| Model manufacturer: | Corgi |
| Order code: | AA29103 |
| Scale: | 1:72 |
| Material: | Combined (Metal / Plastic) |
| Weight: | 0.9 kg |
| Registration number: | ML407 |
| Dimensions: | 12.6×14×6 cm (L×W×H) |
| Air company: | RAF |
| Aircraft manufacturer: | Spitfire |
Quality metal model of the Supermarine Spitfire Mk.IXe military aircraft that flew during the Second World War. Model airplane comes off the stand.
Built as a Mk IXc variant at the famous 'Shadow Factory' at Castle Bromwich in early 1944, the Supermarine Spitfire ML407 made history as the first Allied fighter to claim a Luftwaffe aircraft shot down following Allied amphibious landings on D-Day. It also boasts an impressive post-war aviation career that continues to this day.
They flew operationally during the final months of World War II, serving with six different squadrons of the RAF's 2nd Tactical Air Force and accumulating 176 sorties and 319 combat hours. 485 (New Zealand) Squadron was delivered on 29 April 1944 where it became the aircraft assigned to Flying Officer Johnnie Houlton in preparation for operations covering the D-Day landings.
No. 485 Squadron moved from RAF Selsey as it was the nearest British mainland airfield to the landing beaches that the squadron's aircraft had to protect on 6 June 1944. On D-Day Houlton sighted a Junkers Ju-88 attempting to take cover in the clouds and after setting his new gyroscope for longer-range firing gave a Luftwaffe plane a brief flash from about 500 yards away.
The Ju-88 burst into flames and crashed to the ground, with the crew ejecting onto parachutes. Houlton and a Spitfire ML407 had just become the first Allied pilot/aircraft combination to shoot down an enemy aircraft after the D-Day landings.
