The Prime Minister's confirmed the historic Shuttleworth Collection will be re-called to service by the Royal Air Force, to provide extra aircraft for the no-fly zone over Libya.
"The major advantage the older aircraft have is that radar-controlled anti-aircraft weaponry is too fast for them, meaning these historic planes have a vital role to play in protecting the rebels against the aggression of Colonel Gaddafi." David Cameron told a conference at the RAF's staff college, Cranwell.
"The only drawback they have is their range. For instance, the Avro 504k may have a very low airspeed, but it's effective range is just over 200 miles, meaning it will have to be based in Tobruk or on an aircraft carrier. But we haven't got one, so Tobruk it is."
Mr Cameron's announcement comes after the new head of the Royal Air Force, Air Chief Marshal Sir Stephen Dalton, called for more investment in the service if it's to maintain it's current operational status.
The call-up of the Shuttleworth Collection come just hours after the Prime Minister confirmed Airfix has agreed to step up production of it's 1/72 scale Tornado Gr4.
