Your Spitfire XVI quiz question of the day.

[RTHolmes]

the beloved Tempest was limited to the ground attack role in the real dealfighter in AH.

err ... you might want to check that.

[Guppy35]

I find it amusing that the Spit16 was usually designed (and used) for the ground attack role vs the air to air role... and yet it is one fo teh the best air to air fighters of AH.  I bet the ratio of air to air missions for the Spit16 is at minimum 25 to 1 over the air to ground.

The other ironic thing is the beloved Tempest was limited to the ground attack role in the real deal, but yet is the most feared air to air prop fighter in AH.

Tempests were used for 'rat catching' and air to air.  Rat catching was patrolling the 262 bases.  The Spit XIVs and Temps were primarily air to air, although they did do strafing when the opportunity presented itself.

Keep in mind the RAF was running out of air to air targets which is why the Spit IXs and XVIs ended up flying more ground support.  They literally had to find something for the Spit squadrons to do.

[Plawranc]

If you like your plane to get kills for you then yes it is.....just like the F4U.









 

Junky just has a fly in his ear at my Spitty's bushwhacking his KI 

[ACE]

Junky just has a fly in his ear at my Spitty's bushwhacking his KI 

lol



-Spektor

[Krusty]

I find it amusing that the Spit16 was usually designed (and used) for the ground attack role vs the air to air role... and yet it is one fo teh the best air to air fighters of AH.

Yeah, but what about spit LFIXe use? Spit16 is a LFIXe with clipped wings. Only difference is the cloned engine made in America rather than UK. The planes were the same as the F4F/FM1 were, same as the P-51B/P-51C were.

Just so happens they lumped the US engined versions into ground attack. Doesn't mean the LFIXe were shunned as fighters, does it?

[Karnak]

Yeah, but what about spit LFIXe use? Spit16 is a LFIXe with clipped wings. Only difference is the cloned engine made in America rather than UK. The planes were the same as the F4F/FM1 were, same as the P-51B/P-51C were.

Just so happens they lumped the US engined versions into ground attack. Doesn't mean the LFIXe were shunned as fighters, does it?

By that stage of the war, yes.  It wasn't that the LF.Mk IXe and Mk XVI were not fully air-to-air capable, it was that there weren't enough German aircraft left to warrant using more than the Spit XIVs and Tempests as air-to-air primarily.  The ground attack work was "make-work" to give all those Spitfire squadrons something to do.

[Krusty]

Yes, but that shouldn't dictate that the XVI was an "attack craft" by design. Smokingloon seemed to be forcing that distinction into his comment.

[Karnak]

Yes, but that shouldn't dictate that the XVI was an "attack craft" by design. Smokingloon seemed to be forcing that distinction into his comment.

Agreed.  I don't think anybody here is under any illusions that the Spitfire made a great attack aircraft, nor did the design have potential as a development platform for a good attack aircraft.

[shreck]

The other ironic thing is the beloved Tempest was limited to the ground attack role in the real deal, but yet is the most feared air to air prop fighter in AH.

A well flown corsair or 38 is FAR more fearsome than any tempest! Unless you insist on staying 350mph + and that is just boring

[kilo2]

If I could only keep one spit it would be the seafire.

The question I ask the spit haters or haters of any plane(la-7) is, Does the plane win the fight or does the pilot?

Back to the OP Is there a record of kills to loses for the spit 16 that would be intresting to see really for any plane but it seems to pertain to this subject.

[Kev367th]

Seafire III with clipped wings and cropped Merlin 55M...or a Spit XII

[Bronk]

Seafire III with clipped wings and cropped Merlin 55M...or a Spit XII AND Vc.