Under clear skies, a light breeze from the
south-west blew across the grass airstrip.
It was Thursday 5 March 1936 and K5054 -
the prototype of R. J. Mitchell's beautiful
Spitfire fighter - was about to make its
maiden flight.
Vickers Chief Test Pilot 'Mutt' Summers
climbed into the cockpit and fired up the
new 12-cylinder, liquid-cooled Rolls-Royce
Merlin engine which roared into life with
an unmistakable and soon-to-be-familiar
sound. It was just after 4.30pm when
Summers fully opened the throttle and K5054
surged forward and took to the air, the
shape of its thin aero-dynamic elliptical
wings soon apparent to all on the ground
below. One of the most perfect fighting
machines of all time had been born, and not
a moment too soon because the dark clouds
of war were gathering over Europe and the
Spitfire would be on the front line during
the nation's darkest hour - the Battle of
Britain.
So perfect was Mitchell's design that no
fewer than 40 Spitfire variants were
developed, more than any other British
fighter in history and the only one to
remain in production before, during and
after the war. But there were obstacles
along the way, none more so than in late
1941.
'The Fw190 certainly gave the British a
shock' wrote Douglas Bader, and RAF Fighter
Command was soon forced to scale back their
sweeps over France whilst the engineers
from Supermarine and Rolls-Royce raced to
catch up. It took months, but by June 1942
the first of a new variant began arriving
which, everyone hoped, was the answer to
the Fw190 - the Mk.IX Spitfire.
One of the first units to re-equip was 64
Squadron, chosen by the world's foremost
aviation artist Robert Taylor for his
classic masterwork, depicting the day when
the Mk.IXs hit back. It was 30 July 1942
over Boulogne when 64 Squadron, acting as
top cover, spotted a group of a dozen
Fw190s about 2,000ft below them. Bouncing
the enemy from above, Don Kingaby, one of
the RAF's most iconic fighter Aces and the
only airman to be awarded three DFMs,
advanced further into the record books by
downing one of the Fw190s. It was the first
victory for the new Mk.IX Spitfire which
would also become the first Allied aircraft
to shoot down an Me262 jet.
Overall print size: 29 wide x 23.25 high Image size: 22.5 wide x 15.75 high
Released on the 100th Anniversary of the RAF as a tribute to all those who flew the Spitfire, the Military Gallery is honoured that RAF Pilots who flew this magnificent aircraft in combat during WWII have signed each print, giving great meaning to this historic release.
Signatures May Vary by Edition
THE ANNIVERSARY EDITION
Each print in every edition is individually numbered and personally signed by the artist, together with two prominent pilots who flew Spitfires in Europe during WWII:
Sqn Ldr ALLAN SCOTT DFM - 124 Sqn / 6 victories
Flt Lt KURT TAUSSIG - 225 Sqn
THE COLLECTOR'S EDITION & ARTIST PROOFS With six signatures
Each print has been additionally signed by a further four highly-distinguished pilots who flew Spitfires in combat over Europe during WWII:
W.O. EDMUND CREEGAN - 243 Sqn
W.O. ERIC CARTER - 615 Sqn
Flt Lt JOHN THORBURN - 613 Sqn
W.O. NORMAN SAMUELS - 610 Sqn
THE REMARQUES
With Six Signatures
Regarded as the world's finest aviation artist, Robert Taylor's original work is extremely limited so a hand-drawn pencil Remarque is one of the best ways to own a unique 'one of a kind' piece of his artwork.
Each print in the edition will have a delicately crafted original pencil drawing, skilfully created by Robert in the lower margin. Every Remarque drawing is different and unique.
this title is also available in...
authorized dealer
Prints.com is an authorized Robert Taylor dealer. All Robert Taylor prints and products are printed, manufactured and distributed by the artist's authorized publisher. All images are copyrighted by Robert Taylor.
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