THE BUS company which serves Cardiff and the Vale helped veterans kick off Welsh Royal Air Force (RAF) 100th celebrations recently.

The centenary will be marked by special events, activities and other initiatives at local, regional and national levels running until the end of November 2018.

One of the special events is the RAF100 Baton Relay which will see a specially designed baton visit 100 sites associated with the RAF in 100 days.

The relay began its journey at the Royal Courts of Justice on April 1 and will end 100 days later on Horse Guards Parade on July 10.

As part of the relay, the local charitable branch of the RAF, Cardiff Royal Air Force Association, passed the baton to members of its neighbouring Penarth RAFA branch.

They delivered the baton with the help of Cardiff Bus, which donated a bus on the day to take the baton from Cardiff to Penarth, together with RAF cadets and veterans on board the specially decorated bus.

The bus stopped just short of the Penarth branch, where marching RAF cadets helped it complete its journey.

The token will now be passed to RAF branches across Wales until it journeys to Birmingham in November where the RAF will mark its official 100th anniversary.

Cardiff Bus commercial manager, Gareth Stevens said they were “delighted” to be able to support the organisation’s landmark anniversary.

He said: “Cardiff Bus is committed to supporting the local communities it serves and the millions of passengers it carries every year, and this event was something we were delighted to be a part of.”

The centrepiece of RAF100 will take place on July 10, with a centenary service in Westminster Abbey, followed by a parade in The Mall and spectacular flypast.