Supermarine Spitfire. Alongside its simpler and more numerous counterpart, the Hawker Hurricane, the Spitfire played an important part in World War II and the Battle of Britain. This made Woolston an important target for the Luftwaffe. The Sopwith Aviation Company opened a small factory in Woolston in 1914, building seaplanes for the Admiralty during World War I. The Royal Navy also had a large building situated between Archery Road and the waterfront which they used as stores. Originally built in 1917 by the Ministry of Munitions as Rolling Mills for the production of brass strip for shell cases, this building is often thought of and referred to as being within Woolston but it was actually in the neighbouring district of Weston. It was built immediately behind Weston Grove House on land that was originally part of the Weston Grove estate. Situated slightly to the north of Woolston railway station was a small goods yard, accessible from Bridge Road. This yard was a busy place until it closed in November 1967. The Hazel Road area of modern Woolston still has some industrial activity, including Siva Group and GriffonHoverwork. Wartime With a major shipbuilding yard situated a short distance downstream from the Supermarine factory, Woolston attracted a lot of attention from the Luftwaffe during World War II. This bombing did significant damage in Woolston and completely destroyed the Supermarine factory and the neighbouring Itchen Ferry village on 26 September 1940, but it did not stop production of the Spitfire which had been safely dispersed around the country. In 1943, the Admiralty requisitioned the bombed-out remains of the Supermarine factory to provide a base for the planning of PLUTO, an undersea pipeline which supplied the invasion forces after D-Day. This base was known as . On 17 August 1943 military restrictions were introduced to facilitate a "military exercise" prior to the invasion of Europe and D-Day in 1944. The southern parts of Woolston were explicitly listed by the Chief Constable (6 August 1943) as one of the areas that would be affected by the exercise. The exercise named Harlequin tested the port of Southampton's capacity for embarking troops and equipment. For the next 9 months Woolston saw a great deal of military activity. It became part of the huge military camp that was established in Hampshire, known as Area C, specifically part of embarkation area C5. The ruins around Itchen Ferry village were