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Aviation History
1945
1945 - 1964.PDF
OCTOBER 4TH, 1945 371 THE LAST WORD in Spitfire design is embodied in the Mark XXI and XXII, making up this formation. Only visibledifference in these Griffon-engined types is the Mark XXII's bubble canopy (nearest the camera). Last of a Famous Line Supermarine Spitfire Mark XXI and XXII THE only fighter aircraft to be in continuous produc-tion for the R.A.F. throughout the war, the famousSpitfire, has now reached the end of its long line of type numbers with the Mark XXI and its variant, theMark XXII. Already in production when war was declared, the beloved' Spit " was being flown by the two Scottish Auxiliary Air Force squadrons—No. 602, City of Glasgow and No. 603,City of Edinburgh—whose pilots fought off the very first enemy aircraft to attack the British mainland ; this wasan attempt to bomb shipping in the Firth of Forth. But it was in the Battle of Britain that the Spitfireproved its mettle alongside its equally gallant ally, the Hurricane. As the war years went on new fighter names began toappear, but the Spitfire kept pace with every advance in technical development, so that it easily held its placein the front row. Mark followed mark in a mounting scale, and one began to speculate just how high the finalfigure would be—if one lived to see it reached! The im- provement in performance and fighting quality since thefirst rash Jerry was downed over the Firth of Forth has been truly outstanding. Top speed, now over 450 m.p.h.,kas gone up by nearly 100 m.p.h., representing a 25 per c?nt. increase, the rate of climb has been doubled, and 11,000ft. has been added to the service ceiling; an achieve-1111 nt well worth recording. A great deal of redesigning has been carried out on the Spitfire XXI. The fuselage has been strengthened and anew type of undercarriage fitted. The 2,050 h.p. Rolls- Royce Griffon 61 engine, with its five-bladed Rotol air-screw, has the benefit of twin radiators of sufficient size to permit the aircraft to operate in the tropics. The wingarea has been slightly increased, and additional armour provided for the pilot's protection. Every effort has beenmade to reduce drag to a minimum, notably by the new engine cowling, a fairing flap for the undercarriage wheel-housing, a retractable tail wheel and a whip aerial. But in spite of the increased power and speed, this latest typeof Spitfire retains all the old ease of handling which made the very first of the line so popular with its pilots. In-creased range is obtained by the use of extra tanks carried in the wing's leading edge and behind the pilot, supple-mented when required by drop tanks of various capacities. Armament consists of four 20 mm. cannon mounted in thewings. The Mark XXII is essentially the same type as the MarkXXI, and differs only in having a bubble-type hood in place of the conventional Spitfire cabin-top, and a 24-voltelectrical system instead of a 12-volt system. Span 37ft. iin.Length ' 32ft. 8iu. Height , . . .' - »i3ft- 6in.Wing area 244 sq. ft.
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