Supermarine Spitfire

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The Supermarine Spitfire is a British one-seat fighter used by the Royal Air Force and other Allied countries before, during and after World War II. Many Spitfire variants are built, using multiple wing configurations, and are manufactured in larger quantities than other British aircraft. It was also the only British fighter aircraft produced continuously throughout the war. Spitfire continues to be popular with fans; about 54 remain eligible to fly, and many more are static exhibits in aviation museums around the world.

Spitfire was designed as a short-range aircraft, a high-performance interceptor aircraft by RJ Mitchell, chief designer at Supermarine Aviation Works, operated as a subsidiary of Vickers-Armstrong from 1928. Mitchell pushed a typical Spitfire elliptical wing designed by Beverley Shenstone to have the most cross- thin, helping to deliver the aircraft with top speeds than some contemporary fighters, including Hawker Hurricane. Mitchell continued to refine the design until his death in 1937, where his colleague Joseph Smith took over as chief designer, overseeing the development of Spitfire through its many variants.

During the Battle of Britain, from July to October 1940, the public regarded Spitfire as the main RAF fighter, although more and more Hurricanes were carrying most of the burden on Nazi German air forces, the Luftwaffe. However, Spitfire units have lower erosion rates and higher win-to-loss ratios than those flying Hurricanes because of the higher performance of fighters. During the Battle, Spitfires are generally tasked with involving Luftwaffe fighters - especially the Messerschmitt Bf 109E series - which is a close match for them.

After the Battle of Britain, Spitfire replaced the Storm to become the backbone of the RAF Combat Command, and saw action in European, Mediterranean, Pacific and Southeast Asian theaters. Widely loved by his pilots, Spitfire served in several roles, including interceptors, photo-reconnaissance, bombers and trainers, and continued to serve in this role until the 1950s. Seafire is a Spitfire-based adaptation operator that served in Fleet Air Arm from 1942 to mid 1950s. Although the original fuselage is designed to be powered by a Rolls-Royce Merlin engine that produces 1,030 hp (768 kW), it is strong enough and adaptable enough to use the stronger Merlins and, later on, the Rolls-Royce Griffon engine produces up to 2,340 hp 1,745 kW). As a result, Spitfire's performance and capabilities increase over the course of its service.

Video Supermarine Spitfire

Development and production

Origins

In 1931, the Air Ministry released the F7/30 specification, calling for a modern fighter capable of flying at 250 mph (400 km/h). R. J. Mitchell designed Supermarine Type 224 to fill this role. The 224 is an open-cockpit monoplane with large gull wings and a large, fixed, stockpiled stack supported by 600 horsepower (450 kW), an evaporatively cooled Rolls-Royce Goshawk engine. This made its first flight in February 1934. Of the seven designs that were tendered to F7/30, Gloster Gladiator biplane was accepted for service.

Type 224 was a huge disappointment for Mitchell and his design team, who immediately began a series of "cleaned" designs, using their experience with the Schneider Trophy seaplane as a starting point. This causes Type 300, with undercarriage drawn and wingspan reduced by 6 feet (1.8 m). This design was submitted to the Air Ministry in July 1934, but was not accepted. Then through a series of changes, including the incorporation of the cockpit, the oxygen-breathing apparatus, the smaller and thin wings, and the newly developed, more powerful, Rolls-Royce PV-XII V-12 engine, the so-called "Merlin". In November 1934, Mitchell, backed by Supermarine owner, Vickers-Armstrong, began a detailed design work on this refined version of the Type 300.

On December 1, 1934, the Air Ministry issued the contract AM 361140/34 , providing Ã, Â £ 10,000 for the construction of 300 Mitchell Type Improvement, design. On January 3, 1935, they formalized the contract with a new specification, F10/35, written around the aircraft. In April 1935, the armament was converted from two.303 (7.7 mm) Vickers machine guns on each wing to four 0.303 in Browning (7.7 mm), following recommendations by Squadron Leader Ralph Sorley from the Operational Requirements section of the Air Ministry.

On March 5, 1936, the prototype ( K5054 ) departed on the first flight from Eastleigh Aerodrome (then Southampton Airport). In control was Captain Joseph "Mutt" Summers, head of trials for Vickers, who was quoted as saying "Do not touch anything" on landing. This eight-minute flight occurred four months after the inaugural flight of the contemporary Hurricane.

K5054 was installed with new propellers, and Summers flew the plane on March 10, 1936; during this flight, undercarriage was withdrawn for the first time. After the fourth flight, a new engine was installed, and Summers left the flight test to his assistant, Jeffrey Quill and George Pickering. They soon discover that Spitfire is a very good plane, but not perfect. The steering is too sensitive, and the top speed is only 330 mph (528 km/h), slightly faster than the new Hurricane Merlin at Sydney Camm. New and improved wooden propellers allowed Spitfire to reach 348 mph (557 km/h) in mid-May flight levels, when Summers flew the K5054 to RAF Martlesham Heath and handed the plane to Anderson Squadron Leader from Aircraft & amp; Experimental Armament Discovery (A & amp; AEE). Here, Flight Lieutenant Humphrey Edwardes-Jones took over the prototype for the RAF. He had been given orders to fly the plane and then make his report to the Air Ministry when it landed. Edwardes-Jones' report is positive; his only request is Spitfire equipped with an undercarriage position indicator. A week later, on June 3, 1936, the Air Ministry placed orders for 310 Spitfires, before A & amp; AEE has issued an official report. The interim report is then issued on a gradual basis.

Initial production

The first British public saw Spitfire on RAF Hendon airscreen on Saturday, June 27, 1936. Although full-scale production should start soon, there are many problems that can not be overcome for some time, and the first Spitfire production, K9787 , not rolling Woolston, Southampton's assembly line until mid-1938.

In February 1936, the director of Vickers-Armstrong, Sir Robert MacLean, guaranteed the production of five planes a week, beginning 15 months after the order was placed. On June 3, 1936, the Air Ministry placed orders for 310 aircraft, at a cost of Ã, £ 1,395,000. The full-scale Spitfire production started at the Supermarine facility in Woolston, but it quickly became clear that the order could not be completed in the 15 months it was promised. Supermarine is a small company, already busy building Walrus and Stranraer aircraft, and Vickers is busy building Wellington's bomber aircraft.

The initial solution is to subcontract the work. Although outside contractors should be involved in the manufacture of many important Spitfire components, especially wings, Vickers-Armstrong (parent company) is reluctant to see Spitfire produced by outer worries, and slow to release the required blueprints and subcomponents.

As a result of the delay in getting Spitfire into full production, the Air Ministry put forward a plan that its production was suspended after the initial order for 310, after which Supermarine will build the Bristol Beaufighters. Supermarine and Vickers management were able to convince the Air Ministry that production problems could be overcome, and further orders were placed for 200 Spitfires on March 24, 1938. Both orders included serial numbers K, L and N.

In mid-1938, the first production Spitfire rolled off the assembly line and flown by Jeffrey Quill on May 15, 1938, almost 24 months after the initial order. The final cost of the first 310 aircraft, after a delay and increased program cost, reached Ã,  £ 1,870,242 or Ã,  £ 1,533 more per aircraft than originally forecast. A production aircraft costs about Ã,  £ 9,500. The most expensive component is a handmade aircraft and finishes around Ã,  £ 2,500, then a Rolls-Royce Merlin engine priced Ã,  £ 2,000, followed by wings on Ã, £ 1,800 pair, weapon and undercarriage, both at à ,  £ 800 each, and a propeller at  £ 350.

Regardless of the promises the plant will produce 60 per week starting in April, in May 1940 Castle Bromwich has not built the first Spitfire. On May 17, Lord Beaverbrook Aircraft Production Minister phoned Lord Nuffield and directed him to surrender control of the Castle Bromwich plant to his Ministry. Beaverbrook immediately dispatched experienced management and worker staff from Supermarine and gave factory control to Vickers-Armstrong. Although it will take time to solve the problem, in June 1940, 10 Mk II was built; 23 was launched in July, 37 in August, and 56 in September. By the time the production ended at Castle Bromwich in June 1945, a total of 12,129 Spitfires (921 Mk II, 4,489 Mk Vs, 5,665 Mk IXs, and 1,054 Mk XVI) were built. The CBAF then became the largest and most successful factory of its kind during the 1939-45 conflict. As the largest Spitfire factory in the UK, by producing a maximum of 320 aircraft per month, it builds 12,000 of this type of aircraft, prior to its closure in 1945.

Dissolution of production

During the Battle of Britain, the Luftwaffe undertook a joint effort to destroy major manufacturing plants in Woolston and Itchen, near Southampton. The first bomb attack, which missed the factories, occurred on August 23, 1940. During the following month, other attacks were installed until, on September 26, 1940, the two factories were destroyed, with 92 people killed and a large number injured. Most of the victims experienced aircraft production workers.

Fortunately for the future of Spitfire, many production jigs and machine tools have been relocated on September 20, and steps are taken to disperse production to small facilities throughout the Southampton region. To this end, the British government requested people like Vincent's Garage at Station Square, Reading, which later specialized in the manufacture of Spitfire aircraft, and Anna Valley Motors, Salisbury, which became the sole producer of the leading fuel tank wing for photo-reconnaissance Spitfires, as well as producing other components.

A specially crafted work, specializing in the manufacture of fuselages and installing engines, was built on Star Road, Caversham in Reading. Office images where all designed Spitfire designs were moved to Hursley Park, near Southampton. The site also has an aircraft assembly hangar in which many prototypes and experimental Spitfires are assembled, but since there are no associated aerodromes no Spitfires ever flew from Hursley.

Four cities and their satellite airfields were chosen to be the focal point for the workshop: Southampton Eastleigh Airport; Aerodromes High Post and Chattis Hill in Salisbury; Trowbridge's Keevil aerodrome; and Reading aerodrome Henley and Aldermaston.

An experimental plant in Newbury was the subject of a daytime attack on the Luftwaffe, but the bomb failed to hit its target and hit a nearby school.

The completed spitfires are delivered to the airfield on low-rated Low-loader Low-loader (Truck) art trucks, there to be fully assembled, tested, then forwarded to the RAF.

Flight testing

All production aircraft tested flight before delivery. During the Second World War, Jeffrey Quill was the head test pilot of Vickers Supermarine, in charge of flight testing of all types of aircraft built by Vickers Supermarine. He oversees a group of 10 to 12 pilots who are responsible for testing all the construction and production spitfires built by the company in the Southampton area. Quill designed a standard test procedure that, with variations for a particular aircraft design, was operated from 1938. Alex Henshaw, the head test pilot at Castle Bromwich from 1940, was assigned to test all the Spitfires built at the plant. He coordinated the team of 25 pilots and assessed all the developments of Spitfire. Between 1940 and 1946, Henshaw flew a total of 2,360 Spitfires and Seafires, more than 10% of the total production.

Henshaw writes about flight testing Spitfires:

After a thorough pre-flight inspection I will take off and, once at the height of the circuit, I will trim the plane and try to make it fly straight and parallel to the hand from the stick... After the trim it satisfies I will take Do spitfire in full-throttle climb on 2,850 rpm to the specified height of one or both supercharger blowers. Then I will check carefully the power output of the engine, calibrated for altitude and temperature... If it all looks satisfactory, I will put it into a dive with full force and 3,000 rpm, and trim it to fly and leg down at 460 mph (740 km/hour) IAS (Air Speed ​​Indication). Personally, I never clean Spitfire unless I have done some aerobatic tests to determine how good or bad he is.

Production tests are usually fairly fast: the initial circuit lasts less than ten minutes and the main flight takes between twenty and thirty minutes. Then the plane received the final once by our ground mechanics, any mistakes fixed and Spitfire ready for collection. I like Spitfire in all its many versions. But I have to admit that the next signs, albeit quicker than the previous ones, are also much heavier and are not handled properly. You have no positive control over them. One test of maneuverability is to throw it into a roll of film and see how many times he rolls over. With Mark II or Mark V one gets a two-and-a-half flick-roll but Mark IX is heavier and you get only one and a half. With newer and heavier versions, there are fewer. The essence of aircraft design is a compromise, and an improvement on one end of the performance envelope is rarely achieved without setback elsewhere.

When Spitfire was last launched in February 1948, a total of 20,351 examples of all variants had been built, including two coach seats, with some Spitfires left in good service into the 1950s. Spitfire was the only British fighter aircraft that continued to be produced before, during and after the Second World War.

Maps Supermarine Spitfire

Design

Airframe

In the mid-1930s, aviation design teams around the world began to develop new generation fighter jets. French Dewoitine D.520 and German Messerschmitt Bf 109, for example, are designed to utilize new monocoque construction techniques, and the availability of new, high-power, liquid-cooled, and inline aero engines. They also feature improvements such as retractable undercarriages, fully enclosed cockpits, and drag wings, low metal wings. These advances had been introduced on civilian aircraft a few years earlier, but were slow to be adopted by the military, which favored simplicity and biplane maneuvers.

Mitchell's design goal is to create a high-performing and balanced fighter aircraft capable of fully utilizing the power of the Merlin engine, while relatively easy to fly. At that time, with France as an ally, and Germany considered the most likely opponent of the future, no enemy fighter is expected to emerge in Britain. German bombers had to fly to England in the North Sea, and Germany did not have any fighter with a range to accompany them. To carry out the home defense mission, the design was intended to allow Spitfire to climb quickly to intercept the enemy bombers.

The Spitfire plane is very complex. The light, semi-monocoque, duralumin-hulled plane displays a number of compounds, vertical curves constructed from the 19th frame, also known as frames, ranging from frame number one, immediately behind the propeller unit, to the attachment of the frame tail unit. The first four frames support glycol header tanks and engine cowlings. Frame five, where the engine carrier is secured, supports the weight of the engine and its accessories. It is a reinforced double frame that also combines fire resistant bulkhead and, in Spitfire version, oil tank. This frame also binds the four major plane lengths to the rest of the fuselage. Behind the bulkhead are five U-shaped 'half circles' that accommodate fuel tanks and cockpit. The back agency started on the eleventh frame, where the pilot seat and (then) armor plating were attached, and ended in the nineteenth, which mounted in the front corner slightly forward fins. Each of the nine frames is oval, reduces the size toward the tail, and inserts some dry holes to reduce their weight as much as possible without weakening it. The U-shaped frame 20 is the last frame of the right fuselage and the frame attached to the tail unit. Frames 21, 22 and 23 form fins; frame 22 inserted the rear wheel opening and frame 23 is the steering post. Before being attached to the main fuselage, the frame of the tail unit is held with a jig and eight horizontal tail formers glued to them.

The combination of 14 longitudinal stringer and four major lengths attached to the frame helps to form a lightweight, but rigid structure where the alclad sheet emphasizes skinning attached. The fuselage coating is 24, 20 and 18 gauge in order of thickness towards the tail, while the fin structure is completed using short short runs of frames 20 to 23, before closing with 22 gauge coating.

The skin of the fuselage, wings and tailplane is secured by dome rivets, and in critical areas such as the main spare front wing where uninterrupted air flow is required, with flush rivets. From February of 1943 the stunning flush was used on the plane, affecting all Spitfire variants. In some areas, such as at the rear of the wing, and the skin of the lower tailplane, the upper part is glued and the bottom is supported by a brass screw tapping into pieces of pine trees bolted to the lower rib. The removable wing edges are made of duralumin spruce forming. At first the ailerons, elevators and rudders were covered in fabric, but the combat experience showed that cloth-covered ailerons were unlikely to be used at high-speed, lightweight alloys replacing fabric, increasing control across the entire speed range.

elliptical wing design

In 1934, Mitchell and the design staff decided to use the semi-elliptical wing shape to complete two conflicting requirements; the wings should be thin so as not to drag too much, but must be thick enough to put undercarriage, weapons, and reversible ammunition. The elliptical planform is the most efficient aerodynamic form for unplayable wings, leading to the lowest number of induced drag. The ellipse is tilted so that the center of pressure, which occurs in the quarter-lock position, aligns with the main spar, prevents the wings from rotating. Mitchell is sometimes accused of copying the wing form Heinkel He 70, which first flew in 1932, but like Beverley Shenstone, the aerodynamics expert on Mitchell's team, explains: "Our wings are much thinner and have quite different parts to Heinkel. anything it will only ask for trouble to copy the shape of the wing of the plane designed for a completely different purpose. "

The wing section used is of the NACA 2200 series, which has been adjusted to create a thickness-to-chord ratio of 13% at the root, reducing up to 9.4% at the end. A dihedral of six degrees was adopted to provide increased lateral stability.

A wing feature, which contributes greatly to its success, is an innovative boom spar design, consisting of five square tubes that match each other. As the wings thinned along the span, the tubes were progressively cut in a manner similar to a leaf spring; two of these explosions are connected together by the alloying network, creating a light and very powerful main spar. The undercarriage foot attaches to the built-in pivot points, the back of the main spar, and is pulled out and retreated slightly into the well in the wing structure with no weights. The resulting narrow undercarriage track is considered an acceptable compromise because it reduces the bending load on the main during landing.

In front of the pole, the wing's leading wings form a strong and rigid D-shaped box, which takes most of the wing load. When the wing is designed, the D-shaped front edge is intended to place the vapor condenser for an evaporative cooling system intended for PV-XII. The constant problem with the evaporation system in Goshawk led to the adoption of a cooling system that uses 100% glycol. Radiators are housed in radiators-a new channel designed by Fredrick Meredith of Royal Aircraft Establishment (RAE) in Farnborough, Hampshire. It uses cooling air to generate a boost, greatly reducing the clean resistance generated by the radiator. In turn, the leading structure lost its function as a condenser, but was later adapted to an integral home fuel tank of varying sizes - a feature patented by Vickers-Supermarine in 1938. The airflow through the main radiator is controlled by pneumatics. close the wings. In early signs of Spitfire (Mk I to Mk VI) a single flap is manually operated using the lever to the left of the pilot seat. When two Merlin stages are introduced in Spitfire Mk IX, the radiator is separated to make room for the intercooler radiator; the radiator under the right wing is halved and the intercooler radiator is placed next to it. Under the harbor wing, the new fairing radiator stores a square oil cooler next to the other half of the radiator unit. Both flap radiators are now operated automatically through the thermostat.

Another wing feature is cleaning it. The trailing bonnet of the wing arched slightly upward over its range, the incident angle decreased from 2  ° at its roots to -Ã,½  ° at the end. This causes the wing root to stop in front of the tip, reducing the ends that can cause a wing sponge, which often causes rotation. When winged roots start stalling, separate airflow begins to shake the plane, warns the pilot, even allowing a relatively inexperienced pilot to fly it to the limits of its performance. This washing was first shown on the Type 224 wing, and became a consistent feature in the next design that led to Spitfire. The complex wing design, especially the precision required to produce vital spars and leading structures, caused some major delays in Spitfire production at first. Problems increase when the job is given to subcontractors, most of whom have never dealt with high-speed, metal-structured aircraft. By June 1939, most of these problems had been resolved, and production was no longer sustained by the lack of wings.

All of the main flight controls were originally metal structures with a cloth cover. Designers and pilots feel that having an ailerons that require an effort level to move at high speed will avoid unwanted aileron reversals, throw the aircraft around and potentially pull the wing off. It is also felt that air combat will take place at a relatively low speed and high speed maneuvering is physically impossible. Flight tests show a layer of cloth from the ailerons "inflated" at high speed, affecting aerodynamics. Changing the fabric cover with the blend of light dramatically increases the ailerons at high speed. During the Battle of Britain, the pilot found the Spitfire aileron too heavy at high speed, severely limiting lateral maneuvers such as coils and high speed rotation, which is still a feature of air-to-air combat.

Spitfire has a removable wing tip secured by two mounting points at the end of each main wing assembly. When Spitfire took on the role of high altitude fighter (Marks VI and VII and some early Mk VIIIs) the standard wing tips were replaced with extended, "pointed" tips that increased the wingspan from 36Ã, ft 10 in (11.23 m) to 40 ft 2 inch (12.24 m). Other wingtip variations, used by some Spitfire variants, are "cut" wings; Standard wing tips are replaced by wood fairings that reduce the range by 3Ã, 6 ft deep (1.07 m). Wingtips are used spruce formers for most of internal structures with lightweight alloy shells attached using brass screws.

The lightweight alloy flap in the wing trailing edge is also pneumatically operated through the finger lever on the instrument panel. Only two positions are available; fully or completely down (85 Â °). Flaps are usually lowered only during the final approach and landing, and the pilot will pull back before sliding.

The ellipse also serves as the design basis for Spitfire fin and tailplane assembly, again harnessing favorable aerodynamic characteristics. Both elevators and steering are shaped so that their center of mass shifts forward, reducing the flutter of the control surfaces. Longer noses and larger propellers generated from larger engines in later models necessitate the larger vertical and, later, horizontal tail surfaces to compensate for the altered aerodynamics, culminating in them from the Mk 22/24 series which is 25 % greater in the area. than belong to Mk I.

Upgraded wing design

When Spitfire gains more power and is able to maneuver at higher speeds, it is likely that the pilot will experience an increased aileron reversal, and the Supermarine design team set about redesigning the wings to fight this. The original wing design has a theoretical aileron reversal speed of 580 mph (930 km/h), which is somewhat lower than some contemporary fighters. Royal Aircraft Establishment notes that, at 400 mph (640 m/h) Indicated airspeed (IAS), approximately 65% ​​of aileron effectiveness is lost due to wing twist.

The new Spitfire F Mk 21 wing and its successors are designed to help alleviate this problem. Its rigidity increased by 47%, and the new aileron design using piano hinges and trim-driven tab meant the theoretical aortic reversal speed increased to 825 mph (1.328 km/h). Along with the redesigned wings, Supermarine also experimented with the original wings, raising the leading edge an inch (2.54 cm), in hopes of improving the pilot's look and reducing the obstacles. This wing is tested on modified F Mk 21, also called F Mk 23, (sometimes referred to as "Valiant" rather than "Spitfire"). Performance improvements are minimal and these experiments are abandoned.

Supermarine developed a new laminer flow flange based on a new aerofoil profile developed by the National Advisory Committee for Aeronautics (NACA) in the United States, with the goal of reducing barriers and improving performance. This laminar airflow is Supermarine 371-I used on roots and 371-II used at the ends. Supermarine estimates that the new wings could provide an increase of 55 mph (89 km/h) above the Spitfire Mk 21. The new wing was initially fitted to Spitfire Mk XIV. Then, the new aircraft was designed, with the new fighter being a spiteful Supermarine.

Carburization compared fuel injection

At the beginning of its development, the lack of Merlin engine fuel injection meant that Spitfires and Hurricanes, unlike the Bf 109E, could not only swoop down steeply. This means that a Luftwaffe fighter can easily "jerk" into a high-powered diver to escape an attack, leaving Spitfire behind, as its fuel is forced out of the carburetor by negative "g". RAF fighter pilots soon learned to "roll over half" of their aircraft before diving to chase their opponents. Sir Stanley Hooker explains the carburetor was adopted for "improving supercharger performance and thereby increasing engine power".

In March 1941, a metal disk with a hole was installed in the fuel line, limiting the fuel flow to a maximum that the machine could consume. Although it does not cure the initial fuel starvation problem in diving, it reduces the problem of a more serious carburetor that is flooded with fuel by the fuel pump below the negative "g". Invented by Beatrice "Tilly" Shilling, it became known as the "Miss Shilling hole". Further improvements were introduced throughout the Merlin series, with Bendix-made pressure carburettors, designed to allow fuel to flow during all flight attitudes, introduced in 1942.

Armament

Due to the shortage of Brownings, which had been chosen as a new standard rifle machine gun for the RAF in 1934, the initial Spitfires were installed with only four rifles, with the other four installed later. Preliminary tests show that while rifles work perfectly on the ground and at low altitudes, they tend to freeze at high altitudes, especially external wing arms. This is because the RAF Brownings have been modified to fire from open bolts. While this prevents overheating of the cordite used in English ammunition, it allows cold air to flow through barrels without a hitch. Supermarine did not fix the problem until October 1938, when they added a hot air duct from the back of the radiator mounted wing to the rifle, and the bulkhead around the gunbays to trap hot air on the wings. Red fabric patches run over gun ports to protect weapons from cold, dirt and moisture until they are fired.

Even if eight Brownings worked perfectly, the pilots soon discovered that they were not enough to destroy larger planes. The combat report shows that an average of 4,500 rounds is required to shoot down enemy aircraft. In November 1938, trials of armored and non-armored targets have indicated that the introduction of weapons with a caliber of at least 20 mm is required. The variant on the Spitfire design with four 20mm Oerlikon cannons has been tendered for the F37/35 specification, but the sequence for the prototype has gone to Westland Whirlwind in January 1939.

In June 1939, Spitfire was fitted with Hispano drum-fed on each wing, an installation requiring large blisters on the wings to cover the 60-round drum. Cannons experience frequent stoppages, especially since guns are mounted on their sides to fit as much as possible from magazines inside the wings. In January 1940, P/O George Proudman flew this prototype in battle, but the right rifle stopped after firing a round, while the harbor gun fired 30 rounds before seizing it. If one of the cannons is seized, retreat from the others throw the plane from the destination.

However, 30 other armed guns-guns were ordered for operational trials, and they were immediately known as IB IBs, to distinguish them from MK IA-armed Browning; they were sent to No. Squadron. 19 which began in June 1940. Hispanics were found to be so unreliable that the squadron requested the exchange of aircraft with an older aircraft from the armed Browning operational training unit. In August, Supermarine has refined a more reliable installation with an improved feed mechanism and four.303 on the outer wing panel. The modified fighter is then shipped to 19 Squadron.

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Operational history

Service operations

The operational history of Spitfire with RAF begins with the First Mk is K9789 , which entered service with 19 Squadrons at RAF Duxford on 4 August 1938. Spitfire achieved legendary status during the Battle of Britain, a reputation aided by "Dana Spitfire" which famously organized and run by Lord Beaverbrook, the Minister of Aircraft Production.

In fact, the Storm exceeded the number of Spitfires during the battle, and carried the burden of defense against the Luftwaffe; However, due to its higher performance, the overall switchover rate of the Spitfire squadron is lower than that of the Hurricane unit, and the Spitfire unit has a higher win-to-loss ratio.

The main purpose of the Fighter Command is to stop the bombers of Luftwaffe; in practice, whenever possible, his tactics were to use the Spitfires against the German guardian fighters, who were then based in northern France, especially Bf 109, while the Hurricane squadrons attacked the bombers.

The famous Spitfire pilot includes "Johnnie" Johnson - 34 enemy planes (e/a) shot down - flying Spitfire through his operational career from late 1940 to 1945. Douglas Bader (20 e/a) and "Bob" Tuck (27 e/a) Fly Spitfires and Hurricanes during the main air combat of 1940. Both were shot down and became prisoners of war, while flying Spitfires over France in 1941 and 1942. Paddy Finucane (28-32 e/a) Printed all his successes in the plane before disappearing in the Strait England in July 1942. Some of the famous Commonwealth pilots were George Beurling (31 ¹ / ₃ e/a) from Canada, "Sailor" Malan (27 e/a) from South Africa, New Zealand Alan Deere (17 e/a) and CF Gray (27 e/a) and Australia Hugo Armstrong (12 e/a).

Spitfire continued to play an increasingly diverse role during the Second World War and beyond, often in the air force other than the RAF. For example, Spitfire became the first high speed photo spy plane operated by the RAF. Sometimes unarmed, they fly at high, medium and low altitudes, often ranging deeply into the enemy's territory to observe the axis powers and provide an almost constant stream of intelligence information throughout the war.

In 1941 and 1942, PRU Spitfires provided the first photos of the Freya and WÃÆ'¼rzburg and, in 1943, helped confirm that Germany was building V1 and V2 Vergeltungswaffe ("revenge gun") rocket by photographing PeenemÃÆ'¼nde, on the coast of the Baltic Sea of ​​Germany.

In the Mediterranean, Spitfire blew heavy attacks on Malta by Regia Aeronautica Luftwaffe and, from early 1943, helped pave the way for the Allied invasions in Sicily and Italy. On March 7, 1942, 15 Mk Vs carrying a 90-gallon fuel tank under their belly took off from HMSÃ, Eagle off the coast of Algeria by plane as far as 600 miles (970 km) to Malta. Spitfire V is the first to see services outside the UK.

Spitfire also served on the Eastern Front: roughly a thousand were supplied to the Soviet Air Force. Although some were used on the front lines in 1943, most of them saw service with Protivo-Vozdushnaya Oborona (English: "Anti-air Defense Branch").

Spitfire also serves in the Pacific Theater where Spitfire meets his match at Mitsubishi A6M Zero Japan. Lt.Gen. Claire Lee Chennault notes: "The RAF pilots were trained with excellent methods against German and Italian equipment, but committed suicide against acrobatic Japs." Though not as fast as Spitfire, Zero can beat Spitfire easily, can keep climbing at a very steep angle, and can stay in the air for three times longer. To fight Zero, Spitfire pilots must adopt a "cut and run" policy and use their faster speed and diving excellence to fight while avoiding classic dogfights.

It also does not help that Southeast Asia is a lower priority area, which is allocated some Spitfires and other modern fighters compared to Europe, allowing Japan to easily achieve air superiority in 1942. Above the Northern Territory of Australia, the Royal Australian Air Force (RAAF) and RAF Spitfires helped defend the port city of Darwin against air raids by the Japanese Navy Air Force, suffering heavy losses mainly due to the limited fuel capacity of that type. Spitfire MKVIIIs took part in the final battle of World War II involving Western allies in Burma, in the role of ground attack, helping to defeat the efforts of the Japanese solution.

During the Second World War, Spitfires were used by the United States Air Force Air Force (USAAF) in the Fighter Group 4 until they were replaced by the P-47 Thunderbolt Republic in March 1943.

Some Spitfires are captured by the Germans and flown by units that test, evaluate and occasionally operate enemy aircraft in secret.

Note speed and altitude

Beginning in late 1943, a high-speed dive experiment was conducted at Farnborough to investigate the handling characteristics of aircraft traveling at speeds near the sound barrier (that is, the beginning of the compressibility effect). Since it has the highest number of Mach of any aircraft at that time, Spitfire XI was chosen to take part in this trial. Due to the high altitude required for this dive, the fully hairy Bottle Rotor blades are installed to prevent overspeeding. It was during this trial that EN409 , flown by Squadron Leader J. R. Tobin, reached 606 mph (975 km/h) (Mach 0.891) in a 45 Â ° dive.

In April 1944, the same plane failed engine failure in another dive as it was flown by Squadron Leader Anthony F. Martindale, Royal Air Force Volunteer Reserve (RAFVR), when the propeller and reduction gear stopped. Diving puts the plane into Mach 0.92, the fastest plane ever recorded on a piston engined aircraft, but when the propeller comes from the Spitfire, it is now tail-heavy, zoom-up back to altitude. Martindale fainted under a load of 11 g, but when he regained consciousness he found a plane at about 40,000 feet with wings (initially straight) now slightly swept backward. Martindale managed to sped Spitfire 20Ã, mi (32Ã, km) back to the airfield and landed safely. Martindale was awarded the Air Force Cross for his exploits.

RAE Bedford (RAE) modified Spitfire for high-speed testing of the stabilizer (later known as "flying tail") from the supersonic Miles M.52 research aircraft. RAE test pilot Eric Brown stated that he tested this successfully during October and November 1944, reaching Mach 0.86 in diving.

On February 5, 1952, Spitfire 19 out of 81 squadrons based in Kai Tak in Hong Kong probably reached the highest altitude ever achieved by Spitfire. The pilot, Lieutenant Flight Edward Ted Cyril Powles, is on a regular flight to conduct outdoor air temperature surveys and report other meteorological conditions at various altitudes in preparation for new air services proposed through the area. It rises to a height of 50,000 feet (15,000 m), with an actual height of 51,550 feet (15,710 m). The pressure of the cabin dropped below a safe level and, in an effort to reduce the altitude, he entered an uncontrolled dive that shook the plane aloud. He eventually regains control somewhere below 3,000 feet (910 m) and lands safely without any damage seen on his plane. Evaluation of the recorded flight data suggested he reach a speed of 690 mph (1.110 km/h), (Mach 0.96) in diving, which would be the highest speed ever achieved by propeller-driven aircraft if the instrument has been considered more reliable.

The critical Mach number of the original Spitfire ellipse wing is higher than the later laminar-flow-section portion used, the straight-tapered-planform wing of Supermarine Spiteful, Seafang and Attacker follow-up, illustrates that the practical engineering approach of Reginald Mitchell for the problem- the problem of high speed flight has paid off.

src: cdn.airplane-pictures.net

Variant

Overview

Although R. J. Mitchell was justified as an engineer who designed the Spitfire, his premature death in 1937 meant that all developments after that date were made by a team led by its chief drama, Joe Smith, who was Supermarine's chief designer of Mitchell's death. As Jeffrey Quill notes: "If Mitchell was born to design the Spitfire, Joe Smith was born to defend and develop it."

There are 24 Spitfire marks and many sub-variants. It includes Spitfire in the development of the Merlin to Griffon engine, a high-speed photo-reconnaissance variant and different wing configurations. More Spitfire Mk Vs is built from another type, with 6,487 built, followed by 5,656 Mk IXs. Different wings, featuring various weapons, match most of the signs; A wing uses eight.303 in machine guns (7.7 mm), B wings have four 0.303 (7.7 mm) machine guns and two 20 mm (0.79 inches) of Hispano, and C, or universal cannons, Wing can install four 20 mm (0.79 inch) or two 20 mm (0.79 inch) and four 0.303 (7.7 mm) machine guns. As the war progressed, the C wing became more common. Another weapon variation is the E wing that holds two 20 mm (0.79 inch) cannons and two Browning machine guns (50.7 mm). Although Spitfire continues to improve speed and weaponry due to its limited fuel capacity range and limited endurance: it remains "short-legged" throughout its life except in a special photo-surveillance role, when its weapons are replaced by extra tank fuel.

Supermarine developed a two-seat variant known as T Mk VIII to be used for training, but nothing was ordered, and only one instance was ever made (identified as N32/ G-AIDN by Supermarine). In the absence of a two-seat official variant, a number of airframes are roughly converted in the field. This includes 4 SAAF Mk VB Squadrons in North Africa, where the second seat is installed instead of the top fuel tank in front of the cockpit, although it is not a dual control plane, and is considered to have been used as a "run-about" squadron. The only unofficial two seater conversion equipped with dual controls is some Russian mucus/aircraft lease Mk IX. This is referred to as Mk IX UTI and is different from Supermarine's proposal by using a double "greenhouse" double canopy instead of an inflated "bubble" type of T Mk VIII.

In the postwar era, the idea was revived by Supermarine and a number of two-seater Spitfires were built by transforming the old Mk IX airframe with a second cockpit "lifting" featuring bubble canopies. Ten of these TR9 variants are then sold to the Indian Air Force along with six for the Irish Air Corps, three to the Royal Dutch Air Force and one for the Royal Air Force of Egypt. Currently several coaches are known to exist, including the US-based T Mk VIII, T Mk IX, and "Grace Spitfire" ML407 , a veteran operated by the 485 (NZ) Squadron in 1944.

Seafire

Seafire, a name derived from laut , and Spitfire , is a naval version of Spitfire that is specifically adapted for the operation of the carrier. Although Spitfire was not designed for carrier operations, it was considered the best fighter available at the time. The basic Spitfire design does impose some restrictions on the use of aircraft as carrier-based fighters; poor visibility over the nose, for example, means that pilots should be trained to land with their heads out of the cockpit and search along the cowling port of their Seafire. Like Spitfire, Seafire also has a relatively narrow undercarriage track, meaning that it is not suitable for deck operations. The Early Seafire mark has slight modifications to the standard Spitfire airframe; But the cumulative front-line experience means that most recent versions of Seafire have strengthened airframes, folding wings, retaining hooks and other modifications, culminating in a Seafire F/FR Mk 47 built with purpose.

Seafire II is able to outperform Zero A6M5 at low altitude when both types are tested against each other during simulated war games simulations. However, contemporary Allied fighter planes such as Hellcat F6F and F4U Corsair are much more powerful and more practical for carrier operations. Performance greatly improved when the latest version of Seafire was installed with Griffon engine. It's too late to see service in World War II.

variant done by Griffon

Rolls-Royce Griffon first engine Mk XII flew in August 1942, and first flew operationally with 41 Squadron in April 1943. This mark can nudge a height of 400 mph (640 km/h) and rise to 33,000 ft (10,000 m) less than nine minutes.

When American fighters take over the long-range escort of United States Daylight bombid air force, the Griffon-engined Spitfires progressively take on the role of tactical air superiority, and play a major role in intercepting the V-1 flying bomb, while the Merlin-engined variants especially Mk IX and Packard-engined Mk XVI) adapted for the role of bomber-bomber. Although Griffon's missing signs lost some of the favorable handling characteristics of their Merlin predecessors, they were still able to defeat their main German enemies and others, then the fighters designed by the Americans and the British.

The last version of Spitfire, Mk 24, first flew in South Marston on April 13, 1946. On February 20, 1948, nearly twelve years from the first flight of prototypes, the last production of Spitfire, VN496 , left the production line. Spitfire Mk 24 was used by just one regular RAF unit, with 80 squadrons replacing their Hawker Tempest with F Mk 24 in 1947. With this airplane, 80 squadrons continued their patrol and surveillance duties from Wunstorf in Germany as part of the occupation forces, until they were transferred to Kai Tak Airport, Hong Kong in July 1949. During the Chinese Civil War, the main task of the 80 Squadron was to defend Hong Kong from the perceived threat of the Communists.

Operation Firedog during the Malayan Emergency watched Spitfire fly over 1,800 operations of abrupt attack against Communist Malaysia. The last sortie operation from RAF Spitfire was flown on April 1, 1954, by PR Mk 19 Spitfire PS888 flying from RAF Seletar, in Singapore.

The last non-operational flight of Spitfire in the RAF service, which took place on 9 June 1957, was by PR Mk 19, PS583 , from RAF Woodvale from Temperature and Humidity Flight. This is also the last known flight of piston-engined fighter aircraft at RAF. The last nation in the Middle East to operate Spitfires was Syria, which retained its F 22 until 1953.

At the end of 1962, Air Marshal Sir John Nicholls instigated a trial when he flew the Spitfire PM631, a PR 19 Mk in British Flight Memorial Battle, against the British electric power F3 (supersonic jet-jet plane ) in a mock battle at RAF Binbrook. At that time the British Commonwealth troops engaged in possible action against Indonesia over Malaya and Nicholls decided to develop tactics against the Indonesian Air Force P-51 Mustang, a fighter who performed similarly to PR Mk 19. The first airframe (PM631) developed the problem mechanical removal from the trial. Another PR Mk 19, PS853 , now owned by Rolls-Royce, was at the guard gate at Binbrook, who had retired from the Battle of Memorial of Flight UK (BBMF) a year earlier. It has been maintained under walking conditions by ground crew at Binbrook, and after a short time participating in the trial. At the end of the pilot, the RAF pilot found that the guided missile Firestreak infrared had difficulty obtaining Spitfire due to its low exhaust temperature, and decided that a 30 mm (1 inch) ADEN cannon was the only weapon suitable for the task. , which was complicated by Spitfire's tight spinning circles, and Lightning's tendency to over-run Spitfire. It was concluded that the most effective and safest way for modern jet-engined fighter aircraft to attack a piston-engined fighter is to involve a fullburner at lower altitudes of Spitfire, and behind it to perform a hit-and-run attack, contrary to all existing combat combat doctrines at the time.

src: images.alphacoders.com

Operator

src: i.pinimg.com

Airplane integration

There are 54 Spitfires and some Seafires in airworthy conditions around the world, although many air museums have examples on static screens, for example, the Chicago Museum of Science and Industry has integrated static Spitfire with static Ju 87 R-2/Trop. Stuka dive bomber.

The oldest surviving spitfire is Mark 1, serial number K9942 ; it is preserved at the Royal Air Force Museum Cosford in Shropshire. This aircraft was the first aircraft built and first flown in April 1939. The aircraft was operated by No. 72 RAF Squadron until June 1940, when it was damaged in the landing of the wheel. After being repaired, it was used for training until August 1944, when it became one of several veterans of the Battle of Britain aircraft allocated to the Air History Branch for the preservation of the museum of the future.

What may be the world's most restored Spitfire previously maintained at Fantasy of Flight in Polk City, Florida. Over a six-year period in the 1990s, the aircraft was slowly being restored by Personal Plane Services in the United Kingdom using nearly 90% of the original aircraft's fleet. The owner of Kermit Weeks insisted that the aircraft be restored to its original state. The machine guns, guns, gun sight, and the original working radio are all mounted.

Two MK 1 Supermarine Spitfires, originally restored by the Aircraft Recovery Company, remain in flying conditions at Imperial War Museum Duxford, in Cambridgeshire, England. Both are returned by American billionaire Thomas Kaplan, who has been donated to the Imperial War Museum and the second auctioned in July 2015 at Christie's, London. This is one of only four flying 1 flying Spitfires in the world. The aircraft took a record Ã, Â £ 3.1 million at an auction on July 9, beating the previous record for Spitfire by Ã, Â £ 1.7 million made in 2009.

One Spitfire is kept in decent condition at the Israeli Air Force Museum.

Find reports of Spitfires that still exist in Burma

After the war broke off in Asia in 1945, a number of Spitfire Mk.XIV were reportedly buried, after being oiled, poured and prepared for long-term storage, in a crate in Burma.

The British Historic Flying Limited company has restored or built from the beginning a significant proportion of Spitfires now eligible to fly.

Some other manufacturers have manufactured replica Spitfires, either as complete aircraft or as kits for self-development. It ranges in scale from 60% to full size, and mostly uses wood construction rather than the original all-metal monocoque design. These include Jurca Spit from France, and produced by Tally Ho Enterprises in Canada. The Supermarine aircraft - originally from Brisbane, Australia, and now based in Cisco, Texas - produces 80% Spitfire Mk26 scale and 90% Mk26B replica scale. Their Supermarine Aircraft Spitfire is provided in kit form and is the only Spitfire aluminum reproduction in production. The Isaacs Spitfire (1975) and Time Warp Spitfire Mk V (1996) are a replica of a 60% homebuilt scale.

src: www.baesystems.com

Important appearances in media

During and after the Battle of Britain, Spitfire became a symbol of British resistance: for example, the "Dana Spitfire" Lord Beaverbrook of 1940 was one of the campaigns that attracted wide public attention to Spitfire. Spitfire continues to be extremely popular in aviation shows, at airstrips and in museums around the world, and holds an important place in many people's memories, especially some of the survivors who flew Spitfire in battle. Many movies and documentaries featuring Spitfire are still being produced, some of which are listed in this section. The First of the Few (also known as Spitfire in the US and Canada) (1942) is an English film produced and directed by Leslie Howard, with Howard was in the lead role of RJ Mitchell, and David Niven played composite characters based on Schneider Trophy pilots in 1927, 1929 and 1931, and Supermarine test pilot Jeffrey Quill. Some footage includes films recorded in 1941 from Operational Spitfires and 501 Squadron pilots (SD grade code). Howard spent a long time researching the development history of Spitfire for the film; Mrs. Mitchell and his son Gordon were on set during most of the production. The aerobatic flight sequence shown in the final 15 minutes of the film was made by Jeffrey Quill in early November 1941, flying the mocked Spitfire Mk II to represent the prototype.

Malta Story (1953), starring Alec Guinness, Jack Hawkins, Anthony Steel and Muriel Pavlow, is a black-and-white war film that tells the Maltese defense story in 1942 when Spitfires became the island's primary defense from air strikes.

Reach for the Sky (1956) starring Kenneth More tells the story of Douglas Bader, using contemporary Spitfire aircraft in production.

Battle of Britain (1969) directed by Guy Hamilton and starring Laurence Olivier, Michael Caine, Christopher Plummer, Ralph Richardson, Michael Redgrave and Susannah York. Set in 1940, the film features several sequences involving a total of 12 flying Spitfiers (mostly Mk IX versions because not many Mk.Is are available at the time), as well as a number of other flying examples from the British WWII era and German aircraft. The Piece of Cake (1987) starring Tom Burlinson, aired on the ITV network in 1987. Based on Derek Robinson's novel, the six-part miniseries cover the pre-war era for "Battle of Britain Hari," 15 September 1940. Described air combat over the skies of France and England during the early stages of the Second World War, despite using five flying examples from the late Spitfires model in lieu of early models of the Hurricanes novel.

Dark Blue World (2001), starring Ond? ej VetchÃÆ'½ is the story of two Czech pilots who fled from Nazi-occupied Europe to fly Spitfires during the Battle of Britain. Jan Sv? RÃÆ'¡k filmed several new air scenes and re-used the air recording of the Hamilton movie.

Guy Martin's Spitfire (2014) is a Channel 4 documentary that includes a two-year recovery of Mark 1 Spitfire, N3200, coded 'QV', which has been buried under the sand for 46 years after an emergency landing on the French coast during Dunkirk's evacuation in 1940. Guy Martin told the Boy's Owner's story of his pilot, Squadron Leader Geoffrey Stephenson and assisted in the recovery of the aircraft.

Dunkirk (2017) directed by Christopher Nolan, featuring three Spitfire aircraft defending the evacuation of British and French troops from Dunkirk against the attack by the German Luftwaffe.

src: cdn.jetphotos.com

Specifications (Spitfire Mk VB)

Spitfire's performance improved greatly during World War II, for more information see the Supermarine Spitfire variant: specification, performance and weaponry.

Data from Spitfire: The History and The Jan Combat World War II

General characteristics

• Crew: one pilot
• Length: 29 ft 11 in (9.12 m)
• Wingspan: 36 ft 10 in (11.23 m)
• Height: 11 ft 5 in (3.86 m)
• Wing area: 242.1 feet ² (22,48 m ² )
• Flights: NACA 2213 (root)
  NACA 2209.4 (tip)
• Empty weight: 5.065 lb (2,297 kg)
• Weight loading: 6.622 lb (3,000 kg)
• Max. takeoff weight: 6.700 lb (3.039 kg)
• Powerplant: 1 ÃÆ'â € "Rolls-Royce Merlin 45 supercharged V12 engine, 1,470 hp (1,096 kW) at 9.250Ã, ft (2,819 m)

Performance

• Maximum speed: 370 mph (322 kn, 595 km/h)
• combat radius: 410 nmi (470 mi (756 km))
• Ferry reach: 991 nmi (1,135 mi (1,827 km))
• Service ceiling: 36,500 feet (11,125m)
• Ascent level: 2,600 ft/min (13.2 m/sec)
• Wings loading: 27,35 lb/leg ² (133,5 kg/m

  Source of the article : Wikipedia