History of
T-7230 G-AFVE

Construction & RAF service

Born at Cowley,
Battle of Britain 1940

Tiger Moth T-7230 was built at Morris Motors, Cowley (Oxford) and first flew on 7 August 1940 — at the height of the Battle of Britain. With construction number (c/n) 83720, it was among the thousands of Tiger Moths produced to meet the urgent demand for training aircraft as Britain faced the Luftwaffe.

The aircraft served with various RAF Elementary Flying Training Schools, contributing to the training effort that kept Fighter Command and Bomber Command supplied with aircrew throughout the war. In its original RAF configuration it carried the serial number T-7230 and was fitted with the standard Gipsy Major 1 engine.

Post-war civil life

G-AFVE — the civilian years

After the war, T-7230 was released to civil use and registered as G-AFVE. It spent decades in British civilian hands, passing through flying clubs and private owners — the normal life of a post-war surplus Tiger Moth. Remarkably, it survived intact and airworthy through this period while many of its contemporaries were lost to accidents or neglect.

For a time the aircraft was associated with Tiger Fly, an organisation dedicated to promoting the Tiger Moth in Britain. During this period it accumulated flight hours, was maintained in airworthy condition and participated in various flying events.

Jacek Mainka & Poland

Coming home —
March 2007

In March 2007, Jacek Mainka purchased T-7230 G-AFVE. Mainka — a professional airline pilot and passionate advocate for historic Polish aviation — had long wanted to bring an authentic wartime aircraft to Poland as a flying memorial to the Polish airmen who trained and fought on such machines.

The ferry flight from Britain to Poland took place on 5 August 2007. The route covered over 1,200 km across Europe at the open-cockpit pace of a 1940 biplane — a journey that required careful route planning, multiple fuel stops and favourable weather. The aircraft crossed the Channel, flew through Belgium and Germany, and finally landed in Poland — the first time a Tiger Moth had flown in Polish airspace in decades.

Since arriving in Poland, T-7230 is now based at Brzeska Wola airfield. It has accumulated over 300 hours of flying in Polish skies, appeared at airshows, participated in commemorative events and carried passengers who might otherwise never experience flight in a historic aircraft.

Spitfire meeting, 2008

Tiger Moth meets Spitfire

In 2008, T-7230 participated in a remarkable formation flight with a Supermarine Spitfire — recreating the relationship between the two aircraft in wartime service. The Tiger Moth trained the pilots; the Spitfire was what many of them went on to fly in combat. Flying them together in Polish skies was a deeply moving tribute to the Polish airmen of No. 303, 302 and other squadrons who made that journey from classroom to cockpit to combat.

Refit 2012–2013

Restoration and renewal

In 2012–2013 T-7230 underwent a thorough refit. The aircraft was inspected, components overhauled and any wear addressed to ensure continued airworthiness. A new Hoffmann HO21 wooden propeller was fitted, maintaining the authentic appearance of the original while ensuring reliability. The aircraft emerged from this work in outstanding condition and has continued flying since.

Today T-7230 G-AFVE is the only airworthy Tiger Moth in Poland. It is maintained in original configuration — no enclosed cockpit conversion, no electric starter, no modern avionics. Flying it is as close as you can get in 2025 to the experience of a wartime trainee pilot in 1940.