Although the airfield closed shortly after the end of the war, the land was requisitioned in 1923 because of the expansion of the Royal Air Force and it re-opened as a much larger fighter station in 1928.

As the number of aircraft increased at the airfields around London, it was decided to organise them into 39 (Home Defence) Squadron, which was formed in April 1916, under the command of Major (later Brigadier-General) Thomas Higgins.

The first recorded interception of an enemy airship over Britain was made by Lt. (later Marshal of the Royal Air Force) John Slessor on the very day he arrived at Sutton's Farm, 13 October 1915.

Robinson shot down a Schütte-Lanz SL11, one of a 16-strong raiding force over London, using a new mixture of Brock and Pomeroy mixed incendiary ammunition, which had been adapted for this task.

Two other Sutton's Farm pilots from the First World War, Lt. Frederick Sowrey and Lt. Wulstan Tempest, were awarded the DSO for their roles in the destruction of Zeppelins.

Following the decision in the early 1920s to expand the Royal Air Force, former First World War airfields were inspected to ascertain their suitability for use.

[9] During the Second World War the station was a Sector Airfield of RAF Fighter Command's 11 Group, covering London and the south east of England during the Battle of Britain in 1940, and therefore was a major target for the Luftwaffe, being raided on no less than twenty occasions.

Following a period of gravel extraction and infilling with rubbish in the 1970s, the airfield was extensively landscaped to create Hornchurch Country Park, with work commencing in 1980.

[14] The fire trench, a partially buried pillbox and an E pen were excavated, and the gun emplacement on the northern end of the site was cleared of vegetation.

[12][15] The Good Intent pub, formerly with a large concrete, planetarium-like dome next door (used for training airgunners), still exists on the Southend Road, was popular with the aircrews, and has an interesting collection of photos of the Station.

Home Defence was viewed as a relatively easy role and Robinson had trouble earning the respect of his fellow pilots when he was subsequently posted to France.

The awarding of the VC was, undoubtedly, partly politically motivated, although it must be remembered that any form of flying was inherently dangerous in 1916, particularly at night and at these tremendous heights without oxygen.

Robinson also managed to single-handedly lift the spirit of a nation that had suffered the new terror of aerial bombardment from the apparently invincible airships.

[20] Although effective in destroying enemy airships, the use of incendiary ammunition was banned under the terms of the Hague Convention of 1899[21] and pilots using it had to have signed orders from their commanding officer.

On his return to Sutton's Farm, William Leefe Robinson's CO ordered him to keep quiet about it[22] as it was thought the propaganda value for the enemy would be invaluable should it leak out, even though the Germans had already broken the terms of the convention by using gas in 1915.

On 6 September 1939, three days after the declaration of war, a searchlight battery on Mersea Island incorrectly identified a friendly aircraft crossing the Essex coast.

A tragic, but inevitable mistake was now just minutes away; Spitfires from 74 Squadron, led by "Sailor" Malan, took off from Hornchurch and quickly engaged two Hurricanes, shooting them both down.