RAF centenary marked with two new £2 coins from The Royal Mint

The centenary of the Royal Air Force is to be marked by The Royal Mint with the release of a £2 commemorative coin and a £2 Spitfire coin.

The Royal Air Force (RAF) was formed on 1 April 1918 as the world’s first independent air force. A century later, the RAF is still recognised as a symbol of the skies, as well as being known for the capability, courage and innovation of the service, and of the men and women who serve in it. The new coins allow The Royal Mint to celebrate and commemorate the work that the RAF has done over the decades, and continues to do.

Centenary coin

The centenary coin was designed by graphic designer Rhys Morgan, who said of the design, ‘It was at a meeting of the Air Council that I discovered that the original RAF badge had been adopted in 1918, the year the RAF was formally created. It was approved in 1923 by the Royal College of Arms and has changed very little since then. It seemed the perfect way to capture the RAF’s continued strength, using the badge to symbolise its resilience over 100 years.’

In addition to the RAF Centenary Badge, The Royal Mint also captures arguably one of the most famous aircrafts ever built and a real favourite with RAF pilots – the spitfire.

Spitfire coin

The Spitfire £2 coin was designed by Richard and Neil Talbot. Richard and Neil said of their design: ‘The key was to choose the right image so that we knew the relief would work – these aircraft can do all kinds of amazing things but we needed to be sure that the coins were easy to read and understand, so we had to be careful in the depictions we chose.’

In addition to commemorative versions of the coin being available to be purchased, the RAF Centenary Badge £2 and the RAF Centenary Spitfire £2 will also be landing in the pockets of members of the public throughout the year on circulating coinage.

Both commemorative coins will be available in a range of finishes and available to be purchased from The Royal Mint website.

Coin details

RAF Centenary Badge 2018 UK £2 – available in Brilliant Uncirculated, Silver Proof, Silver Proof Piedfort and Gold Proof

Denomination: £2

Weight: 12.00g

Diameter: 28.40mm

Obverse: Jody Clark

Reverse: Rhys Morgan

Edge/inscription: Per Ardua ad Astra

RAF Centenary Spitfire UK £2 – available in Brilliant Uncirculated, Silver Proof, Silver Proof Piedfort and Gold Proof

Denomination: £2

Weight: 12.00g

Diameter: 28.40mm

Obverse: Jody Clark

Reverse: Richard Talbot and Neil Talbot

Edge/inscription: Per Ardua ad Astra

(images copyright The Royal Mint)