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The Fighter Collection

Summary

The Fighter Collection is a private operator of airworthy vintage military aircraft or warbirds. It is based in the United Kingdom at Duxford Aerodrome in Cambridgeshire, an airfield that is owned by the Imperial War Museum and is also the site of the Imperial War Museum Duxford. It is registered as a private limited company.[1]

The Fighter Collection
Company typePrivate
IndustrySIC 91030 - Operation of historical sites and buildings and similar visitor attractions[1]
Founded19 December 1985; 38 years ago (1985-12-19) (Date of Incorporation)[1]
FounderStephen Grey
Headquarters
Duxford, Cambridgshire[1]
,
United Kingdom
BrandsFlying Legends
Websitefighter-collection.com/cft/

The Fighter Collection was founded by Stephen Grey,[2] a businessman and former RAF pilot who was actively involved with the company until his retirement in 2013.[3] The company is now owned by his son, Nick Grey.[1] The aircraft are stored and maintained in Hangar 2 at Duxford Aerodrome; the hangar is accessible to visitors of the Imperial War Museum.

Some of the aircraft of the Fighter Collection in their hangar at Duxford Aerodrome, April 2017

Flying Legends edit

Flying Legends is an annual two-day airshow organized by The Fighter Collection, originally held every year at the beginning of July. The 2013 airshow saw the celebration of the event's 20th anniversary.[2] Following the cancellation of the airshows in 2020, 2021 & 2022, the event moved from its long-standing former home at Duxford Aerodrome to RAF Church Fenton in North Yorkshire for July 2023.[4]

Aircraft edit

These aircraft are owned by The Fighter Collection as of 2015. The operator occasionally adds new aircraft to its collection, and occasionally sells aircraft to other parties.

Type Image Identity Date Markings/Notes
Beechcraft D17S Staggerwing   G-BRVE 1945 Flown during World War II by the Royal Navy as Traveller Mk.I FT475. Allocated to the United States Navy post-war before being sold into civilian ownership. Acquired by the Fighter Collection in 2005.[5]
Bristol Beaufighter   JM135/A19-144 and JL946/A19-148 A composite aircraft built from the parts of two Beaufighters. Under long term restoration to flying condition.
Curtiss Model 75A-1 Hawk   82/X881 (G-CCVH)[6] Issued to the French French Air Force 1939. It was later flown in combat against the British and Americans by the Vichy French Air Force. Post-war it served as a trainer until the 1950s; it was acquired by the Fighter Collection in 1995. It carries the markings of 1ére Escadrille, Groupe de Combat 11/5 Lafayette, the unit that operated it in 1939.[7]
Curtiss P-36C   38-210 (NX80FR) 1939 This P-36 is the only flying example of its type. It saw some World War II service in the United States before being allocated to a technical school. Post-war, it passed through several private owners before being acquired by the Fighter Collection and restored.[8]
Curtiss P-40C Warhawk   41-13357 (G-CIIO) After a period of US Army Air Force service, this aircraft was sent to the Soviet Union in 1941. Little is known of its history there until the 1990s, when it was one of two Warhawks recovered from the former Soviet Union by The Fighter Collection. It was restored in the United States, taking its first post-restoration flight in 2011.[9]
Curtiss P-40F Warhawk   41-19841 (G-CGZP) 1942 Operated by the 347th Fighter Group in the Solomon Islands in 1942, it was recovered from a dump on the island of Espiritu Santo in the 1970s. Restored to airworthy condition, it has been flying since 2011. As the aircraft's exact wartime history is unknown, it is painted to represent Lee's Hope, a Warhawk based in Italy in 1944.[10]
Fiat J 11   Fv.2542 (G-CBLS) This Swedish Air force aircraft is one of only four survivors of its type. It was lost in 1942 in a crash that killed its pilot on Tärnatjåkko, a mountain in the north of Sweden. It was recovered from the crash site in 1983 and was acquired by the Fighter Collection in 1995. It has since been undergoing restoration to flying condition.[11] Although a Swedish aircraft, it is painted to represent one from the Italian air force.
Gloster Gladiator   N5903 (G-GLAD) 1939 Flown briefly by 141 Squadron, but spent much of World War II in storage. After a period of private ownership, and a some years as a static exhibit at the Fleet Air Arm Museum it was bought by the Fighter Collection from the Shuttleworth Collection in 1994 and restored to flying condition, taking its first post-restoration flight in 2007. It was painted in the pre-World War II markings of No. 72 Squadron RAF.[12]
Goodyear FG-1D Corsair   88297 (G-FGID) A version of the Vought F4U Corsair, built under license by Goodyear Aircraft, this aircraft served in the US Navy between 1945 and 1959; this included wartime service in Guam and the Philippines. It was then sold to a smelting company, however instead of scrapping it, the company sold it to the movie stunt pilot Frank Tallman. It joined the Fighter Collection in 1985 and is currently painted in the December 1945 markings of an aircraft of 1850 Naval Air Squadron, serving on HMS Vengeance of the British Pacific Fleet.[13]
Grumman F4F Wildcat   G-RUMW This aircraft was accepted by the US Navy in 1945 but was immediately put in storage until its disposal in 1946. It had several private owners and spent nearly two decades as a static, museum exhibit before being restored to flying condition in the early 1990s. It is painted to represent a Fleet Air Arm Wildcat.[14]
Grumman Bearcat   121714 (G-RUMM) 1948 Served with the US Navy until 1957. It then passed through the hands of several owners, including a period of being in the collection of the Planes of Fame Air Museum. It was bought by the Fighter Collection in 1981.[15]
Hawker Fury   K5674 1935
Hawker Sea Fury FB.11   VX653 (G-BUCM) Currently undergoing restoration.
Hawker Sea Fury T20   WG-655 1951 Formerly owned by the Royal Naval Historic Flight. Crashed into a tree at 150mph while attempting to make an emergency landing back at Duxford following engine problems suffered while taking part in a photoshoot for a magazine on 4 August 2020.[16][17] Both pilots suffered minor injuries, and aircraft declared a write-off.
Hawker Nimrod   S1581 (G-BWWK) Flown from the aircraft carrier HMS Glorious by No. 408 (Fleet Fighter) Flight RAF until being written off in 1938. It was discovered in a scrapyard in the 1970s and restored to airworthiness in the 1990s, taking its first post-restoration flight in 2000. It joined the Fighter Collection in 2004. It is currently painted in the markings it carried when serving operationally in the 1930s.[18]
Noorduyn Mk.IIb Harvard   FE695 (G-BTXI) 1942 A version of the North American T-6 Texan that was built by Noorduyn Aviation in Montreal, Quebec. It served as a trainer with the RCAF, and then the Swedish Air Force until 1972. It joined The Fighter Collection in 1990.[19]
Supermarine Spitfire Mk Vb   EP120 (G-LFVB) Assigned to No. 501 Squadron RAF in 1942, and then subsequently RCAF 402 Squadron. This aircraft destroyed seven German aircraft during its wartime career. Post-war, it was an instructional airframe, then displayed as a gate guardian. It was acquired by The Fighter Collection in 1993 and restored to airworthiness. It is currently painted in its 402 Squadron markings.[20]
Supermarine Spitfire LF Mk XIV   MV-293 (G-SPIT) 1944 Built by Vickers Armstrong and sent to India in 1945. After service with the Indian Air Force, it was returned to the United Kingdom in the 1970s; restoration was completed in 1992. In 2000 it was painted to represent MV268, an aircraft flown by Johnnie Johnson towards the end of World War II.[21]
Supermarine Spitfire Mk. 22   PK624 1945 This aircraft served in the late 1940s with 614 Squadron. Between 1964 and 1989 it was a gate guardian at a number of sites. In 1994 it was acquired by The Fighter Collection from the Ministry of Defence. It has since been undergoing restoration to eventual flying condition (Photograph taken in 1986).

See also edit

References edit

  1. ^ a b c d e "FIGHTER COLLECTION LIMITED (THE) - Overview". beta.companieshouse.gov.uk. Retrieved 20 June 2019.
  2. ^ a b Dunnell, Ben (8 October 2013). "Flying Legends 2013". Wings of History. Retrieved 31 December 2015.
  3. ^ Mansfield, Mark. "THE 'LEGEND' OF THE FLYING LEGENDS RETIRES". Pilot's Post. Retrieved 22 December 2023.
  4. ^ "Flying Legends". British Airshows. Retrieved 2 March 2024.
  5. ^ "Beech D-17S Staggerwing". The Fighter Collection. Retrieved 27 December 2015.
  6. ^ "Curtiss H-75A-1 82/X881". touchdownaviation.com. Retrieved 30 December 2015.
  7. ^ "Curtiss Hawk 75". The Fighter Collection. Retrieved 30 December 2015.
  8. ^ Marsh, Elliott (6 May 2015). "Airshow News – The Fighter Collection's Curtiss P-36C N80FR bound for Flying Legends". Global Aviation Resource. Retrieved 28 December 2015.
  9. ^ "Curtiss P-40C". The Fighter Collection. Retrieved 30 December 2015.
  10. ^ "Curtiss P-40F Warhawk". The Fighter Collection. Retrieved 30 December 2015.
  11. ^ "The Fighter Collection's Fiat CR.42 Falco – Restoration Update". Warbird News. 21 April 2014. Retrieved 29 December 2015.
  12. ^ "Gloster Glatiator G-GLAD". The Fighter Collection. Retrieved 29 December 2015.
  13. ^ "Goodyear Corsair FG-1D (G-FGID)". The Fighter Collection. Retrieved 29 December 2015.
  14. ^ "Grumman Wildcat FM2 – G-RUMW". The Fighter Collection. Retrieved 30 December 2015.
  15. ^ "Grumman F8F-2P Bearcat". Touchdown Aviation. Retrieved 30 December 2015.
  16. ^ Turner, Benjamin (13 August 2020). "Pilots 'should be dead' after vintage plane crashed into ground at 150mph". CambridgeshireLive.
  17. ^ Turner, Benjamin (5 August 2020). "Witnesses describe moment Duxford plane 'dropped out of the sky in silence'". CambridgeshireLive.
  18. ^ "Hawker Nimrod Mk.I S1581 (G-BWWK)". The Fighter Collection. Retrieved 30 December 2015.
  19. ^ "Noorduyn Mk.IIb Harvard FE695 (G-BTXI)". The Fighter Collection. Retrieved 30 December 2015.
  20. ^ "Supermarine LF Mk.Vb Spitfire EP120 (G-LFVB)". The Fighter Collection. Retrieved 29 December 2015.
  21. ^ "Supermarine Spitfire LF Mk XIV -MV268 JE/J". Touchdown Aviation. Retrieved 30 December 2015.

External links edit

 
Wikimedia Commons has media related to The Fighter Collection.
  • Flying Legends Airshow
  • The Fighter Collection

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