Book Review of
Ultimate Spitfires
Author: Peter Caygill
Pen & Sword Aviation Series
ISBN: 9781526782298
By Ray Mehlberger
Copyright 2020
MSRP: $26.95
ISBN: 9781526782298
By Ray Mehlberger
Copyright 2020
MSRP: $26.95
HISTORY:
The Supermarine Spitfire is a British single-seat fighter aircraft that was used by the Royal Air Force and other Allied countries before, during, and after World War II. Many variants of the Spitfire were built, using several wing configurations, and it was produced in greater numbers than any other British aircraft.
It was also the only British fighter produced continuously throughout the war. The Spitfire continues to be popular among enthusiasts; nearly 60 remain airworthy, and many more are static exhibits in aviation museums throughout the world.
The Spitfire was designed as a short-range, high-performance interceptor aircraft by R. J. Mitchell, chief designer at Supermarine Aviation Works, which operated as a subsidiary of Vickers-Armstrong from 1928. Mitchell pushed the Spitfire's distinctive elliptical wing with cutting-edge sunken rivets (designed by Beverley Shenstone) to have the thinnest possible cross-section, helping give the aircraft a higher top speed than several contemporary fighters, including the Hawker Hurricane.
Mitchell continued to refine the design until his death in 1937, whereupon his colleague Joseph Smith took over as chief designer, overseeing the Spitfire's development throughout its multitude of variants.
During the Battle of Britain, from July to October 1940, the public perceived the Spitfire to be the main RAF fighter, though the more numerous Hurricane shouldered a greater proportion of the burden against Nazi Germany's air force, the Luftwaffe. However, Spitfire units had a lower attrition rate and a higher victory-to-loss ratio than those flying Hurricanes because of the Spitfire's higher performance.
During the battle, Spitfires were generally tasked with engaging Luftwaffe fighters—mainly Messerschmitt Bf 109E-series aircraft, which were a close match for them.
After the Battle of Britain, the Spitfire superseded the Hurricane to become the backbone of RAF Fighter Command, and saw action in the European, Mediterranean, Pacific, and South-East Asian theatres. Much loved by its pilots, the Spitfire served in several roles, including interceptor, photo-reconnaissance, fighter-bomber, and trainer, and it continued to serve in these roles until the 1950s.
The Seafire was a carrier-based adaptation of the Spitfire that served in the Fleet Air Arm from 1942 through to the mid-1950s. Although the original airframe was designed to be powered by a Rolls-Royce Merlin engine producing 1,030 hp (768 kW), it was strong enough and adaptable enough to use increasingly powerful Merlins and, in later marks, Rolls-Royce Griffon engines producing up to 2,340 hp (1,745 kW).
As a result, the Spitfire's performance and capabilities improved over the course of its service life.
SPECIFICATIONS:
Role Fighter: Interceptor aircraft
National origin: United Kingdom
Manufacturer: Supermarine
Designer: R. J. Mitchell
First flight: 5 March 1936
Introduction to service: 4 August 1938
Retired: 1961 Irish Air Corps
Primary users: Royal Air Force, Royal Canadian Air Force, Free French Air Force, United States Army Air Forces
Produced: 1938–1948
Number built: 20,351
Unit cost: £12,604 (£774,905 in 2017) (Estonian order for 12 Spitfires in 1939)
Variants: Supermarine Seafire, Supermarine Spiteful
THE BOOK:
Pen & Sword Books is located in the UK.
This book is soft-cover of 216 pages in 6 ¼” x 9 ¼” page format.
The front cover shows a color photo of a Spitfire F.21, serial no.. PK312 in flight. It is in a wave pattern of dark-green and medium-gray over a light gray under-carriage. It has a white spinner and wide fuselage band and black serial no.
The back cover has 3 more wartime photos of Spitfires on it.
The first one shows a Spitfire PRXIX in flight on the right side.
The Spitfire in the middle is a XIV type in flight.
The Spitfire on the right shows a Seafire F.47 in flight.
The book begins with the TABLE OF CONTENTS:
Chapter 1 – A better Spitfire
Chapter 2 – Spitfire XII
Chapter 3 – Spitfire XIV
Chapter 4- Spitfire XVIII
Chapter 5- Spitfire PR.XIX
Chapter 6- Spitfire F.21/22/24
Chapter 7-Seafire XV
Chapter 8- Seafire XVII
Chapter 9-Seafire F.45/46/47
Chapter 10- Spiteful and Seafang
PART TWO
Chapter 11- Into Service
Chapter 12- Anti V-1 operations
Chapter 13- Spitfire XIV in 2nd Tactical Air Force
Chapter 14- Top scorers
Chapter 15 – Spitfires post war
Chapter 16- Spitfires over Malaya
Appendix 1- Specifications
Appendix 2- Top scoring Griffon Spitfire pilots
Appendix 3- V-1 aces
Appendix 4- Griffon Spitfire losses – WWII
Index
Part one is on development and fight tasking. This goes on for 37 pages and into chapter 4. Then there are 4 illustrations of the inside of a Spitfire XVIII’s cockpit. One each on the next four pages.
The first one names the engine controls and instruments. The second one names the flying controls and instruments. The third one names the operational controls and equipment and the fourth one names miscellaneous controls and equipment.
Page 42, the first page of Chapter 5, on the Spitfire PR.XIX, up to page 88 in chapter 9, on the Seafire F.45/46/47 stops with between page 88 and 89 having 26 slick-coated paper pages of black and white photos of Spitfires.
These include:
A photo of DP845, the 1st Griffon-engined Spitfire, known as a Spitfire IV, before becoming the Mark XII Prototype. Seven more Mark XII’s are shown flying and on the ground.
There are 2 photos of a Spitfire FR.XIVE on the ground.
Two photos of a Spitfire XVIII flying and on the ground.
A photo of a Spitfire XIV in flight.
A photo of a XIVE on the ground.
Three photos of a Spitfire XIX on the ground.
Six photos of the Spitfire F.21 on the ground.
Two photos of the Spitfire F.22. Which was later converted to a F.24, shown in flight.
Three photos of more Spitfire F.24’s on the ground.
Two photos of the Spitfire XV on the ground.
Five photos of the Spitfire XVII in flight, on the ground and on a carrier deck.
A photo of the Spitfire XV in flight.
Four photos of the Spitfire F.45 on the ground and in flight.
A photo of the Spitfire F.46 on the ground.
Three photos of the Spitfire F-47 on the ground and in flight.
A Spitfire 31 VG471 in flight.
A Spitfire 32 VB895 on the ground.
A Spitfire F.14 on the ground.
Page 89 up to page 196 is all text, about the remaining types of Spitfires.
This is followed by 2 ½ pages of specifications, 3 pages of the names of top-scoring Griffon Spitfire aces, a page and a half of the names of V-1 aces, 8 ½ pages of the Griffon Spitfire losses in WWII and the 3 ½ pages of the index.
This book is mostly text. It will be of interest to modelers and aviation historians alike.
I sincerely want to thank Casemate Publishers, the N. American distributor of Pen & Sword books for this review sample.
All Pen and Sword book titles can be viewed on Casemate’s website at:
The Supermarine Spitfire is a British single-seat fighter aircraft that was used by the Royal Air Force and other Allied countries before, during, and after World War II. Many variants of the Spitfire were built, using several wing configurations, and it was produced in greater numbers than any other British aircraft.
It was also the only British fighter produced continuously throughout the war. The Spitfire continues to be popular among enthusiasts; nearly 60 remain airworthy, and many more are static exhibits in aviation museums throughout the world.
The Spitfire was designed as a short-range, high-performance interceptor aircraft by R. J. Mitchell, chief designer at Supermarine Aviation Works, which operated as a subsidiary of Vickers-Armstrong from 1928. Mitchell pushed the Spitfire's distinctive elliptical wing with cutting-edge sunken rivets (designed by Beverley Shenstone) to have the thinnest possible cross-section, helping give the aircraft a higher top speed than several contemporary fighters, including the Hawker Hurricane.
Mitchell continued to refine the design until his death in 1937, whereupon his colleague Joseph Smith took over as chief designer, overseeing the Spitfire's development throughout its multitude of variants.
During the Battle of Britain, from July to October 1940, the public perceived the Spitfire to be the main RAF fighter, though the more numerous Hurricane shouldered a greater proportion of the burden against Nazi Germany's air force, the Luftwaffe. However, Spitfire units had a lower attrition rate and a higher victory-to-loss ratio than those flying Hurricanes because of the Spitfire's higher performance.
During the battle, Spitfires were generally tasked with engaging Luftwaffe fighters—mainly Messerschmitt Bf 109E-series aircraft, which were a close match for them.
After the Battle of Britain, the Spitfire superseded the Hurricane to become the backbone of RAF Fighter Command, and saw action in the European, Mediterranean, Pacific, and South-East Asian theatres. Much loved by its pilots, the Spitfire served in several roles, including interceptor, photo-reconnaissance, fighter-bomber, and trainer, and it continued to serve in these roles until the 1950s.
The Seafire was a carrier-based adaptation of the Spitfire that served in the Fleet Air Arm from 1942 through to the mid-1950s. Although the original airframe was designed to be powered by a Rolls-Royce Merlin engine producing 1,030 hp (768 kW), it was strong enough and adaptable enough to use increasingly powerful Merlins and, in later marks, Rolls-Royce Griffon engines producing up to 2,340 hp (1,745 kW).
As a result, the Spitfire's performance and capabilities improved over the course of its service life.
SPECIFICATIONS:
Role Fighter: Interceptor aircraft
National origin: United Kingdom
Manufacturer: Supermarine
Designer: R. J. Mitchell
First flight: 5 March 1936
Introduction to service: 4 August 1938
Retired: 1961 Irish Air Corps
Primary users: Royal Air Force, Royal Canadian Air Force, Free French Air Force, United States Army Air Forces
Produced: 1938–1948
Number built: 20,351
Unit cost: £12,604 (£774,905 in 2017) (Estonian order for 12 Spitfires in 1939)
Variants: Supermarine Seafire, Supermarine Spiteful
THE BOOK:
Pen & Sword Books is located in the UK.
This book is soft-cover of 216 pages in 6 ¼” x 9 ¼” page format.
The front cover shows a color photo of a Spitfire F.21, serial no.. PK312 in flight. It is in a wave pattern of dark-green and medium-gray over a light gray under-carriage. It has a white spinner and wide fuselage band and black serial no.
The back cover has 3 more wartime photos of Spitfires on it.
The first one shows a Spitfire PRXIX in flight on the right side.
The Spitfire in the middle is a XIV type in flight.
The Spitfire on the right shows a Seafire F.47 in flight.
The book begins with the TABLE OF CONTENTS:
Chapter 1 – A better Spitfire
Chapter 2 – Spitfire XII
Chapter 3 – Spitfire XIV
Chapter 4- Spitfire XVIII
Chapter 5- Spitfire PR.XIX
Chapter 6- Spitfire F.21/22/24
Chapter 7-Seafire XV
Chapter 8- Seafire XVII
Chapter 9-Seafire F.45/46/47
Chapter 10- Spiteful and Seafang
PART TWO
Chapter 11- Into Service
Chapter 12- Anti V-1 operations
Chapter 13- Spitfire XIV in 2nd Tactical Air Force
Chapter 14- Top scorers
Chapter 15 – Spitfires post war
Chapter 16- Spitfires over Malaya
Appendix 1- Specifications
Appendix 2- Top scoring Griffon Spitfire pilots
Appendix 3- V-1 aces
Appendix 4- Griffon Spitfire losses – WWII
Index
Part one is on development and fight tasking. This goes on for 37 pages and into chapter 4. Then there are 4 illustrations of the inside of a Spitfire XVIII’s cockpit. One each on the next four pages.
The first one names the engine controls and instruments. The second one names the flying controls and instruments. The third one names the operational controls and equipment and the fourth one names miscellaneous controls and equipment.
Page 42, the first page of Chapter 5, on the Spitfire PR.XIX, up to page 88 in chapter 9, on the Seafire F.45/46/47 stops with between page 88 and 89 having 26 slick-coated paper pages of black and white photos of Spitfires.
These include:
A photo of DP845, the 1st Griffon-engined Spitfire, known as a Spitfire IV, before becoming the Mark XII Prototype. Seven more Mark XII’s are shown flying and on the ground.
There are 2 photos of a Spitfire FR.XIVE on the ground.
Two photos of a Spitfire XVIII flying and on the ground.
A photo of a Spitfire XIV in flight.
A photo of a XIVE on the ground.
Three photos of a Spitfire XIX on the ground.
Six photos of the Spitfire F.21 on the ground.
Two photos of the Spitfire F.22. Which was later converted to a F.24, shown in flight.
Three photos of more Spitfire F.24’s on the ground.
Two photos of the Spitfire XV on the ground.
Five photos of the Spitfire XVII in flight, on the ground and on a carrier deck.
A photo of the Spitfire XV in flight.
Four photos of the Spitfire F.45 on the ground and in flight.
A photo of the Spitfire F.46 on the ground.
Three photos of the Spitfire F-47 on the ground and in flight.
A Spitfire 31 VG471 in flight.
A Spitfire 32 VB895 on the ground.
A Spitfire F.14 on the ground.
Page 89 up to page 196 is all text, about the remaining types of Spitfires.
This is followed by 2 ½ pages of specifications, 3 pages of the names of top-scoring Griffon Spitfire aces, a page and a half of the names of V-1 aces, 8 ½ pages of the Griffon Spitfire losses in WWII and the 3 ½ pages of the index.
This book is mostly text. It will be of interest to modelers and aviation historians alike.
I sincerely want to thank Casemate Publishers, the N. American distributor of Pen & Sword books for this review sample.
All Pen and Sword book titles can be viewed on Casemate’s website at:
Recommended.