Spitfire Mk Vb AB910
Spitfire Mk Vb AB910 flew 143 operational missions in a remarkable wartime history that spanned almost 3 years on ‘ ops ’. Initially allocated to 222 ( Natal ) Sqn at North Weald in August 1941 , the aircraft was damaged during a forced landing at Lympne within days of arriving . After repair , it was re-allocated to 130 Sqn at Perranporth , Cornwall , flying convoy protection patrols and escorting daylight bombing raids . In June 1942 , the aircraft was delivered to 133 ( Eagle ) Sqn at Biggin Hill . ‘ AB ’ flew 29 ‘ ops ’ with this unit , including four sorties on 19 August 1942 during the fierce aerial battle in support of Operation ‘ Jubilee ’, the Dieppe Raid . One of her pilots , Flt Sgt ‘ Dixie ’ Alexander , was credited with destroying a Dornier 217 bomber in AB910 during these combats .
AB910 continued to fly operationally up to July 1944 , serving with 242 , 416 and 402 ( RCAF ) Sqns , flying numerous cover patrols with the latter over the D-Day invasion beach heads on 6 June 1944 and afterwards . From mid-July 1944 , AB910 was relegated to support duties , initially with 53 OTU at Hibaldstow and later 527 Sqn ( a radar calibration unit ). On 14 February 1945 , whilst at Hibaldstow , ‘ AB ’ famously flew with a girl on the tail ! LACW Margaret Horton , a WAAF ground-crew fitter , was sitting on the tail whilst the aircraft taxied out to the take-off point ( as was standard practice in rough weather ) without the pilot , Flt Lt Neil Cox DFC *, realising her presence . He then took off with Margaret still there . The combination of her weight on the tail and her grip on the elevator very nearly had disastrous results , but fortunately Neil was able to maintain control and one circuit later he landed with a considerably shaken WAAF still wrapped around the fin . Post-war , ‘ AB ’ was ‘ demobbed ’ and flew as an air racer for 6 years before being returned to Vickers- Armstrong for refurbishment in 1953 . After this it was displayed regularly by the renowned Spitfire test pilot Jeffrey Quill until being donated by the company to the BBMF in 1965 . AB910 is now painted in the markings she actually wore whilst serving with 402 ( City of Winnipeg ) Sqn RCAF during the D-Day period in 1944 , with full invasion stripes . AB910 ’ s principal pilot during the D-Day period was Fg Off George “ Geordie ” Boyd Lawson who came from Hamilton , Ontario .