On world tour, WW-II Spitfire reaches India

Vijay Mohan

Tribune News Service

Chandigarh, November 5

Over 74 years after a squadron of the Britain’s Royal Air Force (RAF), named after Bombay, came to India, a vintage aircraft that had served with the outfit during the Second World War has arrived in India as part of a 43,000-km circumnavigation expedition, bringing alive a historic link between the Indian Air Force and RAF.

It has also revived nostalgia among aviators of what was perhaps the most iconic fighter of that era. The aircraft, a Supermarine Spitfire fighter that was widely used during and after the war, touched down at Jodhpur airbase today after having traversed through Kolkata and Nagpur, where the flying machine and its crew are being hosted by the IAF.

Christened “Silver Spitfire” due to its aluminum-toned airframe, this aircraft had entered the RAF service in 1943. Though it served with various RAF units, it had formed part of RAF’s No.132 “Bombay” Squadron that had come to the city in January 1945 and then moved on to Celyon (now Sri Lanka).

During its service, the aircraft had flown 51 combat missions. After having donned service colours for over 70 years before being “de-militarised”, it was restored to its present configuration with the call-sign G-IRTY.

Touted as the longest flight expedition, launched in the 75th year of the D-Day landings at Normandy during WW-II, the Spitfire, flown by Steve Brook and Matt Jones, will fly to 29 countries in Asia, Africa, Europe and North America in its attempt to bring together nations in which the aircraft had flown.