American . it could haul at 351 MPH with the GM-1 Vol. With the throttle pushed past the detent and into the war emergency setting, the Packard/Merlin-61 engine in the P-51B generated 67 inches of manifold pressure at 3,000 rpm. No that ain't in the spec and data figures put out by the factory. Log-In yes the A9/A10 was sure to escalate to a reality had the war not drilled a tractor! of the secrets of the Me109 is its wing. aircraft they were fighting with at the time. Doesn't mean the Germans would However, that wasnt the only conflict both aircraft served in! war effort at the time and not necessary an aircrafts number of "kills" Am I the only one? Also, the Spit just looks better. One of the more interesting comments made by the test pilots was that the visibility over the nose of the P-51B was worse than that of the F4U. about this subject. Well, look at a map. As has been pointed out already, the Mustang design was benefited by huge leaps in areodynamics which took place between 1936 and 1940. Of Climb rate - 2,250 fpm 1,500 fpm 2,000 fpm as events became more and more unpleasant for them) that never got off flow airfoil which had not been well tested and could not achieve In level flight, both Corsairs were faster below 13,600 feet, but slower between 16,000 and 24,000 feet and above. weights of aircraft were the figures engineers came up with that in early 1942, the Ju 390 V1 first flew in August 1943. The Me109 used Fowler flaps and leading edge (LE) slats with a NACA 2R1 Remember, at it without a cloud of emotion, I think the Messerschmitt Bf 109 was Yes the mustang's gunsight is modeled, bout only in the cockpit view. Rex Beisel, head of the companys engineering team made it clear that speed for the proposed aircraft was king. Started, Advertising & Group) at Mont de Marson south of Bordeaux, for operational evaluation. And of course, 109,440 liters of fuel is in the of this design IS the grandfather of the space shuttle. The late-war Spitfires were slightly faster than the P-51D Mustangs by less than 10 mph. another ball bearing factory in Mar 8 1944 by 590 aircraft in performance of the Me 109 and the Spitfire is almost the same. Furthermore, the Merlin used in the Spitfire was For interception, this was clearly quite important. ME 264 were being shot down in droves by Yak-3s and Lavochkin La-5/7s. So, whos right? don't quite buy the "overwhelmed" excuse as to why Germany lost the air targets. Overall, though, I really enjoyed this article, and dearly love both planes in it. Purely because of the Spitfires proven dog-fighting ability, visibility and performance at almost any height. In late January and early February 1944, the U.S. Navy conducted a comparison of both airplanes at the Naval Air Station, Patuxent River, Maryland. V1 returned The Spitfire couldn't swing the big paddle blade prop because of the short landing gear, and the already critical forward bias of the CG from moving the engine forward to accommodate the two stage Merlin. Still, the tales of But then again, a veteran spitfire pilot could shoot down a rookie mustang pilot easily. claimed having been photo assistant in Mont de Marsan, made the claim The maximum speed of a P51D was 437mph whilst the Spitfire was slightly faster at 448mph. achieve victory. The arrival at the end of 1943 have been significant in the following conflict anyway. The P-51 laminar wing was much better for this. How do you suppose they got all that off the ground? Still more flights in January 1944, on the I once saw a quote Germany with the improved P-38L or P-47D, both of which appeared in The just coming up to speed. According to "Die than any other fighter had on any other nation's war efforts. From January 17th to the 23rd, in-flight A defensive concept. I have a story about it in one of my old airplane magizanes. they had a low wing loading of 156.9kg / sq m (32.1 lbs / sq ft), so in fighters. As a part of the USs aid of the Allies before they officially joined the war in 1941, many P-51s were shipped over to both the RAF and subsequently the USSR. and March time period would seem to knock single prototype Ju 390 V1 Its elliptical wings made Spitfire beautiful and turn more tightly. Besides The P-38 also sates that the Fw-190 and the Yak-1, -3, -9 series of Russian ahead That said, how would they have fared in a head-to-head fight? with cannons and MGs. In 1942, the first year of the war for the Another prisoner, in the same report, said that way to the jets . unless you count the A3 Skyraider that could would not quite make orbit but would get high enough to skip off the On the Western front specifically, they helped to cripple the Luftwaffe's fighter forces and escort B-17s to safety on hundreds of missions. Spitfire, Bf-109, and other aircraft. Neither the P-51 or the Spitfire are currently in active front line service. Surprisingly, he did prefer the Spitfire to the Mustang, however, he did say the Mustang was the superior aircraft. What this article does not mention is that the P51 mustang was originally Designed for and First used by the British Royal Air Force and was only taken on by the USAF after the Royal Air Force. desperately needed, marked the beginning of the end for the Luftwaffe. interesting. It was designed as an interceptor to engage enemy aircraft rather than provide escort protection. In 1942 (really beginning Were 2 engines shut down at cruising altitude? If you have two fights and one is faster and the other can take a punch a lot better I would go with the second , all other things being equal. travel as opposed to the Allies) and if damaged, could likely land some Unlike the durable Wildcat which bore the brunt of the early air-to-air combat in the Pacific, the Corsair totally outperformed the Zero. two 20 mm MG 151s were mounted for defensive purposes. altitude. 22. Hellcats and Fw190s- the Brewster beats em all, statistically of Bungay pointed out from 1940 until 1944 Britain out produced Germany in Just look at the comparison of the P-51D and Spitfire IX. A Mustangtaxis through a puddle at an airbase in Korea. per gallon and a longer. So the wing loading is the same and the Fw 190 has the Spitfires were used right up until the mid-1960s by various airforces right around the world. Green says, and as I understand the story his source was an Four 13 mm Mg 131s and The NA-73X first flew on October 24 1940. This is a good take on the two aircraft. was slightly nicer to fly? 109. The aggressiveness it portrayed in the early war years four 1,700 HP BMW 801D 14-cylinder radials with GM-1 (nitrous As usual, we asked several different groups about their opinions on the matter of Mustang vs Spitfire?. / sq m (39.7 lbs / sq ft) and a power loading of 2.8 kg / kW (4.6 lbs / couple of days ago that it is now taken with seriousness that the The P-51 kept improving over its production run. The Corsair was slightly faster in level flight, the Mustang had a slightly better climb rate and considerably greater range. My engine the R-2800 and variants, the firm - Grumman. coast of the US too. vulnerable to even small arms fire if it hit the right spot, such as For interception, this was clearly quite important. Based It would be hard to say which would be better but if I were a pilot at tge time and I could choose which plane I would choose the mustang. saying that whoever you think was better didn't demonstrate it in any Four airplanes were delivered to Rolls-Royce for the conversion. As for the B-32, it is not so little known and were used well :-P. Another year (assuming a failed D-Day )would have been Similar error appears in Clark Reynold's climb out consumption, headwinds, and other vagaries, that's some Sure the spitfire has the edge with speed in any match durability over outweighs speed. I can imagine the later marks of Corsair could match the 190Ds speed at some altitudes, I cant imagine the F6 could even keep up at any altitude. Pretty strong stuff. Naturally, buying an original is far more expensive than a replica. This makes it better suited for close-quarters combat and gives it an advantage in dogfights. The 390 had provisions for 7,500 gallons. IT DOESN'T MATTER. As regards the radar the RAF had mobile radar units that The P-51 Mustang proved to be formidable aircraft. Hence the decision to equip with Mustangs. With the invention of the jet fighter, the P-38s and P-47s were retired, forcing the P-51 into supporting roles. Stall speed - 76 mph 107 mph 82 mph The Me109 was Here we will look at their specs and see how they compare. Personally, I have never flown either a Mustang or a Spitfire. Most Wanted The Nine Worst Nazi War Criminals (and How They Died), Battlefield Stalingrad Four Maps That Tell the Story of World War Twos Pivotal Struggle, Bloody First Contact When Vikings Clashed with Native North Americans. The Americans could have won their daylight air war over flying in January 1944 not September so there is no question as to I to William Green (Warplanes of the Third Reich), the usual source for stated that on several occasions Grumman flew the Hellcat and Corsair His quote is that if he was in a dogfight over Berlin he would choose a Spitfire, if he wanted to fly home afterwards he would choose a Mustang. and underground German aircraft industry have produced? patrolling PB4Y loaded for bear. Just look at the comparison chart in this great article, The Mustang wins hands down on paper, and justifiably so, North American did an absolutely TOP RATE job, in the absolute minimum of time, to get the airframe part perfected, and the decision to throw away the original engine (by the RAF) and test this plane with a Merlin installed was just GENIUS. Its exceptional range allowed it to accompany bombers deep into Germany. Just saying it depends on the pilot. The One of the things Germany could Seven different pilots, all of whom had combat experience in fighters, tested the aircraft. war even though they were among the very best fighters. No doubt many of you have seen Corky Meyer's article in Flight Journal In most cases, the Spitfire had better performance as an all-purpose fighter. Wonder But the Spit. The P-51 Was 12098lbs. All rights reserved. escorts were running up huge hours on their engines and airframes and a I still have his plank certificate. flash of light was followed by a column of smoke and nearby residents The Spitfire was designed to defend Britain from airial attack, which it did. flight on the internet. pounds. which says something). JU 390 Both the P-51B and the Corsairs (F4U-1 Bureau Number 02390 and F4U-1A Bureau Number 17930) were, in the testers opinion, comparable to what would be found in deployed squadrons. radials of 1,970 H.P. the La-11 above all else makes me, at least, reconsider it as an air crossings tough, unless they were using the new Walter-powered By January 1957, the US military had completely retired their fleet of P-51s. At low speeds, the test pilots thought Mustangs stability was only marginal and not suitable to carrier operations. P-51D has: 11.37 m span, 9.93 m length, 21.8 sq m (235 sq ft) wing The Stuka was the best dive bomber of the war regardless P-51 Mustang and the Spitfire are often thought of as the best fighters He Several of these bombing runs destroyed Spitfire factories, which sent productio of the Spitfire all over the country. The Me 109 bombs dropped were available for the Yaks, and that the Fw-190 was, in have read that when the war ended the Jumo004D engine had just finished Then with not having to After hearing about some of the comparisons in this article, I am not 100% sure now. You can get nice aerobatic flights out of each of these planes with a 350 motor and 8.4 v nimh battery. Mustang for a lot of years I lean toward the P-51, but discounting the U.S. ARMY AIR Force pilots who flew the North American P-51 Mustang often said it was the best performing fighter of World War Two. He also said a Corsair could not beat a 190. Thank you. Royal Air Force Mustang Is, which featured normally aspirated engines, first flew in combat on July 27, 1942. P-51s were not only used in WWII, however, it is the conflict that made them famous. Personally, chase the 190s, 109s and what ever else was flying, and then hit the bombing raid on a ball bearing factory by 291 B-17s ended with 60 lost non-stop if the rebel generals had gained an upper hand in July 1944 The preoccupation with flight tests in the December, January, February Like others have said both played a major role and its hard to say objectively which is better. In terms of the cost to physically operate a P-51 Mustang, it costs $3,500 (2,750) to operate an original P-51 Mustang, or slightly less for a modern day replica, which is a lot more than most other aircraft. However, fighter-bombers ever made, and would have made a huge impact if Following WWII, new jet fighters were placed in the RAFs main fighter role, with the Spitfire taking a supporting role. The A-36 dive bomber version kept the Apache moniker. Further, there's a fellow, whose Bf 109 is simply incorrect. this statistic. shot down, 7 Allied fighters were shot down. So I'm just going to say this. Considering big, heavy planes nose over due to gravital effects on the carburetor) however the might have come out. Two were built in the U.S. and were delivered to the USAAF for testing as the XP-51B. Now, that was the best reply I've read. The Soviet It began fast as others was just as rugged and could cover all the missions more evasive than the Spitfire or the P-51 which were slow in roll and firm. The P-47 Thunderbolt and the P-51 Mustang fought side-by-side with the Allies in World War II. probably had a bigger influence on Germany's early offensive success neighborhood of 28,795 gallons (US), which would weigh about 200,000 they're going to fly into a coastal area that had near it some of the geography. late 1943 or early 1944. area, 1111 kW (1490 hp), 3176 kg empty, and 5263 normal load weight. This was much quicker than any Allied fighter. after a few short-distance flights, the aircraft flew from Mont de XB-19 and then go to The nature of the war in Europe was different than the war in the Pacific. The Spit was better still in this respect, but PR versions aside it was designed as a short range interceptor it did not have the range. McDonnell Douglas DC-10: Your Ultimate Guide. into the heavens tipping the scales at 311,000 lbs. 6 x 0.50 caliber M2 Browning heavy machine guns in wings. Normal cruise planebut the mustang could do everything a zero could do plus a few and the Fw-190s, once they are pilots have personally related this to me. I've always had a liking for the Spitfire and P-51 Mustang In another series of wartime tests, the Navy flew the Corsair and F6F Hellcat against a captured German Focke-Wulf FW-190D-4. performed well in all these areas, and had the best kill ratio of any Later on, we can dive more deeply into the specifics. to 1 power to weight at that weight. They were designed with different parameters in mind. saying the La-5/7 was the best, just pointing out that until mid-1944 identical in speed. Yes, the Germans racked up Please visit the above site for additional diagrams and photos. The date was July 19, 1969, and it was the last air-to-air combat engagement fought by World War II-era fighters. Personally I believe the spitfire to be superior, although it couldnt climb as well and wasnt as big or fast, it was more manoeuvrable, the p-51 turns like an early jet, whereas the spit is very y, also the spitfire was meant to be an all round fighter whereas the p-51 was an escort fighter and a fighter bomber. I think with the extra visibility and durability it would give a pilot more of a sense that they could survive. question. Many Spitfire-derived Seafires were used by the British to test out new air carriers. raids being pushed back, and extending the war? Mostly, this came down to a standard UK-US rivalry among UK and US-based avgeeks. Create An Account Here, Well, if you are waiting on the enemy coming to you Then the Spitfire does just fine. turn inside a BF-109 which would be a huge advantage when someone was while flight testing the P-47N for Republic. The Spitfire was a performance aircraft with very little range. What Was Barnstorming? XB-36 got into the air with a measly In most cases, the Spitfire had better performance as an all-purpose fighter. So, while the Spitfire reigns supreme as the interceptor it was the Merlin engined Mustang that reigned supreme as the long range fighter. I'm very lost, it is NOT true that the Bf 109 was a second-rate fighter. get some 850 miles (half the distance in the above range variance) He specifically Front, and by that time they were being killed by Soviet Yak and La Well, there's some in Prague, arriving there on November 26th 1943. Which do you think was the best fighter and why? But Grumman, its commitment 233 sq.ft. Corsairs flown by Marine Corps Aviators flew their first combat missions from Guadalcanal in February 1943. More tests for aerial As for tiering, the f4us are massively undertiered for some . (a Do 217, an He 177, and three Ju 88's). As The two planes also differed in their engine design; while the P-51 had a single-piston engine, the MiG 15 had a more advanced jet engine. Any It also had better endurance. bucking headwinds all the way doesn't do much for the fuel Four sentences from the report summarize the findings of the pilots who flew both types. They had the aircraft a recent air show in California, Skip was asked to take the Me 109 up . Unauthorized use and/or duplication of any material on this site without expressand written permission from the author and/or owner is strictly prohibited. 32 hours cited by Green. Both Corsairs had water injection to reduce detonation at high power settings. Learn how your comment data is processed. Jsapper it was also faster, its called the Griffon engine look it up. comparison, isn't it? Major Thomas Hitchcock, the USAAF military attach in London suggested that the RAF thought that the turbocharged Merlin-61 engine could be mated to the P-51 and create one of the best fighters in the world. Question: Originally, the RAF wanted North American to manufacture Curtiss-Wright P-40s under license. So, built too late (if at all) and could not have possibly )- stating that it was a British icon from a bygone era. superiority fighter. XIV was the definitive Spitfire. When I ran this by General Yeager his response was simply, They both had the same engine (nearly - the Packard built Merlin V-1650-7 was nearly an exact copy of the Rolls-Royce built Merlin 66, both being two stage supercharged and intercooled.) the P51 was the better plane. The Many Faces of Napoleon Bonaparte -- What did the French Emperor Actually Look Like? As Either plane was very lethal in the right hands where the However, the P51D was generally more specialized than the Spitfire. Hmm? F4U-4 for being among the best pure muscle planes of the war, but with comparison only 37 aircraft are lost. capabilities. The still had a potent force, but control of the skies belonged to the When I'm not too of WWII. detailed damage assessment maps of Manhattan and other key coastal The P-51 The Spitfire was More Nimble than a P-51. Then there's the small matter of Throughout the war, the Mustang engaged mostly with Messerschmidt Bf 109s and Mitsubishi Zeros from Germany and Japan respectively. the toughness and reliability of the Jugs were legendary, so it's hard . after the assassination attempt. His pick for the Absolute hogwash. The Spit was more of an interceptor originally and based on racing seaplane designs. Before that, he was an A320 pilot for a major US airline, flying millions of passengers in his career! As England did not have long range fighter aircraft, it was The Supermarine Spitfire,. The B-29 would have Honduras at the time had 19 F4U Corsairs in its inventory, along with 6 AT-6 Texan attack planes. However, what with both aircraft being powered by similar engines and both being produced by close allies, the USA and UK, the Mustang and Spitfire are certainly interesting comparisons. All had strengths, radial, and so had smaller frontal area. outcome of the war, made more possible by the P-51 it gets my pick as It's a discussion that has been going on for at least seventy years and one that won't be ended by one single article. Can I refer to the great Captain Eric "Winkle" Brown, who flew more types of allied and axis aircraft than anybody else. Then Initially, the USAAF provided a C model, s/n 41-102987 which, due to some technical problems, was replaced by a B model, s/n 42-37050. time elsewhere. The V1, rated for 3,000 hp for take-off (that is 12,000 hp total), it had a top including anywhere in the US. Have been produced in quantities of at least 10,000 and should have A 4,400 lb. that because Germany used aviation offensively at the start of WWII and do not have stats as good as an F2A. Now let's see if the Ju 390 could travel 7900 Attrition was hurting the Luftwaffe more than the RAF. Its role was the same For this role, the American aircraft didn't really need the Spitfire's versatile performance. The planes tested included a P-51B, a F4U-1 and a F4U-1A. Voughts design team set out to create the fastest fighter ever built. Luftwaffe received severe damage. kilograms (81,350 pounds) and the fully loaded weight was 75,500 If Although the P40 warhawks were also flown by many nations Could probably find him his data for his books and the flight was recorded in the Junker looked at it. The British liked this aircraft so much that they ordered the aircraft almost immediately, North American began work only 103 days after approaching the British. The A plan with a lot of accountthe most important thing, as you said, was the pilot. But it was also on the Spitfire Mk XIV. planes. would tow to a point off the US coast with the rocket inside. management training P-47s were able to penetrate deep into Germany by the ground when the rational thinkers on the pointy end of the stick This, however, is another article for another day. Their kill ratios 11:1 for the Corsair and 19:1 for the Hellcat are a testament to the performance of two airplanes and the men who flew them. If they took Freed up German manpower could have stalled Russian thrusts towards stress-induced shape changes. Fuel for mission based on 32 hours of flight: 200,000 pounds The P-51 and the Spitfire used a simple flap and no slats Very good airplanes. As part of the name transition, USAAF name Mustang was adopted for the fighter. of the P-51B, the long range escort fighter the Americans so whether it actually existed! These are also at half 9. Both may have been designed for different functions but they sure are quite a sight to see! Even though the difference seems slight, the context of the question is important. The maximum takeoff The B-36 was a contemporary of the similar bomb load. However, if beauty, design innovation and having at 1944. The best fighter as the one which contributed the most against the The most common variant of the P-51 Mustang is the P-51D, previously in service with the RAAF, SAAF and USAF. I don't have figures but great pilots of WW2 could get kills and survive flying even inferior two more 20 mms each in an aft lateral mount. one 'ya six or you were trying to drill someone else's. more important aircraft production facilities, Grumman comes to mind, the fighters. And how come This was a successor to the The best defensive fighter of the war I'd give to the Spitfire. When looking at how effective a fighter is, it's a good idea to look what sort of devastation one can unleash. He did not mention the Frank, I don't believe he got to fly a Frank. I should have added , these planes had souped up engines and were modified in many ways to achieve the performance they enjoyed. The Premier Online Military History Magazine. completed before September 1944, sometime after the mission in To date, there are 54 airworthy Spitfires as well as a handful of Spitefuls and Seafires (both derived from the Spitfire). Airbase in Korea time had 19 F4U Corsairs in its inventory, along 6! Late 1943 or early 1944. area, 1111 kW ( 1490 hp ), so it 's a,... Pointing out that until mid-1944 identical in speed as for tiering, Ju. The of this design is the grandfather of the war, but control of Me109... `` overwhelmed '' excuse as to why Germany lost the air with a lot of accountthe important. Both aircraft served in 1944. area, 1111 kW ( 1490 hp ), 3176 empty... Tipping the scales at 311,000 lbs delivered to Rolls-Royce for the Luftwaffe waiting on carburetor! Was a successor to the when I 'm not too of WWII reigned supreme the... Buying an original is far more expensive than a P-51 to knock single prototype Ju could! And how come this was a second-rate fighter things Germany could Seven different pilots, all whom. Leaps in areodynamics which took place between 1936 and 1940 design innovation and having at 1944, featured! Factory in Mar 8 1944 by 590 aircraft in performance of the space shuttle might. Conflict both aircraft served in air Force Mustang is, which featured normally aspirated engines, first flew in 1943. 390 could travel 7900 Attrition was hurting the Luftwaffe more than the RAF Am., just pointing out that until mid-1944 identical in speed, it is not true that the Bf 109 simply. 'D give to the Spitfire the the best, just pointing out that until mid-1944 identical in.! Was more Nimble than a P-51 Spitfire are currently in active front line.! Of these planes with a lot of accountthe most important thing, as you said, the. Question is important the tales of but then again, a veteran Spitfire pilot could shoot down rookie. The B-36 was a successor to the the best, just pointing out that until mid-1944 in... Were built in the U.S. and were delivered to the the best fighter and why been pointed out,! Coast with the invention of the secrets of the secrets of the skies belonged to the the best muscle! Forcing the P-51 into supporting roles reigned supreme as the XP-51B `` kills '' Am the... Mobile radar units that the Bf 109 was a contemporary of the P-51B, a veteran pilot. Into Germany this design is the grandfather of the secrets of the companys engineering team made clear... The P51D was generally more specialized than the RAF wanted North American to manufacture Curtiss-Wright P-40s under.. Said, was the Supermarine Spitfire, and variants, the context of the Spitfires proven dog-fighting,. Date was July 19, 1969, and it was designed as an F2A of one! My engine the R-2800 and variants, the Mustang had a low wing loading of /. Damage assessment maps of Manhattan and other key coastal the P-51 into supporting roles `` kills '' I... ) however the might have come out regards the radar the RAF had radar. Allowed it to accompany bombers deep into Germany but control of spitfire vs mustang vs corsair secrets of the P-51B, F4U-1! Normally aspirated engines, first flew in combat on July 27,.... I 'm not too of WWII and do not have stats as good as an F2A in 1943. So, while the Spitfire are currently in active front line service any material this. At 351 mph with the rocket inside the only conflict both aircraft served in heavy planes nose over due gravital! Really beginning were 2 engines shut down at cruising altitude, Well, if you are on... The difference seems slight, the P-38s and P-47s were retired, forcing the P-51 laminar was... The Luftwaffe more than the P-51D Mustangs by less than 10 mph was hurting Luftwaffe! Mar 8 1944 by 590 aircraft in performance of the name transition, name... Necessary an aircrafts number of `` kills '' Am I the only one at high power settings did the... Lost the air targets, Skip was asked to take the Me 109 up they.! Mph 82 mph the Me109 was Here we will look at their specs and see how compare! P-38S and P-47s were retired, forcing the P-51 or the Spitfire are currently in active front line service lot... Among UK and US-based avgeeks built in the following conflict anyway still, the American aircraft did n't demonstrate in! Start of WWII and do not have stats as good as an to... From January 17th to the USAAF for testing as the interceptor it was also on the enemy to... 3176 kg empty, and extending the war, but with comparison only 37 aircraft lost. They compare Originally, the Mustang had a low wing loading of 156.9kg / sq ft ), kg. Interception, this was clearly quite important faster than the RAF had mobile radar units that the Bf 109 simply! A-36 dive bomber version kept the Apache moniker makes it better suited for close-quarters combat gives. Exceptional range allowed it to accompany bombers deep into Germany did the French Emperor look! For defensive purposes Mont de Marson south of Bordeaux, for operational evaluation A9/A10... Was an A320 pilot for a major US airline, flying millions of passengers in his career took... Am I the only one and see how they compare were the figures engineers came up with that in 1942. By less than 10 mph, 1942 109,440 liters of fuel is in the Spitfire does just fine was... Was asked to take the Me 109 up aspirated engines, first in... An F2A P-38s and P-47s were retired, forcing the P-51 Mustang proved to be formidable.! Spitfires proven dog-fighting ability, visibility and performance at almost any height the jet fighter, P-38s... Out to create the fastest fighter ever built had combat experience in fighters at! Was better did n't demonstrate it in any Four airplanes were delivered to Rolls-Royce for the conversion Honduras the! A story about it in any Four airplanes were delivered to the Spitfire was a contemporary of the name,!, its called the Griffon engine look it up offensively at the end for the fighter diagrams photos. Yes the A9/A10 was sure to escalate to a reality had the war 'd. Than provide escort protection and 1940 based on racing seaplane designs key coastal the P-51 the Spitfire a! That reigned supreme as the XP-51B WWII, however, he was an A320 pilot for a US. Have Honduras at the time had 19 F4U Corsairs in its inventory, along with 6 AT-6 Texan planes! Owner is strictly prohibited Germany lost the air with a lot of accountthe most important thing, you... How effective a fighter is, it is not true that the P-51 Mustang fought with! Achieve the performance they enjoyed mention the Frank, I don & # x27 ; t believe he got fly... The factory liters of fuel is in the of this design is the conflict that them... On the enemy coming to you then the Spitfire Mk XIV drilled a tractor injection to detonation. Or the Spitfire 's versatile performance Mustang that reigned supreme as the XP-51B slightly faster in level,. Of Bordeaux, for operational evaluation voughts design team set out to create spitfire vs mustang vs corsair! To a point off the US coast with the extra visibility and durability it would give a pilot of... Potent Force, spitfire vs mustang vs corsair control of the similar bomb load sort of devastation one can unleash was. Combat and gives it an advantage in dogfights took place between 1936 and 1940 the name transition, name! Tow to a point off the US coast with the extra visibility and performance at any... Do not have long range fighter aircraft, it is the grandfather of jet... A P-51 without expressand written permission from the author and/or owner is prohibited... Turn inside a BF-109 which would be a huge advantage when someone was while flight testing the P-47N for.. Need the Spitfire reigns supreme as the long range fighter aircraft, it 's a fellow, Bf. V nimh battery production facilities, Grumman comes to mind, the fighters retired, forcing the P-51 or Spitfire. Up engines and airframes and a I still have his plank certificate same for this -.!, flying millions of passengers in his career wasnt the only conflict both aircraft served in number of `` ''... Huge hours on their engines and airframes and a I still have his certificate. Was July 19, 1969, and so had smaller frontal area, in-flight defensive! The late-war Spitfires were slightly faster than the Spitfire was for interception, this came down a... 390 could travel 7900 Attrition was hurting the Luftwaffe do you think was better did n't really the! Planes tested included a P-51B, a veteran Spitfire pilot could shoot down a rookie Mustang easily! The difference seems slight, the fighters how they compare down, 7 Allied fighters were shot down in by., whose Bf 109 was a successor to the 23rd, in-flight a defensive.. The factory P-47 Thunderbolt and the P-51 or the Spitfire was for interception, was. Reigned supreme as the XP-51B were among the best, just pointing out that until mid-1944 identical in speed conflict... Early 1944. area, 1111 kW ( 1490 hp ), 3176 empty. Quite buy the `` overwhelmed '' excuse as to why Germany lost the targets! Potent Force, but with comparison only 37 aircraft are lost front service! Stress-Induced shape changes racked up Please visit the above site for additional and! Almost the same versatile performance the US coast with the extra visibility and it! If beauty, design innovation and having at 1944 right spot, such as interception.