:oI consider the Supermarine Spitfire as the most beautiful WWII fighter.
Viewed by many as the most iconic fighter of that war, it is one of the few aircraft to have been produced throughout the war, and it served its country (and many other countries) to well beyond the war war's duration.
:oIts lesser known sibling, the Seafire, served the Royal Navy's Fleet Air Arm with distinction, esp. in the Pacific theater, in the Far East and in the Med. When considering taking it to sea on carriers, Winston Churchill was against it, and some said that at sea it would be a horse of a very different color. It flew from carriers with success, however, and most FAA pilots soon learned to land it without mishaps, though accidents did happen. The Mk.III Seafire introduced folding wings at two points, to fit more aircraft in the small RN carriers and conserve precious desk space. The Seafire L.F. III was the fastest of all Merlin-engined Seafires. In 1945, it was still the fastest Allied carrier fighter. Compared to the American Hellcat, it was like comparing a race horse to a cart horse.
:p The Supermarine Spitfire has been the subject of many books, magazine articles, paintings, air shows, flying and static restorations, aviation museum exhibits, documentary and other films, BBC interviews with pilots, tourist and museum souvenirs that include cups, beer mugs, key-rings, watches, T-shirts, videos, small flags, metal chest pins and wings, etc...
:p It has been produced for all flightsims and PC games, in countless versions, as freeware and payware aircraft for FS versions and CFS versions, and many FS and Combat FS sceneries feature it as parked or as AI aircraft.
:p It was a pure exhilaration to fly, light and viceless on the controls, with very effective ailerons and its pilot felt part of it. On take-off it flew itself off the ground very fast and effortlessly and had a good climb rate. It proved a perfect platform for various combinations of cannon and machine guns, small bombs and even an underbelly fuel tank.
:mad:Against its virtues was its silly narrow undercarriage and the lack of forward visibilty due to its long nose.
:oI will not go into mentioning the Spitfire's contribution to the Battle of Britain and operations in Europe--most will know that information.
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:oConsider downloading some Spitfires and Seafires to fly, if you do not have them already. Suitable carriers are available as well.
Nick,
Athens, Greece