Description & Facts: Here is start up griffon engine on the spitfire flightline. Large flying formation at flying legends airshow 2008. salon. great power. airshow paris le bourget armee de l'air mirage 2000. The Fighter Collection operates, rebuilds and maintains Europe's largest collection of airworthy WWII aircraft and is based at Duxford Airfield, in the UK. Run by a professional team of engineers and pilots for both airshow and film work, the aircraft fly all over Europe during the summer months to attend airshows from Austria to Switzerland. The fleet comprises of aircraft from the UK, USA, Germany, Russia and Italy - and the collection is constantly expanding as new aeroplanes are acquired. The TFC is one of the premier collections of warbirds in Europe. Based in Duxford's Hanger 2 (and parts of hanger 3), The Fighter Collection is owned by Stephen Grey, whose intention it was to own an example of every allied fighter type flown in WWII. - Duxford airfield dates to 1918 when many of the buildings were constructed by German prisoner-of-war labour. The airfield housed 8 Squadron in 1919--1920 which was equipped with F.2Bs. The airfield was then used by No. 2 Flying Training School until, April 1923 when 19 Squadron was formed at Duxford with Sopwith Snipes. By 1925 Duxford's three fighter squadrons had expanded to include the Gloster Grebes and Armstrong Whitworth Siskins. No.19 Squadron re-equipped with Bristol Bulldogs in 1931, and in 1935, was the first squadron to fly the RAF's