The Shuttleworth Collection's Supermarine Spitfire Vc and Hawker Sea Hurricane, displaying at Old Warden Aerodrome during the Shuttleworth July Evening Dirive In Airshow 2020.

Supermarine Spitfire LF MK. VC, AR501, G-AWII, was built in 1942 by Westland Aircraft of Yeovil, Somerset.

By 1940 the Mark V Spitfire had been developed around a Mark II airframe, strengthened to receive the latest Rolls-Royce Merlin 45 and 46 engines. More were produced than any other variant of the Spitfire.

The Mark V was designed to improve the flying characteristics of the Mark II. Some were designed for ground attack with bombs, machine guns and cannon, and some with all cannon armament.

The Mk. VC had a 'universal wing' enabling it to be armed with three different sets of armaments. The Mk. VC served mainly in overseas theatres, especially in the Middle East. First production models were delivered in late 1941.

This aircraft was built as an F. Mk. VC - a general altitude fighter. It had the universal armament wing and a Rolls Royce Merlin 46 engine, developing a maximum of 1415 horsepower, with an altitude rating of 19000 feet.
Initially going to RAF 8 Maintenance Unit (MU) at Little Rissington (22/6/42), it then went to 6 MU Brize Norton (7/7/42) before issue to 310 (Czechoslovak) Squadron at Exeter (19/7/42).
On 15/3/43 AR501 was severely damaged on the ground at RAF Exeter, when a Mosquito collided with her. Repairs to AR501 were completed off site at 67 MU, Taunton and Westlands at Yeovil.
It then went to 33 MU, Lyneham (17/7/43) and 3501 Servicing Unit, Cranfield (6/8/43) before issue to 504 (City of Nottingham) Squadron at Church Stanton (Culmhead), Somerset (18/8/43).
AR501 then went to 312 (Czechoslovak) Squadron (10/10/43). The squadron was engaged on bomber escort duties protecting raids across the English Channel against V-1 rocket launch sites.

In post war years it became an instructional airframe at Loughborough College and was acquired by the Shuttleworth Collection in 1961 and was displayed for many years in the clipped wing configuration wearing the 1942-43 livery of No.310 (Czechoslovak) Squadron.

Returned to flight for the Battle of Britain film, a major overhaul was then carried out in the early 1970s. She was airworthy from 1977-2005, then removed from service for another overhaul.

In mid 2000 the elliptical wingtips were refitted when the aircraft took part in the filming of the movie 'Pearl Harbor'.

Between 2005 and 2018 a complete strip down and rebuild to original specification was completed.

Today, Spitfire AR501, appears in the livery that it wore when serving with 312 (Czechoslovak) Squadron in 1943.

Hawker Sea Hurricane Mk.IB, Z7015, G-BKTH, was part of the first batch of Hurricanes that were converted to Sea Hurricane standard and is the only remaining Sea Hurricane in existence, of 700 manufactured.

The aircraft was restored by a team at the Imperial War Museum, Duxford, for The Shuttleworth Collection. Its first flight in 52 years was made on 17/9/95.
Sea Hurricane Z7015 has been restored to represent a Sea Hurricane as flown by 880 Naval Air Squadron during August 1942 during 'Operation Pedastel', the last full scale convoy involved in the re-supply and relief of Malta.

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