A FLYING club owner in Oxfordshire who wants to build a squadron of 12 Spitfires has completed his first model.

Now Paul Fowler wants to speed up finishing the rest of the £3.7m project so a crew can fly the new County of Oxford Squadron over The Mall in London to celebrate the 75th anniversary of Battle of Britain Day.

The Enstone Flying Club owner, who first came up with the squadron idea in 2011, plans to take 12 veteran Spitfire pilots on the fly-past on September 15 next year.

But he needs hundreds of volunteers and millions of pounds to realise his dream.

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Enstone resident Mr Fowler, 53, said: “Spitfires are the most recognised aeroplanes on the planet and unmistakably British.

“Even though it was a fighter and killing machine, it’s a beautiful example of what can be done when people come together to come up with a solution to a problem.

“As far as I’m aware, building a squadron of aeroplanes has never been done anywhere in the world apart from during war or by an armed force. This is a massive challenge, but anything can be done. It just comes down to sheer determination, as well as money and support.”

The 90 per cent scale planes – costing about £220,000 each – are two-seater Mk26B Spitfires, built from kits imported from the United States.

They have a V6 General Motors engine rather than the traditional Rolls Royce Merlin, and the first model took 10 people about 6,000 man hours to build in two-and-a-half-years.

Mr Fowler was approached by a film company that wants to document his project as part of the 75th anniversary next year.

This marks when the German Luftwaffe launched its largest and most concentrated bombing raids on London, and its defeat by the RAF.

About 1,000 people have registered an interest in helping the project but 200 people are needed to work on building the rest of the squadron, which would also tour air shows in the UK and Europe.

It was renamed from the City of Oxford Squadron to recognise the county’s military contributions while keeping the world-renowned city name, and is billed as a tribute to everyone who worked on Spitfires. Mr Fowler hopes to fund them through selling part shares of up to £20,000 each in the models, while sponsorship is also needed to build a new hangar and workshops that would allow 10 aircraft to be built at one time at the club, as well as a visitor centre.

The first two have been funded and the third one is half-funded, but the rest need financial backing.

He said: “The idea is to remove the barriers for entry so people with no experience can come along and we can teach them.

“Originally, I wanted to see it completed in the next two or three years, but the film company gave us this challenge if we can raise the money quickly.”

Visit enstoneflyingclub.co.uk/cp7.php

FACTFILE

The City of Oxford Squadron will include 12 Mk26B Spitfires, imported in kits from the US based on models between marks 5 and 11. 
Each aircraft is to a 90 per cent scale of a Merlin Spitfire Mk9, measuring 27ft in length and with a 28ft wingspan. 
They use a 3.5l General Motors V6 engine and have 250hp

History of the fighter

The single seat Supermarine Spitfire, a British fighter, had its first flight in March 1936 and entered service with 19 Squadron at RAF Duxford on August 4, 1938. 
It was used by the RAF and other Allied countries during the Second World War, and gained prominence fighting against the Luftwaffe during the Battle of Britain, from July 10 to October 31. 
More Spitfires were produced than any other British aircraft and was the only Allied fighter in production throughout the war. 
It was also used in Europe, Pacific Ocean and South-East Asia in roles including interceptor, photo-reconnaissance, fighter-bomber and trainer until the 1950s.

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