British RAF Pilot Dies After Spitfire Crash

Royal Air Force Squadron Leader Mark Long tragically passed away after the WWII-era Spitfire he was piloting crashed into a field near RAF Coningsby. Emergency crews were dispatched to the crash site at approximately 1:20 PM on Saturday.

RAF Coningsby is home to the Royal Air Force Battle of Britain Memorial Flight (BBMF), which maintains a fleet of historic aircraft, including six Spitfires, two Hurricanes, a Lancaster bomber, a C-47 Dakota, and two Chipmunk training aircraft.

Wally Epton, a retired RAF squadron leader and current chairman of the Historic Aircraft Association, remarked that this incident marks the first fatality involving a BBMF aircraft since the organization’s inception in July 1957.

The Spitfire, renowned as one of the most iconic British fighter aircraft in history, played a pivotal role during the Battle of Britain in the summer of 1940. Today, only a few dozen Spitfires are believed to remain airworthy.

The loss of Squadron Leader Long and the damage to a historic Spitfire is a profound tragedy for the RAF and the aviation community.