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Does that make it the best dogfighting/interceptor plane together with the F8F Bearcat?
Both machines clocked at a top speed of about 740 km/h which made them around 40 to 50 km/h slower than the fastest props such as the Spiteful or P-51H (and perhaps the projected Fw 190D with Jumo 213 EB).
There wasn't a Spitfire that could get to 1300 km/h in any configuration that was still in one piece.
That performance is for the F8F-2, which started production in 1948.
The F8F-1, just being delivered at the end of the war, was 60-70km/h slower.
The Spitfire 21 was in service in early 1945. The Spitfire 24 was in production from 1946 and in service in 1948.
The Spitfire XIV could still turn inside the Spitfire 21, but the Spitfire 21 had a much greater rate of roll, and could carry much heavier ordnance.
Climb rates for the two are all over the place, depending on power used and altitude. They are within 0.1-0.2 minutes of each other getting to 20,000ft but at sea level the F8F-1 is 1200fpm faster, but it goes away quickly. At 20,000ft the Spit 21 is climbing just over 500fpm quicker.Sure, but which high-performance fighter else could turn with Spitfire. The Bearcat. At least so I heard.
Make a jet fighter.What would it take to build a Focke Wulf fighter which was on par with these very late Spits in terms of all-around dogfighting agility?
1. Loud thunderclapsWhat would it take to build a Focke Wulf fighter which was on par with these very late Spits in terms of all-around dogfighting agility?
To be less flippant you need a power plant with a similar power to weight ratio. Or you need to figure out how much you can save if you use a heavier power plant.What would it take to build a Focke Wulf fighter which was on par with these very late Spits in terms of all-around dogfighting agility?
Ain't gonna happen with the historical engines that Fw/Ta fighters used.Forget the 152H wing, even a shorter span but larger area wing closer in size to the Spit 21 wing is needed. Now you need to get the weight down. A lot.
Staying with piston fighters, what about your 190 lite with laminar flow wing and DB 605L (or 2000 PS versions of that engine)? The Me 109K-14 made 728 km/h with it so the 190 lite might be about as fast as the fastest Spitfire.Ain't gonna happen with the historical engines that Fw/Ta fighters used.
Unless there is a jet engine in the play, having an earlier DB 605L with the compression ratio slashed down to at least 6.5:1 (if not lower) can help with weight. Lower CR in order that a greater boost (1.9 - 2 ata, hopefully, instead of 1.75) can be used under 9 km, for greater power. I'm not sure how easy it will be to outfit the 605L with the intercooler, for an even greater boost.
Don't over-do the weaponry, and don't cram obscene amounts of fuel. Keep the wing from Antons and Doras.
Still, since this is 1945 an beyond with Spitfire 21 realistic use, a Fw jet fighter still gets my vote.