Aircraft Specifications:

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Spitfire Mk Vb

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Crew: one pilot

Length: 29 ft 11 in (9.12 m)

Wingspan: 36 ft 10 in (11.23 m)

Height: 11 ft 5 in (3.86 m)

Wing area: 242.1 ft² (22.48 m²)

Empty weight: 5090 lb (2309 kg)

Loaded weight: 6622 lb (3000 kg)

Max takeoff weight: 6770 lb (3071 kg)

Powerplant: 1× Rolls-Royce Merlin 45 supercharged V12 engine, 1470 hp at 9250 ft (1096 kW at 2820 m)

Maximum speed: 330 knots (378 mph, 605 km/h)

Combat radius: 410 nm (470 mi, 760 km)

Ferry range: 991 nm (1140 mi, 1840 km)

Service ceiling: 35,000 ft (11 300 m)

Rate of climb: 2665 ft/min (13.5 m/s)

Wing loading: 28 lb/ft² (137 kg/m²)

Power/mass: 0.22 hp/lb (360 W/kg)

Armament:

• Guns:

  • 2 × 20 mm (0.787 in) Hispano-Suiza HS.404 cannon, 60 (later 120) rounds/gun

  • 4 × .303 in (7.70 mm) Browning machine guns, 350 rounds/gun

• Bombs:

  • 250 lb (110 kg) assorted ordnance or

  • 1 × 500 lb (230 kg) bomb

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The Supermarine Spitfire was an iconic British single-seat fighter used by the RAF and many Allied countries in the Second World War.

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Produced by Supermarine, the Spitfire was designed by R.J. Mitchell, who continued to refine the design until his death from cancer in 1937. Its elliptical wing had a thin cross-section, allowing a higher top speed than the Hawker Hurricane and other contemporary designs; it also resulted in a distinctive appearance, enhancing its overall streamlined features. Much loved by its pilots, the Spitfire saw service during the whole of the Second World War, in all theatres of war, and in many different variants.

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More than 20,300 examples of all variants were built, including two-seat trainers, with some Spitfires remaining in service well into the 1950s. Although its great wartime foe, the Messerschmitt Bf 109, in its many variants, rivalled the Spitfire's production statistics, the Spitfire was one of the few fighter aircraft to be in continual production before, during and after the Second World War.​