RAF Museum Midlands Spitfire Tour

Published on: 29 April 2022

Between 15 May and 17 July 2022, the RAF Museum Midlands is taking a Spitfire on tour. Coming to a location in the Midlands near you!

To celebrate 50 years of sharing the RAF stories from across the Midlands, our Spitfire will be leaving home from Cosford and visiting towns and cities across the Midlands. Come along and see the Spitfire yourself, make sure you take a photo, and tag #RAFMuseum #SpitfireSelfie

The Spitfire

Our rare Supermarine Spitfire Photo Reconnaissance PR.XIX PM651 is starring on this tour.

The PR.XIX is fitted with the Rolls Royce Griffon engine as opposed to the Merlin engine used in earlier models and was notably faster than its predecessor. Distinctly, PR.XIX had extra fuel tanks in place of the machine guns, a retractable tail wheel making its profile more streamlined, and a pressurised cabin critical for the high-altitude reconnaissance flights.

Dates and locations

Saturday 14, Sunday 15 May Telford Southwater Central Library

Saturday 18, Sunday 19 June Coventry Millennium Place

Saturday 25, Sunday 26 June Shrewsbury Quarry Park (Shrewsbury Food Festival)

Wednesday 6, Sunday 10 July Birmingham New Street Station

Saturday 16, Sunday 17 July Leicester Jubilee Square

Remember to tag your photos on social media with #RAFMuseum #SpitfireSelfie to be in with a chance of winning a prize bundle worth £50 (Terms and Conditions apply).

Spitfire connection to the Leicester area

Leicestershire was an important industrial area during the Second World War, producing many munitions for the war effort. Over a thousand Spitfires were assembled in Desford, six miles from Leicester. Faire Brothers, a warehouse located in Alexandra House in Leicester during the war, purchased a Spitfire and donated it to the RAF.