The Silver Spitfire - G-IRTY
For the first time ever, The Silver Spitfire visits Norway — and it is on Sola that she lands.
G-IRTY, also known as MJ271, is not a common warbird. She is the Guinness World Record holder and is considered the most original airworthy Spitfire Mk IX in the world. What makes her instantly recognisable is her appearance: almost the entire airframe is of highly polished, bare aluminium — a deliberate choice that sets her apart from all other restored Spitfire aircraft which are usually painted in historic military colours.
With a war story to tell
The MJ271 was first assigned to 118 Squadron at RAF Detling in Kent, under 2nd Tactical Air Force, on 18 February 1944. She flew sixteen combat missions from Detling as an escort fighter for bombers such as the B-24, B-17 and B-26 with V1 launch facilities among others as targets. In 1944, she joined 132 Bombay Squadron where she flew 28 sorties that included both escort flights and dive bombing along the French coast. The MJ271 flew a total of 51 sorties during World War II and survived.
After the war she was transferred to the Dutch Air Force, since sold to a war museum in Delfzijl, and then passed through several owners. Spitfires In 2016, the aircraft was purchased by Boultbee Flight Academy, now known as Spitfires.com, and restored to flyable condition by the Aircraft Restoration Company at Duxford.
Around the Earth in an 80-year-old fighter jet
On 5 August 2019, MJ271 took off from Goodwood Aerodrome and headed out into the world. The Silver Spitfire travelled 43,000 kilometres over 74 stages and visited 24 countries — a route that crossed Greenland and the Atlantic Ocean, on to New York and California, north to Russia and Japan, through Asia, the Middle East and finally home to Britain. The expedition took four months and a total of 22,138 nautical miles.
No Spitfire had ever done anything like this.
Facts about Spitfire Mk IX — G-IRTY:
- Year of construction: 1943
- Engine: Rolls-Royce Merlin V12, 1350 hp
- Top speed: approx. 650 km/h
- Wingspan: 11.2 metres
- Record: First Spitfire to fly around the world (2019)
First time in Norway
The Silver Spitfire has visited over 24 countries and seen most of the world from the cockpit -- but Norway has not been among them. Flight Days 2026 will therefore be the first time this iconic aircraft sets its wheels down on Norwegian soil.
We are tremendously looking forward to welcoming G-IRTY and her crew to Sola!