Condition | Number |
---|---|
Airworthy | 78 |
Static display | 64 |
Restoration / stored | 62 |
Total | 204 |
The Supermarine Spitfire is a British single-seat fighter aircraft used by the Royal Air Force along with many other Allied countries throughout the Second World War and afterwards into the 1950s as both a front-line fighter and also in secondary roles.
Many smaller countries purchased Spitfires as the major industrial nations phased out propeller-powered aircraft in favour of new jets. [1] When these smaller nations started to update their air forces, many of their Second World War aircraft were sold on the open market to individuals or for scrap. [2]
Museums and private collectors began to acquire these Spitfire and Seafire aircraft, and today many survive in these collections around the world.
This article lists surviving Spitfires and Seafires, according to their geographical location and the condition that they are in.
In 2012 a great deal of media attention was given to a claim that the RAF had buried a number of Spitfire Mk.XIV aircraft in Burma, unassembled and in their packing crates, during August 1945. However, no documentary or other evidence of the burial has been uncovered, and some have dismissed the story as implausible and apocryphal; military archaeologist Andy Brockman argued that for the RAF to prevent the Spitfires' misuse, it would have been far more expedient to burn them, destroy critical equipment, or crush them rather than painstakingly burying them intact. [77] Despite this, the Burmese government signed an agreement with David Cundall, a British farmer and aviation enthusiast who was leading the search along with his Burmese business partner Htoo Htoo Zaw, allowing them to begin excavations. [78]
Leeds University experts and an academic from Rangoon used sophisticated geophysical techniques to produce evidence consistent with buried metal at what is now Yangon International Airport, the former RAF Mingaladon airfield. In addition, other sites with buried Spitfires were claimed, one with as many as 36 aircraft interred. [79] [80]
In January 2013, following investigations at both Yangon International Airport and Myitkyina, archaeologists led by Brockman concluded that there were no aircraft buried at the sites. [81] Despite this, Cundall continued his search. [82] The following month, Cundall's sponsor Wargaming Ltd withdrew funding, saying they no longer believed any Spitfires were ever buried there and that the aircraft had been re-exported in 1946. [83] Despite this setback, Cundall said at that time that he remained confident and the search would continue. [84]
Aircraft on display contains several non-original parts: engine from another aircraft, Soviet-made camera, landing gear parts, re-manufactured instrument panel, standard RAF instruments and other parts from YAF or JAT stocks. [116]
Airworthy
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