Allegedly the greatest military aircraft ever created, the Spitfire has a long and highly successful history that has seen it at the forefront of some of the 20th century's greatest air battles.

The beginning of its success as a military aircraft can be traced back to the 2nd World War when it became one of the allies' most powerful weapons against their aggressors. In January 1947 to be precise the No.610 squadron in Singapore was re-equipped with the Spitfire Mk.18. A little later that same year in May saw the first flight of the La-140, prototype of the La-11. This was a long-range development of the La-9.

The following year the Spitfire Mk.24 entered service. This was a Mk.22 with an additional 66 gallons of fuel and wing fittings for rockets. This extra fuel capacity obviously had a major impact on the plane offensive capabilities making it an altogether more efficient and deadly part of the allies' arsenal. The 20th of February that year saw delivery of the last Spitfire fighter, a F Mk 24. At that point it was calculated that about 20400 Spitfires had been built. A sad thought to reckon on how many lives were ended by those vehicles however in the greater scheme of things it has to be considered how many more were saved its role in the success of the allies in halting the offensive of the aggressors.

While production of the Spitfire ceased, its use as a military aircraft continued for some years. On the 1st of April 1954 The RAF flew its last operational Spitfire sortie; a photo-reconnaissance flight over Malaya.