page_title: Battle of Britain Memorial Flight
section_title: Spitfires
hierarchical_section_title: Battle of Britain Memorial Flight / Aircraft / Spitfires
caption_attribution_description: This Griffon engined Spitfire XIX of the RAF BBMF is taxiing in having completed her solo display at the '100th Anniversary of Dutch Military Aviation' airshow. She has just flown in directly from the UK. Although retaining her genuine serial, she is otherwise painted to represent 'PS888' which carried out the very last RAF Spitfire sortie. c/n 6S/585121. Volkel Airbase, Netherlands. 14-6-2013
context_page_description: The Battle of Britain Memorial Flight is a Royal Air Force flight which provides an aerial display group usually comprising an Avro Lancaster, a Supermarine Spitfire and a Hawker Hurricane. The aircraft are regularly seen at events commemorating the Second World War and upon British State occasions, notably Trooping the Colour, celebrating Queen Elizabeth II's 80th birthday in 2006, as well as the wedding of Prince William, Duke of Cambridge and Catherine Middleton in 2011 and at air displays throughout the United Kingdom and Europe.
  The flight is administratively part of No. 1 Group RAF, flying out of RAF Coningsby in Lincolnshire.
context_section_description: Individual aircraft have historic heritages; the oldest of the Spitfires, P7350 (G-AWIJ), is a Mk.IIa, which originally flew in the Battle of Britain in 1940, with 266 and 603 Squadrons. In 2019 she was repainted in the No. 54 Squadron code 'KL-B', which represents the aircraft flown by Al Deere from 10 July 1940 until 31 August 1940.
  The Mk Vb Spitfire, AB910, escorted convoys in the Battle of the Atlantic. She then flew escort patrols during bombing raids on the German battleships Scharnhorst and Gneisenau, then (as part of No. 133 squadron), she fought in the Dieppe Raid. Capping this long career, as part of No. 402 Squadron RCAF, she flew cover patrols over the Normandy beaches on D-Day and in the subsequent weeks – as did another of the flight's Spitfires, with No. 443 Squadron RCAF. As of August 2018, AB910 was adorned with the D-Day colour scheme of Flight Lieutenant Tony Cooper's 64 Squadron Mk Vb 'SH-F' (BM327) "PeterJohn1" (named after his new-born son).
  The Mk LFIXe Spitfire, MK356, was built in March 1944 and fitted with a Merlin 66 engine with a two-speed, two-stage supercharger optimised for low altitudes. Allocated to the Royal Canadian Air Force 144 wing, based in various locations around southern England, she took part in the Rodeo fighter sweep over occupied France in the weeks leading up to D-Day. After the war she served as a gate guardian at Hawkinge and Locking, and was recovered and refurbished in 1992 for the BBMF. As of 2017, she is displayed in a desert paint scheme used by No. 92 Squadron in Tunisia in 1943.
  There are also two PRXIX Spitfires, both built in 1945 with Griffon 66 engines. PM631 was too late to see operational services in World War II and carried out civilian duties with the Temperature and Humidity Monitoring Flight (THUM) at RAF Woodvale until 11 July 1957, when she became part of the Historic Aircraft Flight; she is the longest-serving aircraft in the BBMF and is currently painted to represent a 541 Squadron Spitfire.
  PS915 performed various reconnaissance duties at RAF Wunstorf in Germany.  She returned to the UK in 1954 and was retired to gate guarding duties.  In 1987 she was modified with a Griffon 58 engine and refurbished to flying condition by British Aerospace.  She currently carries the markings of PS888 of 81 Squadron based at Seletar, Singapore, during the Malayan Emergency which conducted the last operational RAF Spitfire sortie on 1 April 1954, photographing communist guerrilla hideouts over an area of jungle in Johore.  The ground crew painted the inscription "The Last!" on PS 915's left engine cowling.
  One Mark XIX Spitfire, PS853, was sold in 1994 to defray the costs of rebuilding Hurricane LF363 after her crash-landing on the runway at RAF Wittering due to engine failure in 1991. The BBMF pilot escaped with a broken ankle and minor bruises, whilst LF363 was engulfed and devastated by the resulting fire.
  Spitfire Mark XVI TE311, built as a low-back with clipped wings and powered with a Packard Merlin engine, was acquired in 2002 and initially allocated for spares, but officially added to the BBMF collection in 2007. TE311 was made airworthy in the later stages of the 2012 display season. TE311 is currently painted as the personal aircraft of Gp Capt Aleksander Gabszewicz, the Officer Commanding No. 131 (Polish) Wing.
caption: PS915 "The Last"
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