The Spitfire

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The Spitfire. (left-hand panel)

Mike Gee

In World War II the R.A.F.’s most legendary single-seater fighter aircraft was the Supermarine Spitfire.
First flown as a prototype in 1936, the Spitfire remained in service for longer than most WWII aircraft, its last operational flight being a photo-reconnaissance mission in Malaya, in 1954. During the Second World War, the first German aircraft to be shot down over British soil was claimed by the pilot of a Spitfire, in October 1939. Spitfires took off from Chilbolton airfield in 1940 during the Battle of Britain, a battle for air supremacy over British skies. In 1941, No. 501 Squadron of the R.A.F. flew from Chilbolton on night patrols over Portsmouth, and Polish Fighter Squadron No. 308 flew their Spitfires from Chilbolton to escort coastal convoys. In the same year, pilots undergoing training from the Mark I to the Mark II Spitfire were also based at the airfield