"[Narrating a letter he has written] To the permanent Secretary of State for Air... Sir, I have the honour to refer to the very serious calls which have recently been made upon Fighter Command in an attempt to stem the German invasion of the Continent. I hope and believe that our armies may yet be victorious in France and Belgium, but we have to face the possibility that they may be defeated. In this case, I presume that there is no one who would deny that England should fight on, even though the remainder of the continent of Europe is dominated by the Germans. I must therefore request that not one more fighter be sent across the Channel. If the home defence is drained away in desperate attempts to remedy the situation in France, defeat in France will involve the final, complete, and irremediable defeat of this country. I have the honour to be, sir, your obedient servant, H.C.T. Dowding."