Spitfire Preflight Walk Around | Military Aviation Museum

Walk with Museum Chief Pilot, Mike Spalding as he preflights our combat veteran Supermarine Spitfire Mk IXe. Known by her war-time serial number MJ730, the Museum’s Spitfire is a veteran of over 100 combat missions. Originally manufactured at Castle Bromwich Aircraft Factory by Vickers-Armstrong, MJ730 was test flown by Alex Henshaw on December 10, 1943. She was then shipped to Casablanca aboard the S.S. Leeds City.
MJ730 saw her first combat missions with No. 417 Squadron, Royal Canadian Air Force defending the Anzio Beachhead from a base at Marcianise, Italy. Re-assigned to No. 154 Squadron, Royal Air Force (RAF) MJ730 would fly 95 combat missions supporting the invasion of Southern France from a base at Poretta, Corsica. In October 1944 the airplane was passed to No. 32 Squadron RAF based at Kalamaki, Greece. During this time, it would fly 12 combat missions over the Balkans before being finally reassigned to No. 94 Squadron, RAF at Sedes, Greece.
MJ730 would later be transferred to the Italian Air Force, and eventually into Israeli Service. Years later the airplane would be located in Kibbutz Kabri near the Lebanese border where it was serving as a piece of playground equipment. The airplane was recovered for restoration in 1978.
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[@tidertom13]

Gorgeous aircraft. How tempting it must be to just throw it around like it was stolen. Very good walk around man

[@Love2FlyKAP]

Tell us about the Fi-156 Stork in the background.