This month I am very pleased to be able to bring to you the description of flying the incredible Supermarine Spitfire Mk I, P9374. I first saw this aircraft in the Historic Flying Ltd hangar at Duxford in 2009, and when John Romain told me how its restoration was incorporating so many authentic early Mk I attributes, such as the hand-pumped undercarriage, two-pitch propeller and early Dunlop tyres, to list just a few, I could not wait to see it fly.

Re-enactment group RAF Ops 1939-45 brought the days of the Spitfire’s entry into service back to life at Duxford in September 2011, using P9374 as the focus. Here, dressed in white flying overalls, an Ops 1939-45 “pilot” recreates an RAF squadron pilot’s first taste of the new fighter. Credit: Jarrod Cotter

The fighter made its public debut as a static exhibit on the flight line at the Imperial War Museum Duxford Air Show on September 3-4, 2011. Sitting on Duxford’s grass, with the familiar backdrop of the airfield where Spitfires first appeared on the strength of an RAF squadron in 1938, it looked simply incredible. Later that month it made its public flying debut at the Goodwood Revival.

Many of you will have seen P9374 at these events and been impressed by it, so I am sure that you will enjoy reading John Romain’s fascinating report on flying such an early example of this iconic fighter, and John Dibbs’s stunning air-to-air photography of it high in the skies over Duxford makes the article a fitting tribute to all the work undertaken on this wonderful aeroplane, and all the investment put into it by its owners.

Talking of investment, I was recently extremely fortunate to receive an invitation to the Salute to Bomber Command banquet held in the Natural History Museum on November 8. My sincere thanks to Sqn Ldr Al Pinner, MBE RAF (Ret’d), of TAG Aviation for that. The event was aimed at raising money for the upkeep of the Bomber Command Memorial (BCM) once it is completed next year (see page 23 for more on the banquet). Raising funds in these difficult financial times is a very hard task, but the work of the BCM team, and especially director of fundraising Jim Dooley, ensured that the memorial project could go ahead. Congratulations to all those involved with the BCM for persevering through the many difficulties the project has faced along the way. I look forward to seeing the result of their efforts on June 28 next year.

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