A Spitfire memorial sculpture may soon be swooping into a roundabout outside Southampton International Airport.

Councillors on Eastleigh's local committee for the town area have agreed to the sculpture - subject to a feasibility study and consultation with Hampshire County Council.

The sculpture is likely to be an 80 per cent scaled replica of the famous wartime fighter which made its maiden flight at the Eastleigh airstrip in 1936.

Eastleigh's local area committee was told that an artist/engineer had been consulted.

It was proposed that the superstructure would be made from stainless steel with a coated aluminium skin - rustproof for minimal maintenance.

The council wants the model in place in time for the anniversary of the Battle of Britain next September. The sculpture would also mark the centenary of powered flight next year.

It is expected to cost about £40,000 and another £30,000 for surveys and installation, with £30,000 coming from developers' contributions.

And a second sculpture looks set for the Lidl roundabout at the junction of Romsey Road and Twyford Road in the town centre, as councillors approved further studies.

The proposed design uses stainless steel or cast iron to form arches reminiscent of church architecture - the roundabout is outside the former parish Church of the Resurrection, currently being converted to flats.

In the centre of the arch would be a two-metre column of recycled glass cast in resin.

A water feed and lighting would be powered by solar panels.

The council wants something in keeping with the roundabout's prominent position as a main link point for roads into Eastleigh.

The news came after a Daily Echo campaign highlighted the need to celebrate the Southampton-made Spitfire - which helped win the Battle of Britain in the Second World War - with a permanent statue.