historical spot and at the same time commemorate the bravery of our airmen who were England's first line of defence. Hillreed therefore felt it was a natural progression from their original marketing ideas to include Group Captain Peter Townsend as part of the sculpture and after much debate (because he flew so many different types of aircraft) they included a replica of a Hurricane, the aircraft he was most famous for flying. As it was to be seen in an every day domestic environment it was important to create something that lifted the spirit and was also impressive and significant.