The Basket
Senior Master Sergeant
- 3,712
- Jun 27, 2007
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Not sure how Spitfire production related to Whirlwind production. If anything the Typhoon carrying 4 x 20mm killed the Whirlwind.
As for the others - really? Designs to an even older specification than the Spitfire's? And the M20, proposed as an emergency stop-gap to bolster fighter numbers?
Just names of the top of my head. Personally I would go with a Tornado or more P-40s or even a merlin P-51.
Historically there would be a gap without the spitfire 41/42 but in a lot of theatres of war north Africa and far east the hurricane was dominant anyway.
How would one clean up the Hurricane, and what gain could we expect? What could the Hurricane with Merlin 45 do, compared with Spitfire V (already hard pressed both by 109 and 190)?
Anyway you cut it, the resulting plane is already lagging behind the 109F1/F2 some 20-25 mph (= 1st half of 1941), and behind the 109F4 and 190 by some 40 mph (= second half of 1942).
It would not be a long stretch for the Spit V to receive the same aerodynamic improvements, along with wheel well covers, and one can have the 390 mph Spitfire, even if that's not the III.
I know that it is "popular" and "cute" and "fairer" to try and argue that BC and CC losses should be included if LW Bombers are included in the tally. To some extent this has justification....to the extent that RAF bombers provided eyes for the impending invasion , such losses were relevant in a direct way to the outcome of the battle. Losses sustained over Germany, or in relation to thigs being done not directly linked to the battle are not relevant to the battle, and therefore it is irrelevant and misleading to including them in the final tally.
You cannot draw the same conclusions for the Luftwaffe. Every aircraft lost, be it related to the battle or not had an effect on the outcome of the battle. The LW needed its bombers, its recons, its fighters to achieve air superiority. thios was thei aim and so, every time they lost an aircraft, they were one step further away from achieving that. For the British, you cant draw the same conclusions. Not every aircraft lost was relevant to their battle. This says some bad things about British strategic priorities of the time, but it is also a more accurate appraisal of who was winning.
Anyway you cut it, the Spitfire was not used in the MTO until the Spring of 1942. More numerous, higher performance Hurricanes can only improve the Commonwealth position in the MTO.
Historically there would be a gap without the spitfire 41/42 but in a lot of theatres of war north Africa and far east the hurricane was dominant anyway.
View attachment 233397
Does anybody find it's performance just a little too good?
Almost as fast as a P-36 with 100-200 less HP?
The streamlining looks just a bit off too. Partially exposed wheels are fine for wheels up landings (Just like the Fairey Battle) but make the P-36 landing gear look positively modern...
BoB wasnt about the number of aircraft shot down but the achievement of military objectives. ..
In same vane less Hurricanes would have meant more Spits which would have allowed earlier deployment of Spits into MTO which would have led less KIA Commonwealth fighter jockeys and meager tallies to JG 27 Experten.
Spitfire V was at a performance disadvantage anyway against the 109F and the Fw190 so one could argue the Spitfire was not cutting it anyway. I believe that if push came to shove in 1938 a Hawker fighter could have been crash course built and been up and running before 1942 and would have been superior to a Spit V.
Just my view.
Yes, but the problems with Spitfire production were less tractable than with the Hurricane. Throwing money at the Spitfire doesn't result in much more production in the 1938-41 timeframe, but more money would have greatly increased Hurricane output in the same time frame.
Anyway you cut it, the Spitfire was not used in the MTO until the Spring of 1942. More numerous, higher performance Hurricanes can only improve the Commonwealth position in the MTO.
And the Hawker Tempest and Sea Fury certainly did replace Spit/Seafire.. post war but replace it did.