Britain and Spitfire go hand in hand, each name belonging to the other, but not to all. To capture the image, we must go back in time to a different place and era. To the year of 1931 when Frankenstein was the top grossing movie and Boris Karloff (1887-1969) terrorized every movie buff. This was the age of forward thinking and technology, where everyone had a plan. Thomas Edison (1847-1931) submitted his last patent and California received permission to build the San Francisco- Oakland Bay Bridge. Construction was complete on the Empire State Building and Nevada legalized gambling. It was a political time where British Parliament enacted the State of Westminster.

1931 was also a time of aerodynamics. Reginald Mitchell (1895-1937) developed the first of many aircraft designs known as the Submarine Seaplane. The seaplane was so large, it could accommodate two aircrafts. After spending several years in development, Mr. Mitchell was awarded the prestigious Schneider trophy. When every country was trying to outdo the other, air races grew in popularity. Reginald Mitchell perfected the dynamics of the submarine seaplane for participation in the air races.

Moving forward to 1934, even though the Nazis came to power in 1933, the biggest news that year was the 2nd FIFA World Cup (football) hosted by Mussolini in Italy. At the same time, at the request of the Air Ministry, Chief Designer for Vickers Armstrong, Reginald Mitchell, adapted the Submarine Seaplane to meet the specifications as a fighter plane. Henceforth, it was named Spitfire Mk1.

Prior to the start of the Battle of Britain in 1940, Mr. Mitchell designed two more planes, each exceeding the other in aerodynamic sophistication rarely seen in those years. With the initial prototype of the Spitfire Mk1, considered the smallest, cleanest and most admired of the fighter planes, it was able to fly 350mph (563km/h) and could ascend approximately 2500 ft (76m) per minute also making it one of the deadliest in the world.