Duxford Aerodrome has a Civil Aviation Authority (CAA) Ordinary Licence (Number P678) that allows flights for the public transport of passengers or for flying instruction as authorised by the licensee (Cambridgeshire County Council).

[3] On 6 July 1935, Duxford hosted a Silver Jubilee Review before King George V who observed 20 squadrons from a dais on the aerodrome.

The third production Spitfire (K9789) was presented to the squadron at Duxford on 4 August 1938 by Jeffrey Quill, Supermarine's chief test pilot.

RAF Duxford was the southern most station in the area covered by 12 Group under the command of Air Vice-Marshall Trafford Leigh-Mallory.

[3][9] By June 1940 Belgium, the Netherlands and France were under German control and the invasion of Britain was their next objective (Operation Sea Lion).

Hurricanes first arrived at Duxford in July with the formation of 310 Squadron, which consisted of Czechoslovakian pilots who had escaped from France.

[citation needed] On 9 September the Duxford squadrons successfully intercepted and turned back a large force of German bombers before they reached their target.

RAF Fighter Command was victorious, the threat of invasion passed and Duxford's squadrons had played a critical role.

[citation needed] The AFDU's equipment included captured German aircraft, which were restored to flying condition for evaluation.

Combat flying units assigned were: The 350th Fighter Group was activated at Duxford on 1 October 1942 by special authority granted to the Eighth Air Force with a nucleus of Bell P-39 Airacobra pilots with the intention of providing a ground attack fighter organisation for the Twelfth Air Force in the forthcoming Operation Torch, (the invasion of North Africa).

Upon transfer from Goxhill, the group lost its Lockheed P-38 Lightnings when these aircraft were withdrawn for use as replacements for units fighting in North Africa.

The group flew many missions to escort Boeing B-17 Flying Fortress and Consolidated B-24 Liberator bombers that attacked industrial complexes, submarine yards and docks, V-weapon sites and other targets in Continental Europe.

The unit also engaged in counter-air activities and on numerous occasions strafed and dive-bombed airfields, trains, vehicles, barges, tugs, canal locks, barracks and troops.

In addition to other operations, the 78th participated in the intensive campaign against Luftwaffe aircraft industry during Big Week, 20–25 February 1944 and helped to prepare the way for the invasion of France.

The unit participated in the Battle of the Bulge, December 1944-January 1945 and supported Operation Varsity, the airborne assault across the Rhine, in March.

Duxford was too far south and too far inland to be strategically important and the costly improvements required for modern supersonic fighters could not be justified.

[3] Duxford was used as one of the locations for filming in 1989 for the Hollywood movie Memphis Belle,[12] with flying sequences flown from the airfield site.

During a test in 2012, Marussia F1 driver María de Villota crashed heavily into the lift gate of the team transporter, and sustained serious injuries to her right eye and brain.

The Imperial War Museum had been looking for a suitable site for the storage, restoration and eventual display of exhibits too large for its headquarters in London and obtained permission to use the airfield for this purpose.

Cambridgeshire County Council joined with the IWM and the Duxford Aviation Society and in 1977 bought the runway to give the abandoned airfield a new lease of life.

In October 2008, an agreement was reached between Cambridgeshire County Council and the IWM, under which the runways and 146 acres (0.59 km2; 0.228 sq mi) of surrounding grassland would be sold to the museum for approximately £1.6 million.

[17] On Tuesday, 3 July 2012 María de Villota suffered an ultimately fatal accident while testing at the airfield for Marussia F1.

The following day, team principal John Booth issued a statement which confirmed that the accident resulted in the loss of de Villota's right eye.