© Darren Harbar
Hurricane Mk IIC LF363
Hurricane LF363 was built at the Hawker factory at Langley near Slough. It first flew in January 1944 and is amongst the last Hurricanes to enter service with the RAF. The aircraft served with No 63 Squadron at Turnhouse, No 309( Polish) Squadron at Drem, where it was used on shipping protection patrols off the east coast of Scotland, and No 26 Squadron with which it flew naval artillery spotting and reconnaissance sorties before the end of the War. LF363 was then stored in the open air at Langley, waiting to be scrapped. Fortunately, it was rescued in mid-1949, largely through the intervention of Air Vice Marshal Stanley Vincent CB, DFC, AFC. After arranging for LF363 to be made airworthy, Stanley Vincent himself led the Battle of Britain flypast over London in the aircraft in September 1949. Between 1949 and 1956, LF363 was held and maintained, rather unofficially, by a series of frontline squadrons and Station Flights, being flown on ceremonial occasions and appearing in various films. After a major re-fit at Hawkers, LF363 became a founding aircraft of the Historic Aircraft Flight, the forerunner of the BBMF, when it was formed in 1957.
LF363 suffered a major accident on 11th September 1991 when, as a result of an engine failure, it crashed on the runway at RAF Wittering. The aircraft was seriously damaged by the impact and the ensuing fierce fire; fortunately the BBMF pilot escaped with a broken ankle and minor burns. Subsequently, LF363 was re-built by Historic Flying Ltd between 1994 and 1998 and then re-joined the BBMF after 7 years out of action. LF363 is now painted to represent the September 1940 colour scheme of Hurricane Mk1 V6665,‘ RF-J’, of 303 Kosciusko( Polish) Squadron.