Tested in France. Supermarine Spitfire Mk I fighter. Part 1

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Before posting this article, I want to express my gratitude to my respected colleague redstar72 for his invaluable help in editing the text.

Foreword by Jean-Pierre Touzeau, author of the article “In the footsteps of a legend. The secrets of the first French Spitfire" (Sur les traces d'un mythe. Les mystères du premier "Spitfire" français): Rumors about the Spitfire flying in 1939 with French markings have a long history. What was it - a secret mission, testing before launching into mass production? After a long search, the author of the article presents to readers the history of this car...

Immediately after the first flight of the prototype, which took place on March 5, 1936, the Supermarine Spitfire fighter attracted the interest of the air forces of many countries. One of the first was Yugoslavia, which already at the beginning of 1937 expressed a desire to purchase 30 vehicles of this type. Soon other countries, such as Belgium, Switzerland, Turkey, Lithuania, Portugal and the Netherlands, were tempted by the new fighter and began negotiations to acquire it or manufacture it under license. Japan, through Mitsubishi, has also shown interest in purchasing Spitfires.

A brilliant demonstration in front of the French

In an effort to ensure the rearmament of the country's air force, the French leadership was interested in the products of the British aviation industry (see Appendix 1 in the second part). A delegation of civilian and military experts arrived from France in Britain in late January - early February 1938. After visiting the Bristol Aeroplane Co Ltd in Filton, a small group traveled to Birmingham to visit the Austin and Rover factories. The next day, the delegation visited Woolston and the Supermarine Aviation Works (Vickers) Ltd plant located there. The culmination of the delegation's journey from the Continent was a demonstration at Southampton Airport, where the French were shown the flight of a Supermarine Walrus flying boat piloted by George Pickering. However, the highlight of the program was the flight of the Spitfire, masterfully performed by the famous test pilot Jeffrey Quill.

Soon after this, the French began to explore the possibility of acquiring a number of Spitfires for their air force, which was in dire need of modernization. They were interested in both the fighters themselves and their Rolls-Royce Merlin engines. The main condition for the acquisition of Spitfires was time: the aircraft had to be delivered to France no later than the end of the summer of 1939. The possibility of licensed production was also considered.

However, soon Major Jullerot, who negotiated between the French Ministry of Aviation and the British authorities, informed his superiors that Supermarine would not be able to fulfill the French order - all production facilities were loaded with orders for the Royal Air Force. A new request to the British Air Ministry was sent through the French Embassy in London. This time it was about selling three Spitfires for comparative tests with French-made fighters. On 25 April 1938, Vickers-Supermarine offered to purchase three aircraft at a price of £16,436 per aircraft. For comparison: Morane 406 or Bloch 150 cost almost half the price! On the other hand, the Curtiss H-75 fighters ordered in the United States cost approximately the same as the Spitfires.

Test results

1) Lubrication system

The lubrication system had to maintain its location right down to the preservation of the oil cooler, which was installed under the left plane.

The Spitfire V fighter had an oil tank located under the engine, while the Me 109 G did not have space under the power plant for this, and therefore the oil tank with a capacity of 40 liters was located behind the engine. On this basis, the upper designed fuel tank must be reduced accordingly. Thanks to these changes, oil delivery has been very successful. The return flow of oil to the oil cooler located under the left plane and from it to the oil tank passed through the NW 20 oil line. In comparison with the lubrication system of the Me 109 G, the lubrication system of the Spitfire V fighter operated under an increased pressure of up to 0.3 atm. pressure. For the Merlin 45 engine, the maximum permissible engine oil temperature should not exceed 105°C. The engine oil temperature of an English engine was regulated not by air pressure, but by two oil temperature-dependent valves that were activated when the temperature reached about 95-100°C. However, such temperature control could not be applied during testing. The Spitfire V fighter was equipped with temperature valves from SKF Zchg (Nr. SK5719). Since there was no need to regulate the oil temperature using air pressure in this case, with high aerodynamic resistance of the air passing through the radiator, the temperature valve periodically opened and the oil was quickly heated.

Aerodynamic drag of the oil cooler together with oil lines without a filter installed on the oil return line at 2600 rpm. and temperature tE = 75°, tA = 130°C was approximately 1.7 atm. This aerodynamic drag was approximately equal in magnitude to the old FO 699 oil cooler installed on the Me109 F.

Heat removal from the oil cooler of the DB 605 A engine began when the oil temperature reached 85°C, while the Merlin engine began heat removal when the oil temperature reached 105°C. This was completely insufficient for the converted aircraft and therefore it was decided to limit the maximum oil temperature to 95°C. The DB 605 A engine, compared to the Merlin, additionally heated the engine oil due to heat removal from the hydraulic clutch. The amount of additional thermal energy removed from the hydraulic clutch decreased as the flight altitude increased to the design altitude.

At full throttle at minimum altitude, the DB 605 A engine with 490 kg/h of cooling air passing through the oil cooler gave a quality index of only 0.84 (relative to a maximum oil temperature of 85°C and at an average European summer temperature of + 20°C). When climbing to 3 km, heat dissipation decreased to 0.79 due to the oil temperature reaching 100°C at the inlet to the oil cooler. At an altitude of 5 km when climbing, due to the intense heating of the engine oil, the flight speed should have increased by 30 km/h. Thermal energy removal sharply decreased when high flight altitudes were reached, which led to the conclusion that the oil cooler was poorly efficient at high altitudes when cold air was supplied.

2) Engine cooling system

The engine cooling system was structurally similar (down to the radiator) to the system used at that time on the Me110G.

The aerodynamic resistance of the external circuit of the cooling system at 2600 rpm from the moment of separation of the released gas vapors to the pump was approximately 1 atm. The amount of coolant passing through the cooling system elements was not measured. Heat removal from the radiator and ultimately cooling at high altitudes was insufficient. The high power of the DB 605 A engine heated the engine oil output to 115°C (for the Merlin 55 engine this value was 120°C). The temperature of the coolant at the engine outlet decreased as the elasticity of the steam generated in the cooling system decreased by 0.75 atm. at all heights. The use of a coolant in the cooling system consisting of a mixture of water and glycol in a ratio of 50:50 (versus the English ratio of 70:30 and the English version of the radiator) led to use at lower summer temperatures.

When comparing cooling systems, it becomes clear that despite the fact that the cooling surface area of ​​the Spitfire radiator is 50% less than that of the Me109G power plant, the cooling effect of the Spitfire fighter cooling system was only 4% lower than that of the Me109G. This was the reason that, in absolute terms, the heat transfer from the radiator of the cooling system of the DB 605 A engine installed on the Me109G was lower than that of the Merlin 45 engine. The heat capacity of the coolant did not correspond to the increasing engine power. On the other hand, the installation of the radiator for the engine cooling system could be much more optimal, and the presence of a radiator with a larger cooling surface area allowed for better heat dissipation.

It follows that, despite approximately 150 hp. the greater power of the DB 605 A engine, the radiator area of ​​the cooling system had to be sufficient to cool the engine at high altitudes. The radiator area was insufficient when the aircraft was flying around the airfield and the coolant at the engine outlet was heated to 115°C.

The radiator of the Spitfire fighter cooling system created less aerodynamic drag than the radiator of the Me109G and the entire Spitfire cooling system as a whole worked more stably at higher coolant temperatures than on the Me109G. The injector made it possible to reduce the pressure in the cooling system in front of the pump by 0.2 atm.

3) Fuel system

The fuel system remains the same with the original 200 liter lower fuel tank. The English system for indicating the presence of fuel in tanks could not be adopted, since it was powered by an electric current of 12 V. A corresponding German system was installed in its place. Due to lack of space, installing the pump in the fuel tank was not possible. To ensure an uninterrupted supply of fuel to the engine, a DBU diaphragm pump was installed near the outlet of the fuel line from the fuel tank, and standard German FBH fuel fittings were also installed on the aircraft. The original upper fuel tank, which had a direct connection with the lower fuel tank, was reduced in size to accommodate approximately 170 liters of fuel due to the need to install an oil tank immediately behind the engine.

During testing of the aircraft, there were no problems with the fuel supply system.

4) Compressed air supply system, hydraulic system

The compressed air supply system served to drive the brakes of the landing gear wheels and landing flaps. Compressed air was supplied from a piston compressor, which was driven by the crankshaft of the Merlin 45 engine, and the operating speed of the compressor was half the operating speed of the engine. The DB 605 engine did not have such a drive and compressor, and therefore a reduction gearbox with a gear ratio of 2.2:1 was installed on the converted aircraft. As a result, the conventional English braking system and the landing flap control mechanism worked without problems.

The hydraulic system was used only to drive the chassis. Since an English hydraulic pump could not be installed on the DB 605 A, this problem was solved by installing a Bamag 19.1104 pump with a capacity of 12 l/min. The converted hydraulic system worked without problems.

5) Flight characteristics

a) Speed ​​characteristics

In this section, it should be noted that measurements of the flight characteristics of the Me 109 and Spitfire V fighters with the Merlin 45 engine were carried out with standard sets of weapons installed on the aircraft, while the Spitfire V with the DB 605 A engine flew without weapons, which reduced its take-off weight by approximately for 300 kg. For this reason, first of all, at high altitudes it was necessary to slightly reduce the maximum speed of the Spitfire V fighter with the DB 605 A. As a result, the speed of the Spitfire V with the DB 605 A engine was equal to the speed of the Me 109 G at an altitude of approximately 11 km.

During the tests, a significant drop in power was noted in the Spitfire V with the Merlin 45 engine at altitudes above the design in comparison with what was achieved with the DB 605. This was caused by a worse cylinder filling ratio of the Merlin 45 engine, which had higher speeds and a smaller displacement in comparison. with DB 605 engine.

b) Climb

Due to the lack of weapons on the converted Spitfire V, its rate of climb was deliberately reduced by 1-2 m/s to compensate for the lower flight weight. However, even in this case, its rate of climb was slightly higher than that of the Me 109 G of the same year of production.

According to the results of tests carried out at the test center located in Rechlin, the best rate of climb of the Spitfire V fighter was not determined due to the too small area of ​​the oil cooler and should have increased at medium altitudes. Thus, a noticeable effect of the rate of climb was unlikely to be obtained.

Tests of the captured Spitfire V, EN830, which received the German military number CJ + ZY, were carried out with the DB 605 A-1 engine, whose serial number was 00701990.

The engine for the above tests and its installation with the manufacture of the intermediate engine mount, engine hood, oil tank and upper fuel tank were prepared at the engine building plant in Sindelfinge. The production engine used on the Me110G was used as the power plant for testing.

In addition to numerous repairs to damaged parts, the electrical supply system was completely redesigned and instead of the English 12-volt system, a German 24-volt system was installed on the aircraft.

Cooling system performance comparison table

6) Aircraft condition

Production version of the Spitfire V fighter without a radio station (replaced by ballast of the appropriate weight), but with a radio mast. Without weapons, without open holes in the wing for cannons and machine guns, but with preserved bulges for weapons.

Detroit and Rozanov will test the Spitfire

On September 16, 1938, two highly qualified French pilots were hired to conduct flight tests of Spitfires. Geoffrey Quill recalled their visit:

“At that time (1938-39) there was an endless stream of foreign military missions coming to us. As a rule, they were accompanied by employees of the London headquarters of the Vickers concern, and often by McLain himself [1] . I was asked to perform demonstration flights in front of these delegations: the Swiss, the Turks, the Estonians, the Greeks, the Portuguese... Almost all of these countries purchased Spitfires. The French evaluation commission that arrived in Eastleigh included the famous aviator Michel Detroit - a kind of adviser to the ministry, as well as a young, but at the same time very competent, Air Force officer named Rozanov [2] , with whom we immediately became friends. He spent several days in Eastleigh, where he flew a Spitfire."

Michel Détroyat was known as a master of aerobatics back in the 1920s. The general public knew him primarily as a successful racing pilot, including his victory in the National Air Races in the USA in 1936. In March 1937, Michel Detroit became a kind of “expert” of the Ministry of Aviation and, in this capacity, conducted flight tests of aircraft that were of interest to official services. Captain Konstantin Rozanov has been an employee of the Aviation Equipment Testing Center (Centre d'essais du matériel aérien - CEMA) since 1935. His flight book already had many interesting pages: for example, at the end of 1937 it was he who tested Messerschmitt Bf 109B fighter captured by the Spanish Republicans . The Messer was a kind of standard against which all fighters were compared, which made the evaluation of the Spitfire even more interesting.

It is very likely that after the tests the two French pilots wrote up reports. Were they lost or simply destroyed during the 1940 disaster? Be that as it may, nothing concrete has survived. However, as far as we know, the conclusions drawn by Detroit and Rozanov were identical. The Spitfire was much faster than the French fighters and had impressive firepower, but was less maneuverable and more demanding to fly than the main frontline fighter of the time, the Morane 406 (the Dewoitine D.520 did not make its first flight until October 1938 of the year). These less-than-flattering remarks, coupled with the high price requested by Vickers-Supermarine, did not help speed up the ongoing negotiations.

The situation in the negotiations was further worsened by the fact that during the organization of mass production, the British side encountered delays in deliveries; Most often, delays were associated with the production of elliptical wing consoles. It should be noted that the construction of one Spitfire took 30% more man-hours than the Hurricane. Spitfires were supplied to the Royal Air Force in literally homeopathic doses, and the British Air Ministry was by no means eager to export these precious fighters.

Weapons of the winners. Spitfire fighter

...Britain rules the seas, but air is more important than water. In battles with the Luftwaffe, a superhero was born, who crushed a good third of German aviation in the skies in World War II. His name is “Supermarine Spitfire” (“Ardent”).

It is curious that the creator of the legendary machine, aircraft designer Reginald Mitchell, did not have a specialized education. The lack of a diploma was compensated by enormous experience in engineering positions. From a draftsman at a locomotive plant to the technical director of the Supermarine company.

In total, over the years, Mitchell designed 24 types of different aircraft, including the record-breaking Supermarine S6B (1931). Looking at modern airliners, it is impossible to imagine how this braced monoplane with ridiculous floats could accelerate to 650 km/h. Even a decade later, in the first years of WWII, not a single production fighter could boast of such a result.

The experienced designer knew that the main resistance in flight is created by the wing. In pursuit of speed, you need to reduce its area. Reduce it so much that modern cruise missiles have only short “shoots” sticking out instead of wings. But an airplane is not a rocket. A wing that is too small will result in unacceptable landing speeds. The car will crash on the strip. But what if instead of solid ground there is water that can soften the blow? And Mitchell put his S6B on the floats. The cheerful flying boat broke all records, and its creator received the prefix “sir” to his name.

The games continued until an order appeared for a promising fighter for the Royal Air Force. The competition was not easy, seven eminent companies submitted applications for participation: Hawker, Westland, Blackburn, Gloucester, Vickers and Supermarine). At first, the Supermarine models were hopelessly lost to competitors, and Mitchell’s bold plans were not put into practice. Until the correct configuration of elements appeared: an elliptical wing of amazing beauty and grace, a similar thin-profile elliptical tail and a Rolls-Royce Merlin engine with a reliable liquid cooling system.

But what is romance without women?

Lucy Houston played a special role in the history of Spitfire. British aristocrat who donated 100 thousand pounds to Mitchell. sterling. This was a lot of money: in those years it was possible to build four serial fighters with it. In fact, she sponsored the creation of one of the most successful aircraft of the Second World War, which simply would not have appeared without her.

Here the force of the explosion mixed blood with water, But even then, stern and strong, The fragment of the airplane steering wheel was not released by a dead hand...

(The wreckage of a Spitfire off the coast of Malta)

When Mitchell was told how beautiful his plane was with such an elegant wing, he shrugged his shoulders indifferently: “What difference does it make, the main thing is how many machine guns you can put in that wing.” And as many as eight of them fit there - 160 bullets per second. Although of a weak rifle caliber (7.62).

In fact, it’s quite good for the initial period of WWII on a “purebred” fighter-interceptor, created for battles with its own kind. A bullet, no matter how “small” it may be, is still a bullet. Just one hit on the Messerschmitt engine was enough for the entire cooling system to fail (which is true for any aircraft with an in-line engine with a vulnerable liquid cooling “jacket”). And more such bullets were fired per second than are fired by modern six-barreled miniguns. The air was literally saturated with traces of hot lead. The Spitfire was not created for jokes.

Almost simultaneously, a “cannon” modification of the fighter, with two 20-mm Hispano cannons in the wing, was launched into production. The installation turned out to be easy (even easier than standard “garlands” of machine guns), but fixing it turned out to be a problem. “Hispano” was intended to be installed in the camber of the cylinder block, where a heavy engine became its carriage. When installing it in the wing, it was necessary to design a new carriage and increase the rigidity of the structure.

The fighter's armament has continuously evolved.

The Spitfires of the 1942 model already had mixed cannon and machine gun armament. The latest modifications were equipped exclusively with guns. It is worth noting that based on the results of the air battles of World War II, the question “What is more effective: cannons or “garlands” of machine guns?” I was left without a clear answer.

"Spitfire" and its faithful partner "Mustang"

As, indeed, is the choice of engine. Despite their increased vulnerability, liquid-cooled engines guaranteed better streamlining and improved aerodynamics of aircraft. Unlike the USSR, Germany and the USA, where a wide range of aircraft with liquid and air-cooled engines were used, the British flew throughout the war exclusively on liquid-cooled engines. The permanent symbol of the Royal Air Force was the Rolls-Royce Merlin, named after the falcon bird of prey (or did anyone seriously believe that the engine of a combat aircraft was named after the wizard from Oz?)

An exceptionally reliable and versatile engine that the Shavers used to power everything. One “Merlin” made a “Spitfire”. Of the two - “Mosquito”. Of the four - the strategic Lancaster. The degree of prevalence of “Merlin” is evidenced by the fact that the number of modifications of the main “branch” of engine development had continuous numbering from “1” to “85”. Excluding licensed copies and experimental areas.

The “Ardent” dynasty also had a dozen main modifications: from the “primitive” pre-war version of the Mark-I to the crazy Mark-21, 22, 24, which were delivered in the last months of WWII. Extended fuselage, teardrop-shaped canopy, bomb holders. Maximum speed in horizontal flight is 730 km/h.

In 1944, during tests, pilot Martindale accelerated such a Spitfire at its peak to 0.92 speeds of sound (1000 km/h), setting an absolute record for WWII piston fighters.

After the war, in 1952, a weather reconnaissance aircraft (Spitfire from the 81st squadron based in Hong Kong) reached a record altitude of 15,700 meters.

In terms of their characteristics and design, these were completely new aircraft, retaining only the name from the original Spitfire. There was no longer a “Merlin” inside; instead, starting with version XII, a new Rolls-Royce Griffon engine was installed. The British bore the cylinders well, bringing the working volume to 36.7 liters (10 liters more than the Merlin). At the same time, thanks to the efforts of the designers, the engine dimensions remained unchanged, only the weight increased by 300 kg.

“Griffons” with a double supercharger could produce 2100-2200 hp in flight; German Uber engineers never dreamed of this. However, this was partly due to high-quality gasoline with an octane rating of 100 and above.

Simpler modifications of the Spitfire, the “winged working wars,” also shook the blue sky with the power of their engines. As an example, the most popular model Mk.IX (1942, 5900 copies built).

Takeoff power 1575 hp. Speed ​​in horizontal flight is 640 km/h. Excellent rate of climb - 20 m/s in steady state. In dynamics - who knows how much. Many tens of meters per second.

The fighter's altitude performance was ensured by a two-stage centrifugal supercharger and American Bendix-Stromberg carburetors with automatic mixture control (altitude corrector).

All metal construction. High altitude oxygen system. A multi-channel radio station coupled with a radio compass. On the Spitfire IX of the British Air Force, the radio transponder R3002 (3090) of the “friend or foe” system is required.

Armament: two 20 mm cannons (120 rounds per barrel) and two 12.7 mm Brownings (500 rounds). Some vehicles had four rifle calibers instead of heavy machine guns.

Armament in shock version - 500-lb. bomb on the ventral holder and two 250-lb. under the wings.

Among the records of “Nine”:

She is responsible for the first reliable case of the destruction of a Messerschmitt jet (October 5, 1944)

On the same Spitfire in March 1945, air defense pilots intercepted a German high-altitude reconnaissance aircraft over Leningrad, flying at an altitude of over 11 kilometers.

In September 1945, a record jump was made from the cabin of the Nine. Pilot V. Romanyuk parachuted from a height of 13,108 meters and landed safely on the ground.

In total, 1.3 thousand Spitfires hit the Soviet Union. The first vehicles appeared back in 1942 as part of the 118th Naval Aviation Regiment of the Northern Fleet. These scouts (mod. PR Mk.IV) made a noticeable contribution to the victory in the North, incommensurate with their number. Thanks to their altitude and speed, Spitfires could fly over German bases in Norway with impunity. It was they who “grazed” the parking lot of the battleship “Tirpitz” in Kaafjord.

Another batch of aircraft appeared in the spring of 1943 (this was the first time that Spitfires began to be officially delivered abroad). Fighters of the Mk.V modification were immediately thrown into the Kuban “meat grinder” as part of the 57th Guards IAP, where they showed fairly successful results (26 air victories in a month).

Since February 1944, large deliveries of Spitfires of modification IX began. Considering the high-altitude qualities of these fighters (the Spitfire had a 3-kilometer higher ceiling than the domestic La-7), all British fighters were sent to air defense aviation.

Statistics instead of words

According to the “Black cross/Red star” (Black cross/Red star, authors Andrei Mikhailov and Christer Bergstrom), one of the most complete reference publications devoted to air confrontation during WWII, as of October 1944, the Luftwaffe lost in the Eastern front 21,213 aircraft.

During the same period, Luftwaffe losses in the Western theater of operations amounted to 42,331 aircraft. If we add another 9,980 German aircraft lost in the period 1939-41, the full statistics become 21,213 to 52,311.

Indirectly, these calculations are confirmed by the adoption of the “Urgent Fighter Program” to protect the Reich (1944, Hitler’s decision to curtail the production of all types of aircraft except fighters). All sorts of stories about the Allies’ battles with jet Messerschmitts, He.219 Uhu, strategic four-engine bombers He.177 Greif and FW-190 Sturmbok modifications, which were never heard of on the Eastern Front.

You can compare the Luftwaffe figures with the facts of the sinking of thousands of ships in the Atlantic and Mediterranean Sea. All this required bombers and torpedo bombers, covered by fighters. Which carried out combat missions and, of course, suffered losses. Attack of the Maltese convoys, air cover during Operation Cerberus, a massive raid of thousands of German aircraft on Allied airfields (Operation Bodenplatte, January 1, 1945) with painful losses for both sides, etc. and so on.

And at the same time take into account the scale of the air Battle of Britain.

Taking all this into account, it becomes clear why the bulk of the Luftwaffe aircraft died in the Western theater of operations.

Where the main and most massive enemy of the Germans in the air was the Supermarine Spitfire, which destroyed at least a third of all fascist aviation during the war years. A logical result for 20 thousand fighters, continuously produced from the beginning to the very end of WWII, and daily, for 6 years, engaged in battles with the Luftwaffe.

One is “sleeping” and the motor needs to be replaced

The Munich crisis at the end of September 1938 and the gloomy prospects of the impending war probably contributed to some of the change in sentiment. On November 17, the Foreign Office, given the importance of strengthening ties between Britain and its ally, finally put the provision of a Spitfire to the top of its list of priorities. Finally, on 19 January 1939, the British Air Ministry authorized the sale of one Spitfire fighter and a Merlin III engine as a spare. Contract C590/39 was signed for 2.5 million francs; delivery was to take place in May 1939.

Also at the beginning of 1939, a number of delegations of French officials visited the UK, wishing to become acquainted with British know-how in the field of aircraft manufacturing. It all began in March 1939, when a large delegation of French industrialists, including Louis Breguet, Emile Devoitin, Charles Gourdu, Henri Potez and Lucien Chauvière, went on a grand tour of British aircraft factories. The following month, the French Minister of Aviation, Guy La Chambre, visited the UK; he visited the Handley Page plant, where he could appreciate the “high-speed”, as Flight weekly put it, assembly line on which Hampden bombers were assembled. Finally, in May, a French military delegation led by Army General Julien Dufieux arrived. She visited the Vickers-Supermarine assembly line in Southampton where Spitfire fighters were made and met Geoffrey Quill and George Pickering.

(Continued. Started in Nos. 1-4, 7-8, 10-12/2005, 1-9,11/2006)

Spitfire group 21 of the Auxiliary Air Force in flight over the sea, 1948.
THE LAST SPITFIRE
As mentioned in the January issue of our magazine, at the very end of the Second World War, the Spitfire XIV was replaced in the workshops by the Spitfire XVIII.

This aircraft began to be developed under the name "Super Spitfire". Ultimately, a model was put into production that retained all the distinctive features of the “fourteenth” later series (vertical tail of a larger area, E-type wing, lowered gargrot and all-round canopy) in combination with a fuselage extended to 10.14 m, a reinforced wing and landing gear .

Now not only reconnaissance aircraft, but also all fighter aircraft carried two tanks with a capacity of 150 liters in the rear of the fuselage. All this increased the take-off weight by almost 800 kg and, accordingly, worsened the flight data (the engine remained the same - Griffon 65). And yet, during this period of the war, increasing the range and duration of the flight was considered a more important quality than good piloting skills. German planes in the air no longer threatened the Eighteenth.

Production began in the summer of 1945 with a fighter version designated F.XVIII. Exactly 100 of them were produced (some sources claim 99). They were followed by 200 FR.XVIII scouts. They had more extensive equipment than the FR.XIV.

The aircraft could be equipped with two plan and one advanced camera type F.24 or one large plan F.52. Not a single “eighteenth” made it to the front.

The dynasty of the “eighteenths” was continued by “Spitfire” 21. As a matter of fact, work on it began earlier, but, representing a more profound reworking of the basic design, it took longer to complete.

Super Spitfire prototype - Spitfire Mk.XVIII

Assembly of the Spitfire Mk.XVIII at the factory

Spitfire Mk. 21

In flight Spitfires Mk.21 and Mk.22 (with teardrop-shaped canopy)

Spitfire Mk.22

Spitfire Mk.21

In December 1942, the experimental Spitfire XX was converted into the first prototype of the Twenty-First. In July 1943, it was replaced by another aircraft, which bore this name from the moment it was laid down. On January 27, 1944, the first production Spitfire 21 took off, featuring a new Y-type wing with extended ailerons, an almost straight leading edge and differently shaped tips.

After testing several options, the designers settled on a wing with a span of 1 × 1.25 m with an area slightly larger than the standard version.

The armament consisted of four 20 mm belt-fed cannons (before that, on all modifications of the Spitfire, shells were located in drum-type magazines). The fuselage resembled the first series of F.XIV. The chassis was changed, increasing the size of the wheels and lengthening the struts by 110 mm.

Since the wheel wells could not be moved, the stand was made into a sliding telescopic one (like on the Thunderbolt). Lengthening the struts was a necessary measure caused by the desire to use a five-blade propeller of a larger diameter (3.35 m versus 3.17 m for the F.XVIII). The wheels in the retracted position were now completely closed, for which additional flaps were hung on the wing. The tail unit was taken entirely from the Spitfire XIV.

There is information that this plane, in which practically not a single detail remained from the original Spitfire, was originally intended to be named “Victor” for counter-rotation. But in the end, wanting to preserve the name of the legendary progenitor, the car was left as a Spitfire. True, Roman numerals were replaced by Arabic ones according to the new notation system.

Spitfire Mk.22

The first production Spitfire Mk.22

Spitfire Mk.22 variant with Griffon 85 engine and six-blade propeller

In 1943-44. Large orders were issued for the Spitfire 21. Production began at a new plant in South Marston. Deliveries began in January 1944. The first aircraft were sent to a special Air Force squadron, in fact, for extended military testing.

The pilots' reviews were disappointing. Although the speed increase compared to the F.XIV was 15-20 km/h, the new fighter suffered from insufficient stability and poor controllability. The increase in mass and the associated load on the wing did its dirty work. The Air Force leadership declared the vehicle unsuitable for use in combat units.

But by this time, 21 Spitfires had already entered the 91st Squadron, which was located in Manston. rushed to quickly modify the fighters.

Metal-clad elevators with enlarged horn compensators were installed on the plane, the trim tab drive was changed, and a number of other changes were made. This made it possible to consider the vehicle quite combat-ready.

In March 1945, 91 Squadron received improved aircraft and was declared ready for combat operations by the beginning of the next month.

On April 10, Spitfires 21 made their first flight to the front - they conducted reconnaissance of V-2 missile launchers in Holland. Later, another 153 combat sorties took place, but not a single meeting with the enemy in the air was recorded. But the anti-aircraft gunners of the German ships shot down two Spitfires. In response, the pilots chalked up a Bieber-class dwarf submarine.

Another squadron on the day of the victory over Germany was at the stage of mastering new technology.

In March 1945, in parallel with the “twenty-first”, Spitfire 22 began to be assembled in South Marston. These aircraft were distinguished by an all-round visibility canopy and a modified electrical system (it was switched from 12 V to 24 V). Most of the aircraft had an enlarged vertical tail with a metal-sheathed rudder. The Model 22 came into service after the war and was not widely used.

Spitfire Mk.24

"Spiteful" Mk. 14

The first production "Spiteful" Mk. 14 in flight

Spitfire 23 was an experimental machine with a laminar wing profile. When it turned out that the increase in speed was no more than 5-7 km/h, the work was closed.

The last modification of the Spitfire was the F.24, which corresponded to the late Twenty-Second, which added two additional gas tanks in the fuselage and installed short-barreled Hispano Mk.V cannons. They were built from April 1946 to March 1948. 27 Spitfires 22 were also modified according to this model.

By this time, the evolutionary possibilities of the Spitfire had been exhausted; it had to give way to a new generation of fighters.
But the history of this machine was by no means over; it had to serve for a long time in different countries and survive more than one war. But this is a separate conversation. “SPITEFUL” AND “SIFENG”
The logical conclusion of the Spitfire family was the Spiteful fighter. It began to be developed in 1943 according to instructions F.1/43.

The mission required a high-speed fighter with a Griffon engine and an armament of four guns. For the new car, a completely new wing with a laminar profile was designed. It was no longer elliptical; its front edge became straight, and a kink appeared on the back. The main landing gear was retracted with its wheels towards the axis of the aircraft, thereby increasing the landing gear track. The plane had to become more stable during the takeoff and run.

In the first version, the Spitful combined a slightly modified Spitfire XVIII fuselage, a motor mount with a Griffon 61 (similar to the Fourteenth) and a new wing. On June 30, 1944, J. Quill took it into the air.

This experimental vehicle was destroyed at the end of the year, but a backup was already ready, featuring a lower garrot and a new canopy. It also featured a modified tail. By the way, this was the tail that was subsequently used on the later Spitfires of types 22 and 24.

At the end of 1944 they began to assemble the installation series. The car was officially called “Spiteful” 14. Why the previous thirteen digits were missed is unknown.

The only "Spiteful" Mk. 16 – Britain's fastest piston aircraft

The first production "Sifeng" F.31 at the hangar and in flight

In May-April 1945, the Air Force received 17 fighters. Only eight were put into service, the rest were mothballed and subsequently scrapped.

In the conditions of the post-war reduction of the armed forces, the development of mass production of a new fighter was considered unnecessary. But experimental work continued. In 1946, the Spiteful 15 was released with a Griffon 89 engine and a six-blade coaxial counter-rotation propeller (a combination of two three-blade ones). In 1947, the experimental Spytful 16 took off. It was equipped with an even more powerful Griffon 101. This model is still the fastest English piston aircraft. During testing, it showed 790 km/h (serial “Spitefuls” XIV gave 777 km/h). This is where the improvement of the Spiteful ended - British fighter aircraft switched to jet technology.

In 1946, the Attaker carrier-based jet fighter entered flight tests. Its design used the wing and chassis of the Spiteful.

"Attaker" was subsequently built in series and was in service until the mid-50s.

The fate of the Spiteful was shared by its deck version, the Sifeng fighter. It was developed according to assignment N.5/45, issued in May 1945. Then the sailors immediately ordered 150 aircraft that did not yet exist, and it was planned to use the reserve for 150 Spytfuls, the order for which was canceled on May 2, 1945.

The first experimental "Sifeng" (the so-called "interim" prototype) was converted from the "Spiteful" and featured a landing hook, reinforced landing gear and ejection grips.

The first production Sifang F.31 (converted from the sixth production Spytful) took to the skies in January 1946, ahead of the deck prototype. The first planned prototype aircraft (Spiteful F.32) featured a folding wing. Only the ends folded upward. The aircraft received a Griffon 89 engine and coaxial propellers. Work on the aircraft was largely fueled by the interest of the Dutch in it, who used the already archaic Fairies “Firefly” as carrier-based fighters. On August 21, 1946, Spitful was demonstrated in Holland in front of American, French and Dutch officers.

"Sifeng" Mk.32

Supermarine "Type 391"

With the start of work on the Attaker carrier-based jet fighter, which has the same wing, the Spytfuls were intensively tested at high flight speeds. During the dive the plane was accelerated to M=0.75. At higher speeds, strong shaking began. By smoothing out the unevenness of the wing, it was possible to achieve speeds of the order of M = 0.8. Another new feature - boosters in the aileron control channels - did not improve controllability at high speeds, and they were not used on the Attaker.

By that time, the military had lost interest in piston engines. The order was significantly reduced. In fact, only nine Sifengs were assembled, which never made it into service. The Admiralty reasoned that it was better to continue operating the Seafires while waiting for new jet technology than to accept a new type into service.

The latest development of the Seafire was the Type 391 project, which appeared on the drawing boards on June 20, 1944. To improve the aerodynamic quality of the wing, the underwing radiators, so characteristic of the Spitfire family, were replaced with radiators in the wing root. This also forced a change in the landing gear retraction scheme (the struts were retracted almost vertically into the fuselage). The speed was expected to be about 800 km/h. But placing an order for the “type 392” - the future “Attaker” - put an end to work on the continuation of the “Spitefula” / “Sifenga” line. It was already clear to everyone that the era of jet aviation was coming.

Spitfire FRXVIII

Spitfire F.21

Spitfire F.22

Spitfire F.24

Spitful F.16
Spitfires today
(To be continued)

January 12 – 100 years since the birth of S.P. Korolev

Yuri MITIN

Table of contents

N21 arrives at Vélizy-Villacoublay

The Spitfire purchased by the French was the 251st production copy. It was a Spitfire Mk I taken straight from the Eastleigh production line. The aircraft of this production batch received military numbers of the type Lxxxx from the RAF (thus, the 250th aircraft received the number L1036, and the 252nd – L1037). However, the “French” copy received the number N21. The fact is that in the mid-1930s and early 1940s in Britain there was a special system for assigning registration numbers to experimental aircraft intended for export. According to it, each company was assigned a letter designation (for example, the Supermarine company received the letter N) and, accordingly, each special aircraft was assigned its own serial number. For example, the Speed ​​Spitfire , a specially modified aircraft to set a world speed record, had registration number N17.

The Spitfire N21 was powered by a Rolls-Royce Merlin III engine, a three-blade de Havilland propeller, and was armed with eight 7.7 mm Browning machine guns. On June 25, 1939, the plane took off for the first time. Over the next two days it was tested by Geoffrey Quill, and on July 5 its speed was assessed in a joint flight with a Hurricane.

Meanwhile, the first French delegation consisting of

"Messrs. Amouroux and Soulier"

went to the UK to resolve administrative issues related to

"receipt of a Spitfire aircraft."

Responsibility for moving the car was assigned to Konstantin Rozanov. On July 18, 1939, Rozanov, Marcel Housset and Soulier flew from Vélizy-Villacoublay to Southampton on a light multipurpose aircraft Caudron Simoun. The French returned home the same day; After 55 minutes of flight, the Spitfire, piloted by Rozanov, landed in Vélizy-Villacoublay, where it was handed over to CEMA representatives.

Spitfire Mk I vs Bf 109E

Spitfire Mk I vs Bf 109E

On November 22, 1939, the French Air Force received a present in the form of a Bf 109E-3 fighter (serial number 1304, side - “14” white, the car belonged to 1/JG-76), which made an emergency landing near the village of Uerz, department Bos-Rhine. The French first flew the aircraft, and in May 1940 the fighter was delivered to Farnborough for further testing. At one stage of testing, a training dogfight was conducted between a Bf 109E and a Spitfire Mk I fighter equipped with a Rotol propeller. Below are excerpts from the report of this fight:

1. The tests began with the simultaneous takeoff of both fighters, the Spitfire being slightly behind the Bf 109E-3 on takeoff; The Spitfire engine speed was 3000 rpm.

2. After takeoff, the Spitfire pilot reduced the speed to 2650 rpm, after which he demonstrated a better rate of climb compared to the Bf 109E-3. At 4,000 feet, the Spitfire was 1,000 feet above the Bf 109E-3. From this position, the English fighter came behind the enemy and remained in a position convenient for opening fire, despite all the attempts of the Bf 109E pilot to break away.

3. The Spitfire pilot then allowed the Bf 109E pilot to get behind his fighter, after which he easily broke away from the enemy. The Spitfire demonstrated excellent maneuverability and the ability to turn at extremely low speeds in the range of 10-140 mph. Using low speed and a smaller turning radius, the Spitfire easily entered the tail of the Bf 109E.

4. Another effective maneuver for the Spitfire to evade an attack from the Bf 109E is a downward spiral at a speed of 120 mph at an engine speed of 2650 rpm. In this mode, the Spitfire can also easily get behind the Bf 109E.

5. Speed ​​tests have shown that the Spitfire's horizontal flight speed is higher and it also accelerates faster. In a dive, the Spitfire is superior to the Messerschmitt.

Tests have proven that the Spitfire is superior to the Bf 109E in almost all respects. The British believed that German pilots would fight Spitfires in turns and at low speeds, trying to get behind them. The Germans used the same tactics that they used in Spain to fight the more maneuverable Soviet fighters. The Messerschmitts walked at high altitude and waited for an opportune moment for a swift attack from above. After each attack, the Messerschmitts, trying not to get involved in a maneuver battle, again went to the heights. With such tactics, the Spitfire's superior maneuverability at low altitudes did not play a special role.

Comparative tests of the Bf 109 and the captured Spitfire I were also carried out at the Luftwaffe test center located in Rechlin. The Germans drew diametrically opposite conclusions based on the test results. One of the pilots who flew both the Spitfire and the Hurricane was Werner Mölders. He wrote:

— It was very interesting to fly in Rechlin on the Spitfire and Hurricane. Both types of aircraft are much simpler in piloting technique than our fighters. They are much easier to take off and land on. The Hurricane has better maneuverability in the horizontal plane, but in other respects its characteristics are inferior to those of the Bf 109. Controlling the British aircraft requires more effort. The Spitfire, compared to the Hurricane, looks like a different class of aircraft. It handles beautifully and has performance comparable to that of the Bf 109. However, from a fighter aircraft perspective, the Spitfire concept appears to be flawed. A sharp deviation of the handle away from you can lead to an interruption in the operation of the engine. The full use of the aircraft's characteristics in air combat is severely limited by the presence of only two settings for setting the pitch of the propeller blades.

The opposite results of comparative tests on both sides of the front line are quite understandable. Each side tried to present its technology in the most favorable light for reasons of “political correctness.” During the Battle of Britain, air battles took place at altitudes of 13,000 to 20,000 feet, since these were the altitudes at which bombers flew. In this altitude range, the performance of the Spitfire I/II and the Bf 109E was approximately equal. In this case, combat tactics came to the fore, and not minor differences in flight data.

Wing Commander Douglas Bader's Mk IIA P7966/DB, March 1941.

Mk I K9854/QV-W by Flt Lt Wilfred Clouston, October 1939.

Mk IB R6776/QV-H by F/Sgt George Unwin, August 1940.

Mk I P9386/QV-K squadron leader Brian Lane, Fowlmere, September 1940.

Mk IIA P7849/QV-J by Flt Lieutenant Walter Lawson, June 1941.

Mk IIA P7666/EB-Z squadron of leader Donald Finley. November 1940

Mk I N3173/KL-N Pilot Officer Colin Gray, May 1940.

Mk I N3173/KL-B Pilot Officer Alan Dear, May 1940.

Mk I P9389/KL-A squadron leader James Leathart, May 1940.

Mk I P9554/K-SH Pilot Officer James O'Meara, August 1940.

Mk 1 K9906/FZ-L. Flight Lieutenant Robert Tuck, August 1939

Pilot Officer Hubert Allen's Mk 1 V3035/LZ-X, September 1940.

Mk I X4321/LZ-F pilot officer Crelin "Bogli" Body. September 1940

Mk IIA P7308/XR-D Pilot Officer William Dunn, August 1941.

Mk I serial number unknown/RN-J by Flt Lt Desmond Sheen, August 1940.

Mk I K9953/ХР-А by Flight Lieutenant Adolf Malern, May-June 1940.

Mk IIA P8194/DL-M by Sergeant Donald Mackay, April 1941.

Mk I R6596/QJ-S Pilot Officer Alan Wright, August 1940.

Mk I N3249/QJ-P Sergeant Ralph Haveyeroft, August 1940.

Mk IB R6908/QJ-F by Flt Lt Brian Kingcome, November 1940.

Pilot Officer Osgood Hanbury's Mk I X4382/LO-G, September 1940.

Sergeant Cyril Babbage's Mk I X4541/LO-M, October 1940.

Mk I L1067/XT-D squadron leader George Dinholme, March 1940.

Flag Officer Brian Carbary's Mk I R6835/XT-VV, August 1940.

Mk I X4036/D-AZ Flight Officer Robert Doi, August! 1940

Mk II P8081/DU-R by Flight Lieutenant Adolf Wybireil, November 1941.

Mk I L1004/LO-Q squadron leader Alexander "Sandy" Johnston, June 1940

Mk II.1019/LO-G by Sergeant Basil Well, August 1940.

Mk I X4277/XT-M Flag Officer Richard Hillary

Mk I N3288/XT-H Pilot Officer George Girlough, August 1940.

Mk I X4250/XT-X by Sergeant Jack Stokoe, August 1940.

Mk I P9322/PR-I. Pilot Officer David Crook, July 1940

Flag Officer John Dundes' Mk I R6690/PR-Q, July 1940.

Mk I R6691/PR-J by Flt Lt Frank Howell, August 1940.

Mk IIA P8098/PR-Z ENFIKLD SPITFIRE by Flt Lt John Karchin, May 1941.

Flag Officer John Bisdee's Mk IIA P8264/PR-H, May 1941.

Spitfires in the Red Army Air Force

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This material is posted on the site in continuation of the topic raised in the article “ The Realities of Lend-Lease. On the use of Anglo-American aviation technology in the USSR during the Second World War ."

After the outbreak of the Second World War, the British introduced our representatives to the Spitfire in August 1941 at their air base. Soviet pilots even managed to fly it.

Our representatives proposed replacing some of the Hurricanes, Tomahawks and Kittyhawks supplied from Great Britain to the USSR with Spitfires. But they encountered a firm refusal: “the plane is on a secret list , ” “the plane is not intended for export,” and in general, “there are not enough machines of this type for the Royal Air Force .

At that time, no country could boast of having these British fighters in service. The contract concluded before the war for the sale of 12 Spitfires I to Estonia was never fulfilled. Pre-war attempts to purchase cars by Greece, Portugal, Turkey and Poland ended in failure.

And yet, the first Spitfires appeared in our country in September 1942. Three gray-blue cars (a special color “PR Blue” - “photo reconnaissance blue”) flew near Murmansk . These were Spitfire PRIV photo reconnaissance aircraft. They had no weapons. Instead of cannons and machine guns, there were additional gas tanks, which increased the fuel supply by two and a half times. Cameras made it possible to confidently shoot from great heights. (On October 29, 1940, the English pilot Millen photographed Stettin on a similar reconnaissance aircraft, spending more than five hours in the air).

The Spitfires were included in the consolidated group of Group Captain Hopps. She was supposed to participate in providing escort for convoy PQ-18 (Operation Orator). After it, the British abandoned the complex and dangerous return flight of Spitfires and transferred them to the Northern Fleet Air Force to the squadron of the 118th separate reconnaissance regiment .

British pilots with a PR IV Spitfire

Our pilots praised the English aircraft very highly; it is fast, maneuverable, and very easy to pilot. At altitude, he easily escaped all - both German and Soviet - fighters. Speed ​​and altitude replaced his firing points - the pilot's only weapon was a PPSh assault rifle, which was placed behind the armored back in case of an emergency landing.

Long-term operation of PRIV convinced of its reliability and resistance to combat damage. The only annoying thing was the lack of spare parts. Our mechanics had to show miracles of resourcefulness. For example, Lieutenant Technician I. Manochkin adapted wheels from the MiG-3 to the Spitfire.

At the end of August 1943, another unit of British air reconnaissance arrived near Murmansk with the aim of collecting information for the preparation of Operation Bron - a sabotage raid by midget submarines against the battleship Tirpitz, which was stationed in Altenfjord. Several reconnaissance flights by the British did not bring results.

The task was nevertheless completed on September 12 by one of the best reconnaissance officers of the Northern Fleet, Captain L. Elkin, later a Hero of the Soviet Union. He approached the base in thick clouds and made three passes at low altitude, filming everything worth paying attention to. After being in the air for six hours, his Spitfire landed safely.

The Spitfires of the 118th Regiment more than once brought very valuable photographs of German bases. For example, on April 1, 1944, two “fours” and one Pe-3 were involved in reconnaissance of the same Altenfjord, where the “Tirpitz” continued to defend itself. Of the dozen PRIVs by February 1945, only two such vehicles were in service. In 1946, the last of them was transferred to the Northern Fleet Museum in Murmansk. Her further fate is unknown.

In 1943, one of the VB Spitfires received later was converted into a reconnaissance aircraft of the PRIV type. It also had its weapons removed, its fuel supply increased and a camera installed. This aircraft was tested at the Air Force Research Institute, where it received high praise.

VB Spitfires began arriving in the Soviet Union in the spring of 1943, the first official transfer of these aircraft abroad. On January 10, the ship City of Derby delivered 35 “fives” to Basra (Iraq). The rest arrived by the end of March. Some of the vehicles were destroyed during transportation (five at the City of Lille alone) or handed over to British and American units in Iraq (including the only copies of the “tropical” Spitfire VB and low-altitude LFVB in this batch).

English mechanics paint red stars on the sides of Spitfires

All of these aircraft were already in use by the Royal Air Force. But before being sent, they underwent major repairs at English air bases. There, the service departments brought them to a single standard. Such modifications sometimes narrowed the fighter's combat capabilities. Thus, the outboard tanks were removed from the “fives” of later production. Modern VHF radios TRII33 were replaced by earlier TR9D (although by our standards the latter was very good).

In total, the Soviet side accepted 143 Spitfire VB. They “passed” through the 25th reserve regiment, based at the Adjikabul airfield near Baku. There, Soviet pilots were retrained for a new fighter. The first among the combat regiments to begin mastering Spitfires was the 57th Guards, Lieutenant Colonel A. Osipov (the I-16s were in service there.) At the beginning of May, the number of faulty vehicles did not exceed three or four.

Already on April 28, 1943, the regiment entered the bloody battle in the Kuban as part of the 4th Air Army. Only for six days, from May 3 to May 8. fighters of the 57th shot down 26 enemy vehicles. The German ace G. Rall wrote in his memoirs that he was incredibly surprised by the appearance of Spitfires “three thousand miles from the English Channel .

Selected German pilots of the JG3 and JG52 squadrons fought against the guards over the Kuban. In unequal battles, N. Skvortsov, S. Mironenko, G. Kulagin, S. Azarov died... It was Azarov who once shot down several enemy planes, covered the commander’s car with his fighter and saved him. A few days after Azarov’s death, it became known that he had been awarded the title of Hero of the Soviet Union.

By mid-June, the combat effectiveness of the 57th regiment had fallen due to significant losses. It was taken out of combat and re-equipped with American P-39s.

At the beginning of August, another Spitfire regiment appeared at the front - the 821st Fighter. He fought as part of the 8th Air Army in the area of ​​the Molochnaya and Mius rivers and was based in Shakhty and Chapaevka. These vehicles were used mainly to cover troops near the front line, since their engines often failed. They were simply afraid to climb deep into the territory occupied by the enemy.

The regiment had many cases of forced landings due to engine problems. However, in general, the results of combat work can be considered quite successful.

Quite a few German planes were shot down by Spitfires in the East. So on August 9, junior lieutenant Lobachev, in a battle with two Messerschmitts, used up all his ammunition. I was returning to my airfield. And then I discovered FW189 - “frame”. Lobachev cut off her tail with a blow from the plane. The German crew was captured.

Spitfire VB, transferred to the Soviet Union on March 1, 1943.

In September 1943, the regiment also replaced the Spitfires with other vehicles, although combat losses were relatively small. For the entire 1943, the Germans managed to destroy only 28 Spitfire Vs out of 150 accepted.

Pilots is simple and easy to fly, accessible to pilots with even lower than average qualifications. The Rolls-Royce Merlin 46 engine developed a power of 1165 hp. With. at an altitude of 5800 m, while the main Soviet fighter engine of 1941-1942. M-105PA “squeezed out” 1050 liters. With. already at 4000 m. Having approximately the same flight weight as our Yak-1. The Spitfire VB had better altitude characteristics and a larger ceiling.

The all-metal construction with load-bearing skin gave it both strength and lightness. The thin, elliptical wing had excellent aerodynamic qualities. The combination of low wing and power loads allowed the “five” to achieve good takeoff and landing characteristics.

In terms of armament, the Spitfire VB outweighed the Soviet fighters of the first half of 1943. Two 20-mm Hispano Mk.11 cannons and four Browning machine guns of 7.69 mm caliber gave a second salvo weight of 3.54 kg/sec. Only later was it surpassed by the Yak-9T - 3.78 kg/sec. Since, unlike the Hurricane, the Spitfire was used only as a “pure” fighter, neither bomb racks nor PC launch beams were installed on it.

Why did our combat biography of the Spitfire turn out to be so short? Of course, the reasons are the small number of cars and their annoying shortcomings. The chassis design was not entirely successful. Due to the narrow track width, when taxiing over the uneven patch of grass airfields, the plane swayed, trying to catch the ground with its wing. Possessing a small anti-crank angle and a significant forward angle, like the Harriksyn, it could “peck” its nose. “It is prohibited to steer on soft ground without an accompanying person on the tail ,” the instructions read.

The emergency release system for the cockpit canopy did not work reliably. The small crowbar lying in the door niche was not at all a sign that the plane had undergone a major overhaul. It was standard equipment on any Spitfire. With this crowbar the pilot was supposed to break the canopy if it did not reset.

An unusual phenomenon for our pilots is weapons widely spaced along the wing. With such a layout of firing points, it is difficult to hit a target from short distances and during vigorous maneuvers.

By 1943, the “five” was already quite outdated. When it was first used in Western Europe in the spring of 1941, it was significantly superior to the then main German fighter, the Bf109E. But the two years of war were not in vain: all the warring countries actively continued to improve their equipment.

By the summer of 1943, Soviet fighter aviation had already completely re-equipped with the new generation of self-propelled aircraft. These vehicles (Yak-1, Yak-7B and LaGG-3 with the uprated M-105PF) surpassed the Spitfire VB in horizontal flight speed up to an altitude of approximately 6000 m (the advantage at the ground reached 70-80 km/h). The advantage in climb rate of our fighters remained up to 5000 m, that is, in the zone where air battles most often took place.

Firing the Spitfire VB weapons

The Spitfire had excellent horizontal maneuver characteristics, but performed significantly worse maneuvers in the vertical plane. During an energetic combat turn, the “five” experienced a so-called aileron reverse, which imposed certain restrictions on the magnitude of overloads and reduced the range of speeds permissible during energetic evolutions. The Spitfire dived poorly. Exiting the battle with this technique, often used on other types of fighters, was fatal for the English fighter - the low load on the wing did not allow it to accelerate quickly.

The comparison with the German fighters used at the front in 1943 is also not in favor of the Spitfire VB. In Kuban, the “five” were most often opposed by the Bf 109G-2 and Bf 109G-4, which overtook it by 50-100 km/h. The Daimler-Benz DB605A engine installed on the Messerschmitts was no less tall than the Merlin 46, but much more powerful, which predetermined the advantages of German cars. The salvation for the Spitfire was close maneuvering combat on horizontal planes, where it could use a small turning radius (at low altitude - 218 m versus 290 m for the Messer).

That is why the front-line life of the “fives” in the USSR was so short. However, the combination of high altitude and powerful weapons led to the idea of ​​using the Spitfire in air defense units. Its flight characteristics were in many ways similar to the domestic high-altitude interceptor MiG-3. But there were almost no last ones left in service in 1943 - they had long since been taken out of production, and those that were still flying were thoroughly worn out. We did not build any other fighter with a high-altitude engine in series at that time - aircraft factories were focused primarily on the needs of the front.

True, relatively few VB Spitfires ended up in air defense regiments, a total of no more than 20 vehicles. At the beginning of July 1943, the commander of the 16th air defense regiment, G. Priymuk, received a dozen “fives” in Azerbaijan. This regiment was then based in the Moscow region, in Lyubertsy. Several of these vehicles were transferred to the 67th regiment, also located in the Moscow region. The 26th Guards Air Defense Regiment of Leningrad had at least three VB Spitfires.

It is no coincidence that most of the British fighters allocated to air defense units arrived near Moscow. At this time, the leaders of the capital's air defense faced a difficult problem. Since July 1942, the Germans began using high-altitude Junkers Ju.86R aircraft with a pressurized cabin for daytime reconnaissance of Moscow. At an altitude of about 12,000-13,000 m, they were inaccessible to anti-aircraft artillery and fighters, both domestic and imported, available in the Moscow region.

The Spitfire VB could potentially attack German reconnaissance aircraft, albeit at the limit of its capabilities. The “Englishmen” managed to successfully carry out several such flights using specially modified and lightweight “fives”. The first high-altitude Junkers was shot down on August 24, 1942.

In the 16th air regiment, a pair of Spitfires, along with 13 other fighters, were scrambled on August 22, 1943 to intercept a Ju.86R that had been patrolling over Moscow for an hour and a half. Without expecting any danger, the German pilot flew over the city center three times. This was the sixth time such insolence had been observed.

Officer A. Semenov climbed to an altitude of 11,500 m and discovered the Junkers with an excess of 500 meters. The high-altitude capabilities of the Spitfire had dried up. Having difficulty giving the plane a pitching angle, Semenov fired at the German plane. However, the cannons and machine guns located in the wings and lacking heating failed almost immediately. Junior Lieutenant Zernov from the same regiment also failed to attack the Junkers. On September 6, he unsuccessfully pursued a German high-altitude reconnaissance aircraft until the onboard oxygen supply was completely depleted.

As an air defense fighter, the Spitfire also had the following disadvantages - it did not have radio navigation equipment, as well as a landing light, which made it difficult to use in difficult weather conditions and at night. In Leningrad, one of the “fives” was equipped with the domestic radio semi-compass RPK-10M, which, however, did not significantly increase its combat capabilities. Yes, and this was rather an exception. The Spitfire VB in the Soviet Union, in essence, did not undergo any significant modifications.

By 1943, we had already mastered the powerful, economical, but requiring qualified maintenance, Merlin engine, which was also found on Hurricanes. on which Soviet pilots fought since the autumn of 1941. The engines were operated in accordance with accepted standards, with the standard glycol cooling mixture. It was difficult for our pilots to get used to the slow build-up of thrusts when giving gas, and the strict restrictions of forced modes. Violations led to rapid engine failure. The Spitfire endured the winter well, using normal operating measures; insulated covers, cushions for radiators, etc.

Minor alterations to the design were forced. For example, replacing some components and assemblies with Soviet ones due to a lack of spare parts. So. in the 57th Guards Aviation Regiment, the Spitfire VB was fitted with LaGG-3 wheels. In the 821st regiment there was a case of replacing an English radio station with our RSI-4.

In the summer of 1943, VB Spitfires were armed with the 3rd Squadron of the 7th Fighter Aviation Regiment of the Black Sea Fleet Air Force. Here the planes were prepared for launch from ship catapults, in the manner of the English “Hurricanes” - “Catafighters” or the Italian Reggiani Re 2000 “Catapultabile”. Fighters were equipped with ejection grips for this purpose.

There is no information about the combat use of the “English” in this way. It is only known that after the war, in 1946, one Spitfire IX was launched during testing from the cruiser Molotov.

In the British Air Force, the outdated Spitfire VB was gradually replaced by a whole range of new modifications, one of which was the Spitfire IX. It entered service with the British aviation in early 1942. According to the original plan, the “nine” was a transitional model from the “five” to the more advanced versions VII and VIII and was a simple adaptation of the old airframe with new engines of the so-called “60 series”, distinguished by a two-stage supercharger. However, the car turned out to be so successful that it became as popular as modification V. The distinctive external feature of this model was two radiators of the same size under the right and left planes. Previously, there was a large oil radiator on the right, and a small oil radiator on the left.

Spitfire IX in the livery of the Red Army Air Force

The floatless carburetor and metal covering of the ailerons on the “nine” practically removed a number of restrictions when performing vigorous combat maneuvers. Despite the slightly increased radius of the turn, the “nine” performed it even faster than the “five”. Designer J. Smith, who led the work on the Spitfire after Mitchell's death, at the same time strengthened the landing gear and moved the wheels forward somewhat. It was possible to significantly improve the basic flight characteristics, especially at high altitudes. In terms of climb rate, Spitfire IX in 1943-1944. had no equal among serial piston fighters.

The Nine was produced in two versions: with a type C wing (like the Spitfire VC), which could mount two cannons and four 7.69 mm machine guns or four cannons, and with a so-called “universal” type E wing, which made it possible to mount armament consisted of either four guns or two 12.7 mm Browning M2 machine guns (the latter combination was usually installed at factories). Most of the "nines" were built with the E wing. Later they made up the majority of the vehicles sent to the USSR. It must be said that the evolution of the Spitfire's weapons proceeded in the same direction as in our country and in Germany - high-speed rifle-caliber machine guns were everywhere replaced by large-caliber and aircraft guns.

From February 1944, Spitfires IX began to be sent to the Soviet Union. The first six "nines" arrived in Basra on the City of Eastbourne transport. These were old cars that had undergone repairs. They went through Iraq and Iran and our northern ports. Then new planes, straight from the factories, began to arrive. Deliveries of Spitfires ended after the end of the war in Europe: the ship Sannitian arrived on June 12, 1945 in Molotovsk (Severodvinsk) with 53 “nines” on board.

In total, 1185 Spitfires IX were imported into our country. of which 1,183 are LF IX (low-altitude) and two HF IX (high-altitude). HF and LF differed in engines, which were different modifications of the Merlin 60. The LF usually had engines of the 66 brand, and the HF - 70. A common belief is that. that the external feature of low-altitude vehicles were trimmed wingtips is erroneous. Not all Spitfires LF IX had short winglets. In addition, even fighters with “trimmed” wings were given sets of normal winglets. Later “nines” had a wider rudder with a pointed top and an additional gas tank in the fuselage. The Aero-V dust filter, located on the carburetor suction pipe, became standard.

Among the LF IX, in the spring of 1945, nine outwardly indistinguishable aircraft of the LF XVI modification with American Merlin 266 engines arrived. These engines were produced in the USA under license from Rolls-Royce by Packard and were somewhat different from the English prototype, primarily in the configuration other units.

Spitfires of IX different variants were thoroughly studied at the Air Force Research Institute. The first of them, type LF IX, was tested there in September 1944.

Tests have shown that the “nine” with its powerful and high-altitude engine has a significantly higher service ceiling than all domestic production fighters. Even the LF confidently climbed to an altitude of 12,500 m, and the HF rose to 13,100 m, which was 2450 m more than the Yak-9U and 2350 m more than the La-7. The Spitfire IX was superior to these aircraft in both climb rate and armament. The equipment available on the English plane also made it stand out for the better.

“Nines” as part of the 802nd Air Defense Regiment at the airfield near Poltava, covering American bases for shuttle raids

But at low and medium altitudes, the “nine” was seriously inferior to domestic fighters. For example, the La-7 lost as much as 100 km/h in ground speed. Therefore, the use of Spitfires at the front was considered inappropriate. Most of them were sent to air defense regiments.

Since the summer of 1944, LF IXC and LF IXE received the 26th and 27th Guards Regiments near Leningrad. The 16th and 177th regiments in the Moscow region, the 767th near Murmansk and many others. By the end of 1944, our air defense already had 297 “nines”.

There is practically no information about any combat use of Spitfire IX in the Union. Only one combat episode is known. On March 8, 1945, near Leningrad, pilots V. Rybin and A. Fedotov (from the 11th and 102nd Guards Regiments) on LF IX Spitfires intercepted and shot down a German reconnaissance Ju.88 flying at high altitude. The downed plane belonged to one of the latest modifications (S or T), which had devices on the engines for boosting power. This Junkers was invulnerable to other types of fighters.

One of the Spitfire IX's shortcomings as an interceptor was its lack of means for navigation and target acquisition in low visibility conditions. At the end of the war, the 26th Guards Air Defense Aviation Regiment installed the RD-1 television system on two vehicles. An image from a ground-based radar station with a map of the area was transmitted to its screen in the fighter’s cockpit. The regiment commander, Lieutenant Colonel V. Matsisvnch and Captain N. Shcherbina flew on these planes, but they did not have a single case of a possible interception or attack.

Air defense fighter pilots in front of a Spitfire LF.IX

Due to the presence of a large number of Spitfire-type fighters near Leningrad, one of the air bases there produced a two-seat training version of this machine - the Spitfire IX UTI. Spitfire IX U was also made by workshops in Tbilisi.

A number of “nines” ended up in naval aviation, in particular in the Black Sea Fleet Air Force.

After the war, Spitfires served Soviet aviation for several more years - until 1947-1948. (in some places until 1951), when the transition to jet technology had already begun. The machine was highly valued by pilots, primarily for its ease of piloting. Although modification IX retained a number of hereditary defects of its predecessors, such as a small anti-crank angle, an unstable chassis with a narrow track, and not very good visibility to the rear, they gradually got used to them and learned to compensate. The Nine played an important role in the post-war years as a high-altitude training fighter. The pilots mastered the practice of flying at high altitudes on it before switching to jet fighters.

On September 25, 1945, from the cockpit of a two-seat Spitfire, test parachutist V. Romaiyuk made a record jump from a height of 13,108.5 m. Without opening the canopy, he fell for 107 seconds, and then landed safely. The Spitfire on this flight was piloted by A. Proshakov. However, the joy of setting a world record was overshadowed: on the same day, at the Podolsk airfield, N. Amitayev crashed from the same Spitfire in a high-altitude jump due to a rupture.

and the tubes of the oxygen device...

Although the Spitfire did not leave a noticeable mark on the fronts of the Great Patriotic War, at the end of it and in the first post-war years it became indispensable in the role of a high-altitude air defense interceptor.

source: Vladimir KOTELNIKOV, Dmitry KHAZANOV “UNKNOWN “SPITFIRE”” Wings of the Motherland 1992/05-07