Supermarine Spitfire HF.IX ‘TD314 / FX-P’ (G-CGYJ)
This plane was manufactured at Castle Bromwich in 1944 but after a short period serving with the RAF it was shipped to Cape Town, South Africa, on 19 April 1948, for active duty with the South African Air Force where it served until 1954. It was then sold to a metal company for scrap but thankfully the fuselage and other parts were later recovered in Johannesburg by Peter Barnett who sold it on to Canadian owners. In 2009, Peter Monk acquired the aircraft for restoration by the Spitfire Company (Biggin Hill) Limited and her first flight after restoration was at Biggin Hill on 7th December 2013.
I took this photo this afternoon while resting my back in the garden. It now appears to be operated by one of those ‘Fly with a Spitfire’ flights, where you can fly next to the Spit and take photos. It came over the house a number of times and I didn’t have to move an inch…
Supermarine Spitfire HF.IX ‘TD314 / FX-P’ (G-CGYJ)
This plane was manufactured at Castle Bromwich in 1944 but after a short period serving with the RAF it was shipped to Cape Town, South Africa, on 19 April 1948, for active duty with the South African Air Force where it served until 1954. It was then sold to a metal company for scrap but thankfully the fuselage and other parts were later recovered in Johannesburg by Peter Barnett who sold it on to Canadian owners. In 2009, Peter Monk acquired the aircraft for restoration by the Spitfire Company (Biggin Hill) Limited and her first flight after restoration was at Biggin Hill on 7th December 2013.
I took this photo this afternoon while resting my back in the garden. It now appears to be operated by one of those ‘Fly with a Spitfire’ flights, where you can fly next to the Spit and take photos. It came over the house a number of times and I didn’t have to move an inch…