East Sussex ex-pilot, 90, who founded Headcorn aerodrome, left heartbroken after walking aid stolen

Diana Patten, who founded Headcorn aerodrome in Kent back in the 1960s, said the walker was her ‘life’, as she had it for many years and used it to get around.

She said she normally leaves the walker leaning against the sea wall outside her cottage but her husband discovered it had disappeared when he returned home from walking their dog.

She used the walker for daily exercises and for frequent trips to the beach club nearby, where she is a member.

Diana said: “It was just part of my life. It was a very old walker but was perfect for putting on the sea wall so I could walk and do my 20 minutes’ walking each day. I have to walk because I have breathing problems.

“My husband went out with the dog and the walker was still there by the wall but later in the afternoon it was gone.

“Why are people so beastly? It’s left me in shock. I was terribly upset when I found out and still am.”

She said the walker was maroon in colour and had her name and phone number written in white on it.

Following the theft, Diana, who lives in Pett Level, near Hastings, said someone donated a virtually new walker to her but unfortunately she was unable to use it, due to it being too heavy.

Diana was the creator of Headcorn aerodrome and often appeared in the tabloids as ‘the flying mum’ and ‘the flying housewife’.

Her life is detailed in her autobiography, Redhead in the Clouds, How I Started Headcorn Aerodrome, the Colourful Life of Diana Patten, and is told by Greer Harris.

It tells the story of how she as a young woman pilot revived a wartime airstrip and helped turn it into a thriving aerodrome, becoming a Sixties media darling along the way, even dining with President Kennedy.

The theft of her walker has been reported to the police.

A Sussex Police spokesperson said the item was stolen in Pett Level Road.

The spokesperson added: “Officers attended the address and engaged with the victim. Witnesses or anyone with any information or footage is asked to contact police online or call 101 quoting serial 1098 of 15/07.”