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Techno Commander
05-03-2011, 23:39
Today marks the 75th anniversary of the first flight of the Supermarine Spitfire.

http://www.discoversouthampton.co.uk/news-detail.aspx?news=322 (http://www.discoversouthampton.co.uk/news-detail.aspx?news=322)

Happy Birthday. :)

http://wallpaperstock.net/supermarine-spitfire-mk-vb_wallpapers_17330_1024x768.jpg
Alex_UK
05-03-2011, 23:57
Beautiful.
slate
05-03-2011, 23:59
still looking young
keiths
06-03-2011, 00:07
Fantastic aeroplane. Without it, we'd all be speaking German.
goraman
06-03-2011, 04:54
still looking young
Thats a picture of a model plane,look close.

First clue is no blueing on the exhaust manifold and no soot from the exhaust on the side of the plane by the pipes.
Even leaned out there would be visable exaust,not to mention theres not one visable oil leak,It is British...
Now look at the pilot,his gogles ect...

I think I saw that model plane in Godzilla vs. Margret Thatcher on very very late night T.V. show.

The Spitfire is a fantastic plane,It predated our P-51 Mustang if my memory serves correct.
Nice picture too.
slate
06-03-2011, 09:19
Actually; hidden behind that lovely skin is the real star: the Merlin engine

Used in so many applications: Spitfire, Hurricane, Mosquito, Lancaster, P51 Mustang.

I do not recall the original engine choosen in the Mustang design, but it was the Merlin that gave the Mustang the ability to fly escort deep into Germany.
This lead to the "2 for 1" deal of shipping two engines to the states and get one back mounted in a Mustang.
shane
06-03-2011, 10:21
For Christmas I was given the biography of Stanley Hooker, who, although he didn't design the Merlin, was responsible for making it the astonishingly successful device it became. He then went on to do the same for Bristol's early jet engines, designed the Pegasus for the Harrier and rescued Rolls Royce when they bit off more than they could chew with the RB211.

It's well written by a modest man who was probably Britain's most significant engineer of the 20th century.

http://www.amazon.co.uk/Not-Much-Engineer-Stanley-Hooker/dp/1853102857/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1299406543&sr=8-1
BTH K10A
06-03-2011, 10:44
Thats a picture of a model plane,look close.

First clue is no blueing on the exhaust manifold and no soot from the exhaust on the side of the plane by the pipes.
Even leaned out there would be visable exaust,not to mention theres not one visable oil leak,It is British...
Now look at the pilot,his gogles ect...

I think I saw that model plane in Godzilla vs. Margret Thatcher on very very late night T.V. show.

The Spitfire is a fantastic plane,It predated our P-51 Mustang if my memory serves correct.
Nice picture too.

:D

http://www.warbirdregistry.org/spitregistry/spitfire-bl628.html

Didn't the Mustang use the Merlin engine until Allison cloned it? ;)
Tarzan
06-03-2011, 10:55
Yup, what a beautiful and icon aircraft that is- timeless, the P51 had origonaly the Allison engine, but was not successful with it, the P51, became a killer with the Merlin engine in it:).
Macca
06-03-2011, 11:33
The P51 was also a wholly British design. It was built in the USA and Canada as it was not practical to retool whole factories in Britain to build it while the war was ongoing.

The P51's ability to fly escort deep into Germany was because it was designed to carry additional fuel tanks (drop tanks) on the wings, nothing to do with the engine.

Otherwise, as you were gentlemen:)
Jac Hawk
06-03-2011, 11:48
The movie "The first of the few" is about the story of the designer of the Spitfire, it's B&W but a good film about a brilliant man and his fantastic plane.
Macca
06-03-2011, 11:51
The movie "The first of the few" is about the story of the designer of the Spitfire, it's B&W but a good film about a brilliant man and his fantastic plane.

Reginald Mitchell - there is a statue of him here in Stoke-on-Trent. It should be 400 foot tall...
Techno Commander
06-03-2011, 13:17
Later this year, work starts on the 150 foot high Spitfire Memorial to be built in Southampton. Should be quite epic when completed.

http://www.dailyecho.co.uk/resources/images/1477879/
Rare Bird
06-03-2011, 13:27
Fantastic aeroplane. Without it, we'd all be speaking German.

That probably wouldnt have been a bad idea, I've always wanted to live in Germany :)..I much prefer the ME109
shane
06-03-2011, 14:20
Oh I say! That's not cricket!
Macca
06-03-2011, 14:20
My favourite WWII Nazi plane - Arado 234 jet bomber

http://i903.photobucket.com/albums/ac233/Macca_photos_2009/ar123t.jpg
Rare Bird
06-03-2011, 14:32
My favourite WWII Nazi plane



Deffo the Messerschmitt 'ME 262'
..most frightening the Junkers 'JU 87' (Stuka)
Macca
06-03-2011, 14:48
Deffo the Messerschmitt 'ME 262'


If they had got that operational in 1940 we would have been toast no matter how many Spitfires we had.
goraman
06-03-2011, 17:15
The U.S. has been late getting into the last two world wars but I think we are going to make up for it in the 3rd one.

Brittan had a hell of alot more skin in the game than we did.
And built some fantastic rifles some of my favorites are the P-17,P-14 and Enfeild no1.MKIII.
I actualy built a .548 Win mag with a heavy barrel on a P-17 action,great monster.
I still have a stock #1MKIII. in .303,I also restored a .45 Webly from an old frame and cylinder even the springs had Arrows on them.

My total respect to the war heros of the Royal forces in both those wars.
Excluding officers of coarse.