The Supermarine Spitfire was greeted with cheers and applause as it landed at RAF Coningsby in Lincolnshire as part of the eagerly anticipated commemorative Spitfire90 tour.
The iconic aircraft embarked on its maiden flight 90 years ago, and to celebrate the milestone, a Spitfire has begun a round trip of Britain.
The two-seater operated by Spitfires.com is painted pale blue and carries the same serial number as the prototype – K5054 – which took off for the first time from Eastleigh Aerodrome near Southampton on 5 March 1936.
A total of nine flights have been organised to celebrate 90 years since the Supermarine Spitfire’s maiden flight.
Departing from Southampton International Airport yesterday, the very site where Captain Joseph ‘Mutt’ Summers piloted the original Spitfire, the specially painted two-seat Spitfire was escorted by the Royal Air Force’s Battle of Britain Memorial Flight (BBMF) Spitfire as it made its way to RAF Coningsby, the home of the BBMF, also joined by a C-47 Dakota.
This milestone event honours the Spitfire’s enduring legacy as a symbol of British resilience and innovation, particularly its pivotal role during the Second World War and the Battle of Britain.
Squadron Leader Paul Wise, known as Ernie, is Officer Commanding the Battle of Britain Memorial Flight (BBMF).
After the Spitfire landed at RAF Coningsby, he told GB News: “We’ve been wanting to commemorate and celebrate the 90th anniversary of our nation’s iconic Spitfire and both the designers, the maintainers, those that flew it and it really is a symbol of our nation’s heritage.
The Spitfires departed from Southampton International Airport
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“Many people would see it as being a jewel in the crown, really. It got all the glory. Both the Spitfire and Hurricane were vital to the Allied effort across and certainly securing the skies above Great Britain.”
Matt Jones landed the Spitfire at RAF Coningsby and is a Spitfire pilot, instructor, and Managing Director of Spitfires.com. He led the “Silver Spitfire – The Longest Flight” expedition in 2019, navigating a restored Spitfire around the world and is a highly experienced display pilot specialising in historic aircraft.
He told GB News: “It’s a huge honour to be able to fly or have any part in the Spitfire’s history. Obviously, we’re not fighting them today.
“Unlike Ernie, I’m not a I’m not a serving military man, but just to put yourself in that aircraft and to try and remember the people who fought it and those who maintained it and designed and in fact just to be a part of that today and to keep that story alive is hugely humbling and it’s a great honour.”
“We painted it in the scheme that it wore on its first day of flying in 5th of March, 1936, the idea being that no spitfire has been painted in the same colour or markings since, and to make a really prominent statement about how important this 90th year is, we wanted to go the whole hog and visually show people what that aeroplane looked like.”
‘It’s a huge honour to be able to fly or have any part in the Spitfire’s history’, Matt Jones told GB News
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GB NEWS
The iconic Supermarine Spitfire was critical in defeating Luftwaffe air attacks during the Battle of Britain in 1940.
More Spitfires were built than any other British combat aircraft before or since World War Two – 20,341 in total.
When asked how much of a lasting legacy the Spitfire has left, Matt Jones said: “Everywhere we’ve been today, there have been people standing on top of car parks and on banks, just with a chance of seeing the aeroplane. This aeroplane means an incredible amount to our entire country.
“In fact, all around the world, but particularly in this country, it’s really important we keep flying them because they’re not the same if they’re in a museum – that people get to see the elliptical wings in the air and to hear the Rolls-Royce Merlin engine, it’s a really, really important thing that we continue to try and do this to remember all of those who went before us.”
The event will be supporting charities
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The Spitfire90 tour is a collaboration between the Royal Air Force Battle of Britain Memorial Flight and Spitfires.com, who offer members of the public the unique opportunity to experience flights in authentic two-seat Spitfires as well as providing vital Spitfire Simulator training used annually by the BBMF.
The event also supports two charities: the Mark Long Trust, which empowers disabled individuals through aviation opportunities, and the Royal Air Force Benevolent Fund, providing lifelong support to serving and former RAF personnel and their families.
Through the auction managed by Spitfires.com, over £100,000 has been raised and will be split between the two chosen charities.
The tour will continue across Britain, visiting historic RAF locations connected to the Spitfire’s storied past, with modern RAF aircraft joining the flights to showcase the evolution of British air power.
Over the course of the nine legs, the plane will visit key locations around the UK, including Southampton Airport, Exeter Airport, RAF Valley, RAF Lossiemouth, and Prestwick Airport.
To find out more about the flight plan, visit the flight organisers’ Instagram at @spitfiresdotcom, or the Spitfires.com website.