List of surviving Supermarine Spitfires


The Supermarine Spitfire is a British single-seat fighter aircraft used by the Royal Air Force along with many other Allied countries throughout the Second World War and afterwards into the 1950s as both a front line fighter and also in secondary roles.
Many developing countries purchased Spitfires as industrial countries phased out propeller-powered aircraft in favour of new jet-engined machines. As these nations started to update their air forces many Spitfires and other Second World War aircraft were sold on the open market to individuals or for scrap. The aircraft in Hong Kong serving with the UK Colonial wings are a good example of the different means of disposal where they were simply bulldozed into the sea as part of the process to reclaim land from the water in order to lengthen the runway.
Private collectors began to acquire Spitfire aircraft and a number went on to appear in movies and TV shows. These movie and TV appearances, in turn, helped to save a number of them from being scrapped. The Spitfire with probably the most movie and TV credits is a Mk.IX MH434. It ended up in civilian ownership in the UK around 1963 and has since gone on to appear in many films and TV shows including The Longest Day, The Battle of Britain, A Bridge Too Far, and Piece of Cake.
Many Spitfire and Seafire aircraft survive in museums and private collections around the world today and this article lists individual aircraft known to still exist.

Surviving Spitfires

Below is the list of Spitfires surviving organised by where they are based in the world and the condition they're in.
Condition as stated belowNumber listed below
Airworthy58
Static Display56
Restoration / Stored 39

Australia

;Airworthy
;Static Display
;Restoration / Stored
;Airworthy
;Static display
;Airworthy
;Static Display
;Restoration / Stored
;Static Display
;Static Display
;Static Display
;Static Display
;Restoration / Stored
;Static Display
No Spitfires are currently based in Greece, but Spitfire MJ755 will be based in Greece once the restoration is finished.

India

;Static Display
;Airworthy
;Static Display
;Static Display
;Static Display
;Static Display
;Possible buried Spitfires in Burma
In 2012 a great deal of media attention was given to rumours that the RAF had buried a number of Spitfire Mk.XIV aircraft in Burma, unassembled and in their packing crates, during August 1945. However, no documentary or other evidence has been uncovered that this actually happened and some have dismissed the whole story as implausible, including military archaeologist Andy Brockman
During April 2012 the UK government announced they were working with the post-junta Burmese government to locate and potentially return a total of 20 aircraft to flying condition. On 16 October 2012, the Burmese government signed an agreement with David Cundall, a British farmer and aviation enthusiast who was leading the search along with his Burmese business partner Htoo Htoo Zaw, allowing them to begin excavations.
Leeds University experts and an academic from Rangoon using sophisticated radar techniques claimed to have discovered one of the sites of the buried aircraft at what is now Yangon International Airport, the former RAF Mingaladon airfield. In addition to the 20 aircraft thought to be at this site, other sites with buried Spitfires were claimed, one with as many as 36 aircraft interred.
In January 2013, following investigations at both Yangon International Airport and Myitkyina, archaeologists led by Andy Brockman concluded that there were no aircraft buried at the sites. Despite this, David Cundall continued his search. However, on 16 February of the same year, it was reported that Cundall's sponsors, Wargaming Ltd, no longer believed any Spitfires were ever buried and that any aircraft in the area had been re-exported in 1946. The search was called off. Despite the withdrawal of the major sponsor, David Cundall said at that time that he remained confident and the search would continue.

The Netherlands

;Airworthy
;Static Display
;Airworthy
;Static Display
;Restoration / Stored
;Static Display
;Restoration / Stored
;Static Display
;Static Display
;Static Display
On display at Belgrade Museum of Aviation.
Aircraft appears in 352 Squadron RAF in March 1945. It flew in 11 missions over former Yugoslavia. Transferred to 1st Fighter Aviation Regiment of Yugoslav Air Force, May 1945, then to Mostar Air Base HQ in August 1945. In 1949, received YAF serial 9489. Briefly in 112th Fighter Aviation Regiment as a training aircraft, then stored at Mostar. Between 1947 and 1952 in 103rd Reconnaissance Aviation Regiment. Suffered belly landings in February 1949 and February 1950. All remaining Spitfires were retired on 18 August 1952.
While others were scrapped or turned into instructional airframes, 9489 was handed over to Military Museum in Belgrade. It was put on static display first at Kalemegdan as a part of the outdoor museum exhibition. There it received a new coat of paint and an incorrect YAF number 9486. After that it was displayed at Belgrade International Airport, as a part of Belgrade Museum of Aviation exhibition, in a purely fictional paint scheme and markings.
This caused confusion about aircraft true identity.
Spitfire with YAF number 9486 was ex-RAF MH592, which ended as instructional airframe at Rajlovac Air Force Technical Training Center, but it is still claimed by some sources to be the aircraft displayed in Belgrade.
Aircraft 9489 was thoroughly restored during 1973 by Tehnička direkcija JAT at Belgrade International Airport. After detailed investigation and several paint schemes applied the true identity of this aircraft was confirmed, based on serial numbers found and archive material as JK808, airframe s/n 17-545, built at Castle Bromwich. An article about restoration and the search for true identity was published in 2004..
Aircraft on display contains several non-original parts: engine from another aircraft, Soviet-made camera, landing gear parts, re-manufactured instrument panel, standard RAF instruments and other parts from YAF or JAT stocks.

South Africa

;Static Display
;Restoration / Stored
;Static Display
;Airworthy
.
;Static Display
, Glasgow
;Restoration / Stored
;Airworthy
;Static Display
;Restoration / Stored
;Static Display