Description and MJ271 History

This repaint, made for the FlyingIron Simulations Spitfire Mk.IXc, provides two different depictions of the restored Spitfire Mk.IX MJ271 (G-IRTY), as it has appeared since its record-setting flight in 2019. Known as "Silver Spitfire - The Longest Flight”, the polished bare-metal Spitfire was flown around the world, stopping in over twenty countries, taking off from Goodwood Aerodrome on August 5, 2019, and landing back at the same airfield 122 days later. In doing so, it set the Guinness World Record for the fastest circumnavigation by a single seat, single engine piston aircraft. The two depictions of the aircraft include a version featuring the IWC Schaffhausen company logo, as it wore from 2019 until August 2021, and another version featuring the Blackbird Air company logo, as it has now worn since September 2021.

Spitfire MJ271 was built in 1943 as a "low altitude fighter" LF Mk.IXc, fitted with a Merlin 66 engine, by the Vickers Armstrong Castle Bromwich Aeroplane Factory, located near Birmingham, UK. It was first delivered to No 33 Maintenance Unit at RAF Lyneham on October 24, 1943, before being sent to No 411 Squadron, a Polish repair and salvage unit tasked with preparing the aircraft for combat assignment. In February 1944 it was delivered to No 118 Squadron at RAF Detling, in Kent, with which it took part in sixteen operational sorties, flying fighter sweeps over France and escorting American B-17, B-24 and B-26 bombers over occupied Europe. Then in April 1944, MJ271 was reassigned to No 132 "Bombay" Squadron at RAF Ford, in Sussex, where it saw action in 28 operational sorties, escorting B-25 and B-26 bombers as well as dive bombing of targets along the French coast. 

It was during its time with No 132 Squadron that MJ271 was involved in a wheels-up landing at RAF Ford on the night of May 9, 1944. This prompted the aircraft to be moved to RAF Hamble for repairs, which by July 24th had been completed. From there it was transferred to No 39 Maintenance Unit at RAF Colerne on August 19th, then to No 83 Ground Support Unit at RAF Bognor on September 19th, and lastly to RAF Westhampnett (modern-day Goodwood Aerodrome) with No 83 Ground Support Unit on November 4, 1944. In mid-November, MJ271 was then once again reassigned, this time to No 401 (RCAF) Squadron , also known as the "City of Westmount Squadron", stationed in the Netherlands. After performing ten dive-bombing missions, the aircraft was 'over-stressed' on December 24th and was sent to No 410 (RCAF) Repair and Salvage Unit. Following VE-Day, it would later be delivered to No 29 Maintenance Unit at RAF High Ercall on June 21, 1945.

During World War Two, MJ271 participated in 51 combat missions and was flown by pilots from Australia, Canada, Norway, Trinidad and the United Kingdom.

On November 25, 1946, MJ271 was delivered to the Royal Netherlands Air Force (RNAF) and was given the designation H-8, later becoming 3W-8. There it was active until 1954, when it was relegated to being used instead as an airfield decoy at Volkel Air Base. In 1959 the derelict Spitfire was moved to the War Museum at Delfzijl where it was displayed atop the roof. In 1973 it was then transferred to the Anthony Fokker Technical School at Den Haag where work began on restoring the aircraft to static display condition. Following a subsequent move to the Aviodrome Museum at Amsterdam-Schipol, the static restoration was ultimately completed in 1982 and it was placed on display painted as RNAF Spitfire Mk.IX MH424/H-53. It would also later be displayed at the Aviodrome at Lelystad Airfield from 2003-2006. In the summer of 2006, MJ271 was acquired by the UK-based Aircraft Restoration Company (ARCo) and it was trucked to Duxford where it was initially displayed before being placed into storage pending restoration. 

In 2016, MJ271 was purchased by the Boultbee Flight Academy (now known as Spitfires.com), founded by Steve Brooks and Matt Jones, and registered in the UK as G-IRTY. ARCo at Duxford were soon contracted to restore the Spitfire back to flight. After nearly three years of work, John Romain performed the aircraft's first post-restoration test flight at Duxford, on June 27, 2019. One of the more original among airworthy Spitfires flying in the world, it was also made unique among restored Spitfires by not being painted in an historic military themed color scheme, but instead almost every square inch of the aircraft's exterior was left in bare aluminum, polished to a mirror finish - leading to its moniker, the "Silver Spitfire". Setting out from the Boultbee Flight Academy's home base at Goodwood Aerodrome on August 5, 2019, six pilots (Matt Jones, Steve Brooks, Ian Smith, Geralt Jones, Lachlan Monro and Ben Uttley) took turns flying the newly restored Spitfire around the globe, touching down in over twenty countries and ending the round-the-world flight just 122 days later, landing back at Goodwood on December 5, 2019. This established a new Guinness World Record for the fastest circumnavigation by a single seat, single engine piston aircraft.

In April 2021, Spitfire MJ271 was sold to a new owner in Denmark, but has remained on the British CAA registry as G-IRTY. Also, having previously worn the sponsorship logo of IWC Schaffhausen, since September 2021 it now displays the logo of the Danish company Blackbird Air.

Repaint Details (all matching the real aircraft)

- All logos and markings recreated in exacting accuracy.
- Correct demarcation/outline of black anti-glare panel.
- Cleaned-up PBR/Complete Maps (with gun smoke removed from wing surfaces).
- Rudder painted silver.
- Landing gear, wheel wells, flaps, flap wells, and tail spars painted silver.
- Accurate access panels added to side and upper cowl panels, horizontal stabilizers, and upper inner wing surfaces (with fasteners).
- Battery access panel added to starboard rear fuselage (with fasteners).
- Fasteners added to radio & ballast access panel on port-side fuselage.
- Added side door outline & hinge detail.
- Datum line plates (x4) added to port-side fuselage.
- Accurate size/shape non-slip tape sections on inner wings.
- Auxiliary fuel tank fuel caps (x4) added to upper wing surfaces.
- Accurate prop stencils and markings (with matching modified spinning prop textures)
- IFF antenna ports added to the port and starboard sides of fuselage.
- Phenolic plastic antenna mast base plate.
- Flare port with recessed fared-over panel on starboard rear fuselage.
- Modified interior side door handle assembly to match real aircraft.
- Carb intake scoop interior painted pale green.
- Properly colored pitot tube.
- Modified slipper tank textures (polished aluminum).