Battle of Britain Memorial Flight flypasts in Yorkshire cancelled on Armed Forces Day weekend as RAF ground aircraft due to Merlin engine fault

The Hurricane, Spitfire, Lancaster and Dakota aircraft were all booked for appearances at events across the country for Armed Forces Day this weekend, including flypasts in Yorkshire.

On Saturday June 24, the squadron was due to pass over Hull en route to Scunthorpe Armed Forces Day, and a Spitfire was booked for Doncaster’s Armed Forces Day celebrations. North Anston was also on the schedule before the aircraft flew south.

On Sunday, the Memorial Flight was expected to fly over Horbury Show and then Holmfirth in West Yorkshire. Scarborough Armed Forces Day, one of the region’s largest, is unaffected as it was not on the roster and had arranged for aerobatic display teams to perform instead.

The RAF’s official statement read: “The Battle of Britain Memorial Flight is currently investigating a fault on a Merlin engine and has taken the decision to temporarily pause flying. Several of our aircraft are powered by the Merlin and as a result, these historic aircraft will be unable to support Armed Forces Day events around the country as we would have liked. This is hugely disappointing for us and to all those who love to see these iconic aircraft, however, safety remains our paramount concern.”