London - The last airworthy German second World War Messerschmitt-109 fighter crashed yesterday at an airshow near Cambridge. The aircraft, captured by British troops in Libya in 1942 and now the property of the London Ministry of Defence, crashed into a field near the airshow at Duxford. Its pilot was trapped in the overturned cockpit, but survived.
It had been restored in the late 1980s and resumed flying in 1991. The Messerschmitt was making one of its last flights after experts voiced fears over its safety.