Spitfire Mk.1a, N3200 - 19 Squadron, RAF Duxford - May 1940

Imperial War Museum, Duxford's Supermarine Spitfire Mk.1a, N3200, G-CFGJ, displaying initially with Hawker Hurricane Mk.I V7497, during the '19 Squadron Heroes Flying Day', held at Duxford on 4th August 2021.
A separate film featuring Hurricane V7997 can be seen here -    • Hurricane Mk.1 & Spitfire Mk.1a - RAF...  

Spitfire N3200 was build under Ministry of Production contract number B527113/36 in early 1939 at Vickers Armstrong (Supermarine) Ltd Southampton. The aircraft left the Southampton production line as part of a batch of 200 aircraft configured as MK1A; and fitted with a Rolls Royce Merlin III series engine. Following factory test flying N3200 was delivered to 8MU Raf Little Rissington on 2nd December 1939 and then issued to 19 Squadron on the 19th April 1940 (Coded QV-) based at RAF Duxford in Cambridgeshire.
Although 19 Squadrons home base was RAF Duxford, on the evening of 25th May 1940 they were detached to RAF Hornchurch in Essex, as this was much closer to where they would be needed to support the retreat of the British Expeditionary Force in Belgium and France. At 0740 on 26th May an offensive patrol of 12 aircraft from 19 Squadron departed RAF Hornchurch to cover the Dunkirk and Calais area, led by Squadron Leader Stephenson in Spitfire N3200, who also led 'Red Section' - the offensive patrol was made up of Red, Green, Blue and Yellow sections, each with 3 Spitfires.
They found a force of German aircraft consisting of 21 Ju87s and 30 Me109s over Dunkirk. The squadron was attacked by the Me109s of 1./JG1 and 2./JG2.
During the action 8 of the German aircraft were destroyed - 3 Me109s and 5 Ju87s - with one of each reported as 'probably destroyed'. N3200 and another RAF aircraft were shot down. N3200 was hit in the radiator and landed on the beach west of Calais at around 8.45am. It is likely that this is one of the Spitfires claimed by Fw. Rudorffer of 2./JG2. In all, the squadron lost two Spitfires in the engagement, with one further aircraft damaged and its pilot wounded.
Squadron Leader Stephenson initially escaped, but was later captured by the German army in Brussels on the 4th June 1940 and became a POW at Colditz Castle where he was later involved with the Colditz Glider escape plan.
N3200 slowly sank into the sands where it had landed and lay buried until it was recovered in 1986. After a period on display in the Mimoyecques V3 Museum, it was acquired by Mark One Partners in December 2000 and returned to the United Kingdom for restoration by Historic Flying Ltd. . Work commenced in 2007 and the aircraft was returned to flying status in 2014.
UK Civil registered as G-CFGJ, with its original 19 Squadron livery, it was engine tested for the first time on the 21st February 2014 and airborne for her first post restoration flight on Wednesday the 26th March 2014. The aircraft was presented, to and is owned by, The Imperial War Museum at Duxford and operated on their behalf by The Aircraft Restoration Company.


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