The Supermarine Spitfire
| Designer | R.J.Mitchell. Produced by Supermarine, subsidiary of Vickers-Armstrongs |
| Dates | Maiden Flight 1936, Introduction 1938, Produced 1938-1948 |
Description
The Supermarine Spitfire, a single seated British fighter plane, was used by the RAF during the Second World War. There were 24 Mark of Spitfire with many different variation made during this time.
The first design that Supermarine submitted was for the Type 224, the concept of the Spitfire. Made of metal with a fabric covered gull wing and tail section, it had a fixed undercarriage and what were called streamline fairings over the wheels. A single Rolls Royce Goshawk engine provided 600 horsepower giving the aircraft a speed of 228 mph. Two 0.3.3 guns were mounted in the fuselage and even in the wheel fairings. Unfortunately this aircraft failed in all aspect and was never recognised as a fighter aircraft.
The Type 300-Spitfire MKI, MKII and Mk III
Due to the failure of the Type 224 Reginald Mitchell went about designing a new type of aircraft, the Type 300. The new design required a metal bodied cantilever with metal wings and fuselage. The cockpit was now enclosed and the narrow undercarriage was retractable. A Rolls Royce PV12 glycol cooled engine (later to be called the Merlin) was fitted. Each wing was fitted with four 0.303 Browning machine guns that were to give a much better performance.
Officially the name changed from Type 300 to Spitfire and when the aircraft went into production it was renamed Spitfire Mk I. The power output, due to Rolls Royce's new Merlin II and III, increased to 1,000hp making the aircraft faster than the Type 224. The MK I a was again equipped with the Browning's but the Mk I b replaced the Browning's with twin 20mm cannons. A doomed canopy was fitted at this point sporting a small angular fin.
Mk I Super marine Spitfire Specs.
Power - Rolls Royce Merlin II Engine
Horsepower - 1,175hp
Speed - 355mph
Wingspan - 36ft 10in
Length - 29ft 11in
Height - 11ft 5in
Wing Area - 242sq ft
The Mk I was replaced by a faster, more powerful Mk II with a Merlin MK XII engine to power it. Armour plating was fitted and eight 0.303 Browning machine guns provided the armament. Again different variations of A's and B's were made, in total 751.
The Spitfire Mk III, still looked like a spitfire but had an improved airframe construction. The wing span was reduced and the Merlin XX engine replaced the Merlin XII. The tail wheel now retracted into the fuselage.
Overall there were 22,351 Spitfires built with a unit cost of £12,604 in 1939.
Production did not stop at the Mk III but continued right up to Mk 47.
Colors
The first Spitfires were painted with a camouflage pattern using brown and dark green. The underside would be half black and half white with a dividing line going from the nose to the tail. The underside was later painted duck-egg blue, light gray or even light blue. The camouflage brown was later altered to dark gray as the planes were now having to cross the sea and a gray and green look worked well over land and sea. On the top and bottom of the wings and also on the fuselage a concentric circle of red, white and blue was painted. This was the RAF symbol.To make the planes visible the white circle was omitted from the circles on the top of the wings. A yellow circular band was added to the circles on the bottom of the wings and the fuselage sides. Each plane would have its own serial number painted on both sides near the tail. The code of the Squadron was positioned around the fuselage circles.
The Allied aircraft had black and white stripes painted on the wings for the D-Day invasion so that allied anti-aircraft guns could tell they were friendly.
A Personal View
Since I was a teenager I have been fascinated with the 1940's, especially the period during the Second World War. The Spitfire, I feel is an icon of a by gone age and a symbol, at the time, of hope during a time of despair. When I think about the Spitfire I imagine the pilots running across the air field, climbing into the aircraft and taking off never knowing whether they would return home or not. The pilots were so brave. They risked their lives so we could have a better world. The Spitfire doesn't just remind me of the war but also of the culture of the period. The music, the fashion style and how people, even though they faced adversity, rallied together and supported each other no matter what. Today this does not seem to happen, everyone is so busy and never seem to have time to just to socialise.
Watching the Spitfire fly is amazing. Its a beautiful piece of machinery from a time when high tech had not even been thought of. The sleek and graceful style of the aircraft looks so stunning and exciting when it flies past at a low level. The sound of the engine is so distinctive and I tend to be able to recognise it from some distance. It has a unique low rumble that just goes straight through me but in a good way. I always rush to try a catch a glimpse of the aircraft when we are lucky enough to have a fly pass over my home town.
Another dream when I was younger was to be a fighter pilot so flying in a Spitfire would just be a dream come true.
Context
The Spitfire was not the only successful fighter aircraft during the Second World War. Its main rival was the Messerschmitt Bf109 in not only size but also in speed. The standard fighter aircraft for the luftwaffe it was designed by Willy Messerschmitt and Walter Rethal and took its first test flight in 1935. Due to the revoluntionary design the Bf 109 performance and handling were superb.
Similar to the Supermarine Spitfire the Bf 109 was an all metal aircraft with a closed cockpit and retractable under-carriage. The speed was provided by the Rolls Royce Kestral V engine allowing a maximum speed of 342mph, compared to the top speed of 355mph of the Spitfire. Both aircraft measured the same length, 28 ft 4in, but the Spitfire's wing span was slightly larger than the Bf 109. Two machine guns and 2 20mm cannons provided the armament.
Up until 1940 the Bf 109 was considered to be the world's greatest fighter aircraft but during the Battle of Britain, the Spitfire gave the Bf 109 a run for its money. However, this should not tarnish the reputation of the Messerschmitt Bf 109 because when faced with constantly changing air war, the Bf 109 proved very adaptable, accepting new engines and weapons without a lot of modification being needed. The versatility of the aircraft was the key to its success.
An estimated 35,000 aircraft were built.
Links
www.spitfiresociety.demon.co.uk - Spitfire Society Web Page
www.spitfire.memorial.museum/ - The Spitfire and Hurricane Memorial Museum at RAF Manston's Website
en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Supermarine_Spitfire - The Wikipedia Web Page
| Author: | Fran Long | Date: | 12th March 2008 |