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[122] Although not as fast as the Spitfire, the Zero could out-turn the Spitfire, could sustain a climb at a very steep angle, and could stay in the air for three times as long. [123] To counter the Zero, Spitfire pilots adopted a "slash and run" policy and used their faster speed and diving superiority to fight, while avoiding turning dogfights.
If "bounced" while cruising at low speeds it could take a Spitfire up to two minutes to accelerate to top speed. [58] The only way it was thought that a Spitfire could evade attack was to cruise at high speed and go into a shallow dive with the throttle open. Provided the Fw 190 was seen in time, it could be forced into a long stern chase. [57]
The use of these prefixes did not change according to the wings, which could be fitted with "clipped" tips, reducing the wingspan to about 32 ft 6 in (9.9 m) (this could vary slightly), or the "pointed" tips which increased the wingspan to 40 ft 2 in (12.29 m). Spitfire F Mk XIIs of 41 Sqn.
Spitfire PR Mk XIs were capable of a top speed of 417 mph (671 km/h) at 24,000 ft (7,300 m) and could cruise at 395 mph (636 km/h) at 32,000 ft (9,800 m). Normally Spitfire XIs cruised between these altitudes although, in an emergency, the aircraft could climb to 44,000 ft (13,000 m) However, pilots could not withstand such altitudes for long ...
Other changes to the airframe included flush rivets externally, and shortened and more rounded wing tips which reduced the span from 36 feet 10 inches (11.23 m) to 33 feet 8 inches (10.26 m). Internally, the gun mountings were omitted and all military equipment, including the weapons and radio fits, was removed.
The matter of a seaborne Spitfire was raised again in November 1939 when the Air Ministry allowed a Commander Ermen to fly a Spitfire I. After his first flight in R6718 , Ermen soon learned that Joseph Smith , Chief Designer at Supermarine, had been instructed to fit an "A-frame" arrestor hook on a Spitfire and that this had flown on 16 October ...
Data from Supermarine Aircraft since 1914 General characteristics Crew: 1 Length: 32 ft 11 in (10.03 m) Wingspan: 35 ft (11 m) Height: 13 ft 5 in (4.09 m) Wing area: 210 sq ft (20 m 2) Airfoil: root: Supermarine 371-I; tip: Supermarine 371-II Empty weight: 7,350 lb (3,334 kg) Gross weight: 9,950 lb (4,513 kg) Powerplant: 1 × Rolls-Royce Griffon 69 V-12 liquid-cooled piston engine, 2,375 hp ...
As an aircraft to succeed the Hurricane and Spitfire then entering service, Air Ministry specification F.18/37 required a 400+ mph (at 15,000 ft) fighter with twelve .303 inch machine gun armament. Hawker Aircraft submitted a single seat, single engine design with two possible engines, the Hawker Tornado powered by the Rolls-Royce Vulture and ...