The twenty-minute flight of the Supermarine Spitfire, which took off from London Biggin Hill Airport, aimed to raise funds for the humanitarian aviation company Mission Aviation Fellowship. Their fleet of 120 light aircraft operates in 25 countries.
Jack Hemmings, who participated as a pilot in a British mission in 1948 that led to the establishment of this organization, described his recent flight, where he was accompanied by a second pilot, as “absolutely wonderful” but “quite bumpy.” This likely makes him the oldest person to pilot a World War II aircraft.