Spitfire Mk.Vc armed with four Hispano Mk.II cannons. Propeller is De Havilland, new canopy style with interior glass armor on
the windshield and bulged sides of the canopy sliding portion. The aircraft supposedly carries an older type of radio Tr.9D (photo:
Simon Erland).
airplanes undergoing maintenance at No. 103 Maintenance Unit
in Egyptian Aboukir, received the Aboukir type filter manufactured by this unit. They were better aerodynamically shaped and
featured a louver which opened the filter on the intake only
at critical flight stages when larger dust volume could be sucked in. Two versions of this filter are known. The majority of
aircraft equipped with Aboukir filter were of Mk.Vc version and
in the course of modifications at No. 103 MU usually received
the clipped wingtips and Rotol propellers as well.
The shortened wingtips fitted in Aboukir had a different shape
to the conventional shortened wingtips of the LF Mk.Vb and
Mk.Vc versions and did not have position lights fitted. Some
aircraft retained the original wing design with classic wingtips,
and aircraft with extended wingtips for high altitude operations, later used on the Spitfires HF Mk.VIII, are also known..
In combat
Spitfires Mk.V of all versions served in all combat areas practically until the end of WWII. They bore the brunt of the RAF
fighter offensive in 1941-1942 and became the main fighter
type which in 1942 defended Malta against the intense German
Luftwaffe as well as Italian Regia Aeronautica raids. Apparently,
they were the most powerful fighters deployed during the Allied
landing in North Africa and were of essential importance for
the RAAF to modernize their equipment in the Far East. They
did well during the build-up of the first USAAF fighter groups in
Europe and Mediterranean where two American fighter groups,
31st FG and 52nd FG flew them until the end of 1944. They
were flown by pilots of many nations serving in RAF: Canadians,
South Africans, French, Czechoslovaks, Polish pilots, Norwegians, Belgium pilots and others. They were supplied to the Soviet
Union under the Lend-Lease program, became the backbone
of the Italian Air Force fighting on the Allied side after Italy’s
surrender in 1943 and served in the air forces of many neutral
countries such as Turkey or Ireland.
Some hard truth in the end
From the preceding outline of Spitfire Mk.V development you
may get the feeling that it was pretty logical, one precisely
specified version replaced another one on the assembly lines,
the performance and characteristics were gradually increased.
In short a text-book step by step evolution. Unfortunately not
INFO Eduard - January 2022
so. As usual, reality is much more diverse than the best thought out theory. The characteristics of the Spitfire versions were
intertwining. The development was not straightforward, on the
contrary, it was rather turbulent. The airframes were gradually
upgraded during the overhauls or regular maintenance. So we
encounter the aforementioned Mk.Vc with the exhaust pipes
for the weapons’ heating which were not supposed to be there
or Mk.Vb with smooth leading edge featuring only the Hispano
cannon barrel which is typical for Mk.Vc. Spitfire Mk.Vb categorization into Early, Mid and Late is neither precise nor clear. In
fact many airframes with the integrated armor glass, considered as Mk.Vb late, were manufactured earlier than the series
of aircraft with the outer armor glass designated as Mk.Vb mid.
Similarly if the airframe features the integrated armor glass it
does not automatically mean it also features the bulged Malcolm Hood sliding canopy. There were airplanes with the combination of the integrated armor glass and older sliding canopy
with the flattened sides and ventilation opening. And then we
have tropical Spitfires. Theoretically the vast majority of Spitfires Mk.Vb and Vc modified at No.103 OU in Aboukir were converted to LF Mk.Vb/c with the shortened wings. In fact many of
these aircraft retained the standard non-clipped wing and we
know about the aircraft with lengthened wings for high altitude
operations typical for later versions HF Mk.VIII and IX. Much
confusion still exists around the wing skin strengthening strips
above the wheel wells. These were installed on the war-weary
airframes when the skin degradation and fatigue cracks started
to appear. These aircraft are typically the well-preserved museum exhibits. For that reason these strengthening elements are
considered the integral parts of Spitfire Mk.V design as well as
Mk.I and Mk.II. Not true again. Actually it is very difficult, maybe even impossible to find these strips on the wartime Spitfires
operational at the combat units. We could continue naming
these types of anomalies indefinitely. Let’s conclude this chapter on Spitfire Mk.V development with the statement that as
far as this aircraft is concerned nothing is impossible, features
that are not supposed to be there are found and vice versa. But
that’s the life I guess. Well, it’s not only a matter of life, it’s
a matter of war as well. War is the true reason for this apparent
chaos. However, it’s the chaos from today‘s point of view, point
of view of the people in whose world the technical progress is
fast but contained by certain conditions and norms or let’s say
by the letter of law. This was completely different at the time
of war. The whole life in the society, all manufacturing and
the individual lives were subject to one single goal: the victory.
eduard
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