| Supermarine Spitfire |
| Name | Length | Wingspan | Weight | Max Bomb-load | Armament | Speed | Ceiling | Range |
| Supermarine Spitfire | 29’ 11†| 36’10†| 5,000 lbs. | NA | 8x .303 mg’s | 374 mph | 37,000’ | 1,135 mi. |
Supermarine Spitfire Fighter
ID: Plastic “fighter†gaming piece: Supermarine Spitfire fighter from the game Axis & Allies Europe 40 & Pacific 40.
The Story of the Spitfire: Perhaps more than any other plane, the Supermarine Spitfire Mk I has been associated with the British victory in the Battle of Britain. Perhaps this is somewhat unfair, as more British pilots at this point in the war were actually flying the Spitfire’s slightly older and more prosaic British rival, the Hawker Hurricane Mk I. Nevertheless, the Spitfire was Britain’s premier fighter design of the war and gradually tended to replace the slightly slower and less maneuverable Hurricane (which then tended to be relegated to the less glamorous role of fighter-bomber.) Up against its German arch-enemy, the Me 109, the Spitfire had a slight advantage in speed and maneuverability, due to its thin elliptical wing and powerful Rolls Royce engines. (This, though, depends on the specific model of each, and even the altitude.) That the German fighter pilots were at the extreme end of their range also hampered their efforts greatly. Nevertheless, the Spitfire’s impressive war record was well-deserved, as the 5:1 Battle of Britain kill ratio shows. In thus providing key protection to their people, and a vital morale boost to a frightened nation, the Spitfire pilots of the RAF’s Fighter Command provided just the model of heroism that was needed just when it was needed most. Perhaps Winston Churchill summed it up best (as he usually did when he set his mind to the task of summing up): "Never in the field of human conflict was so much owed by so many to so few" (Text of speech of 20 August 1940." winstonchurchill.org.) The Spitfire would serve on through the remainder of the war, gradually upgraded by newer and more powerful engines and even being produced in a carrier-borne version, the Seafire. (A role it also shared with its British rival, the Hurricane, which would become the Sea Hurricane in service with the Fleet Air Arm.) In this guise the Spitfire saw important service in protecting the allied fleet from Japanese kamikaze attacks on the other side of the world in the Pacific, just as it had so ably protected its homeland five years earlier.
Usage Notes: Use this piece for “Global 1939†and “Invasion of Italy†Variants as a fighter unit. Other British aircraft of interest may be: the Handley Page Halifax Strategic Bomber, & the De Havilland Mosquito Tactical Bomber.
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