Elliptical Wings

[ThomasP]

I may be wrong about this, but I thought most WWII era wings only had twist for the minority of the span - on the outer section near the tips, not most of the span?

 

[PlasticHero]

I have a hazy memory reading that the Wildcat wing has straight leading and trailing edges for ease of production.

This has been a subject I have been curious about for a long time. Thanks all.

 

[swampyankee]

Ok, stupid question here...

Actually two:
1) suppose the Spitfire was designed with a Moderate Taper wing, how would this have effected it's performance?

2) would the Elliptical wing have been a benefit to the P-51 or a hinderance?

1) If the span and area isn't significantly different, not by much. It may be a trifle tougher to get good high speed and good departure performance, but not all that much tougher. One should note that elliptical planforms are quite rare, as they do not provide significant performance benefits.

2) No.