ALL eyes will be on the sky this morning at 11.15am as the NHS Spitfire flies over Southend Hospital as a thank you to all health workers who battled through the peak of the coronavirus pandemic.

And people have been given the chance to nominate their own NHS heroes to be included on the iconic plane.

Some 80,000 names will be handwritten onto the aircraft before it takes flight to raise money for NHS Charities Together.

The names have been nominated by the public as a way of recognising small acts of kindness throughout the Covid-19 pandemic.

John Romain, founder of Aircraft Restoration Company, said: “The response to our initial flight over the last 8pm #clapforourcarers Thursday was incredibly humbling, with hundreds of people from the local community sharing how wonderful it was to not only see the Spitfire, but also to read the message emblazoned across its wings.

"After such positive response we decided to leave the message painted on the Spitfire for the rest of the flying season, this is where the idea to hand write the names of the nation’s loved ones onto the aircraft to raise money for the NHS Charities Together began."