The engine noise echoing from the taxiway is the unmistakably evocative mechanical soundtrack of a hundred WWII movies. The summer sunshine is warm and if I had any sense of smell, I’d notice the aroma of new-mown airfield grass. And maybe, too, I’d hear the thwacks of leather on willow as fighter boys enjoy an impromptu game of cricket between sorties.

With imagination, this could be the Battle of Britain, when Churchill famously declared that, “Never in the field of human conflict was so much owed by so many to so few.”

The perfect aviation gift?

Opening my eyes, it’s 2024 again, on sunny Kemble airfield, but the distinctive roar of that Merlin engine comes straight from 1940. A close friend, ex RAF, recently retired, is about to join a modern, fortunate few, for the flight of a lifetime. Flying in a genuine ‘Spit’, the icon that helped save Blighty’s bacon during its darkest wartime hours, is undoubtedly among the ultimate Christmas, retirement or ‘no excuse needed’ gifts.

I’m there to go up in the chase plane following Spitfire T.9 – TE308, a 1945 aircraft, originally delivered to nearby RAF Colerne as a ‘low back’ Mk IX single seater. In time, it was converted to a two-seater. Later, after decommissioning, shark-nosed ‘Grey Nurse’ flew during filming of 1969’s The Battle of Britain, spent time in North America, and then returned to Britain.

A breathtaking victory roll

Running octogenarian Spitfires is eye-wateringly expensive, so this wasn’t a cheap gift. But that just adds to the cachet of flying with operators such as Biggin Hill’s Fly a Spitfire. As well as pre- and post-flight briefings, our friend savoured an hour in the air, formating with our Piper, banking away with impressive wingovers and making mock attack runs. Then, while we returned to Kemble, he patrolled over his former RAF base in Oxfordshire, took the joystick and experienced a breathtaking victory roll!

Too soon, his time ‘slipping the surly bonds of earth’ – to quote the aviator’s poem ‘High Flight’ – ended. Back on the deck, buzzing with excitement and smiling uncontrollably, our friend deplaned after an extraordinary experience.

Worth every penny, the gift of a lifetime was completed with professional videos, a certificate and a souvenir pack. Albeit, for the price of a long luxury cruise, few gifts can come close for aviation buffs – except, perhaps, an hour in the same operator’s P-51D Mustang! Which would you choose?