Spitfire fly past planned for 100th birthday of Captain Tom Moore after he raised £20m for NHS heroes
A SPITFIRE flypast is being planned to celebrate the 100th birthday of Captain Tom Moore after he raised over £20m for NHS heroes.
The WW2 veteran has captured the nation's hearts after walking 100 laps of his garden for medics fighting on the coronavirus frontline.
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Captain Tom - as he is affectionately known - originally set out to raise £1,000 through his JustGiving page but a staggering 868,000 people made donations, smashing his initial target.
The veteran will turn 100 on April 30 this year, and a team of aircraft restorers are hoping to fly a tribute in a Second World War-era Spitfire over his home to mark the occasion.
The company, the Biggin Hill Heritage Hangar, restore old Spitfires and are based in South East London.
Tom more than anyone knows what a Spitfire means and to hear and see a Spitfire in the air for himself will be a nice experience for him.
Alex Monk, Biggin Hill Heritage Hangar
Alex Monk, a member of the group, told : “It will be a bit of a morale booster for us all really, to see a Spitfire in the sky.
"It’s been the symbol of freedom in the past and quite an icon for Tom.";
He added: "Tom more than anyone knows what a Spitfire means and to hear and see a Spitfire in the air for himself will be a nice experience for him."
However, the group are awaiting permission for the flypast from Department for Transport, to ensure they are following government guidelines around unnecessary travel.
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Yesterday, we backed a proposal by Lord Ashcroft to honour our health heroes with the gallantry gong given for acts of bravery that did not take place in battle.
A No10 spokesman said: “The NHS is doing a fantastic job and the nation will want to find a way to say thank you when we have defeated this virus.”
SAS hero Andy McNab added: “The award of a George Cross would show an emotional appreciation.”
We are asking readers to sign the petition online at .
But they are hopeful the flight will go ahead as the Department has said it "carefully considering proposals to help honour" Captain Tom's heroic efforts.
Tom joined the 8th Battalion Duke of Wellington’s Regiment, part of the Royal Armoured corps, and fought in the 1942-3 Arakan campaign in WW2.
In 1940 he was selected for officer training and was posted in the 9 DWR in India.
To mark his 100th birthday, an eight-year-old girl has started an online campaign for children to make birthday cards for the Captain.
Reegan Davies, from Port Talbot, South Wales, set a target of 1,500 virtual cards after posting a video online to thank him for his fundraising efforts.
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After 500,000 people signed a petition calling for the veteran to be knighted – also backed by Peter Andre and David Beckham – prime minister Boris Johnson said he “will certainly be looking at ways to recognise Tom for his heroic efforts".
While appearing on This Morning earlier this week, he insisted he’s “no superstar” – but during his six-minute interview on the show, generous viewers donated £70k to charity.
Captain Tom, who is a huge admirer of the Queen, said about a knighthood: “I’d be amazed to have such an honour and meet our absolutely marvellous Queen."
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