Spitfire crashes in Kent field hours before VE Day celebrations and fly-past
A horrified eyewitness has recalled the terrifying moment a Spitfire crashed into a farmer's field just hours before VE Day celebrations. A historic Spitfire was seen circling "for a couple of minutes" in West Hythe, Kent, at 7pm on Saturday before performing an emergency crash landing.
Eyewitness Emily was on her way home in the car when she saw the Spitfire in the air "for a couple of minutes" before it crashed. The pilot and passenger miraculously walked away unscathed.
The eyewitness, who did not want to give her last name, told KentOnline: 'We were on our way home from shopping and saw another Spitfire circling.
'Which we thought was unusual so thought perhaps they're practising for a VE-Day ceremony.
'We watched that Spitfire for a couple of minutes and it flew off. So we continued driving, and came across the plane which had just crashed. The pilot and passenger were luckily out of the aircraft.
'Bystanders were walking across the field. So we pulled up and then walked across the field ourselves to check everyone was okay.
'We contacted the farmer to make them aware and to get the gate opened.'
A spokesperson for the fire service confirmed they were called to the scene following the crash. It said: "We were called to an aircraft that had made an emergency landing.
'Two fire engines attended, and crews helped to make the scene safe. One person was passed into the care of SECAmb paramedics.' Crews left the scene at around 9pm.
The company that owns the Spitfire confirmed the pilot made a "precautionary landing."
A spokesperson for Fly a Spitfire added: 'We are aware of an incident involving one of our Spitfire aircraft in the vicinity of Hythe.
'We have spoken to the pilot who has advised that a precautionary landing was made at a non-airfield site.
"The pilot and passenger are uninjured and at this stage we have no further information.'
The Spitfire was built in 1943 and used in the Royal Canadian Air Force's 441 Squadron, operating under the RAF during World War II.
It comes as Britain will commemorate VE Day 's momentous 80th anniversary with a display of characteristic pageantry next week, with Red Arrows set to arc across the skies.
Events will honour the dead; those who gave their lives in World War Two to defeat fascism. But they will also remind us, as a group of veterans has poignantly conveyed, that 'to remember is also our best hope of avoiding it ever happening again'.
Bank Holiday Monday will see a procession of over 1,300 Armed Forces, uniformed services and young people march to Buckingham Palace from Parliament Square. In the sky above, the procession will finish with a flypast featuring aircraft including the celebrated Red Arrows.
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