Spitfire F Mk XIVe

Description

The Spitfire F Mk XIVe was a British WWII-period fighter. Unlike the previous Griffon-powered Mk XIV, the XIVe featured a lowered tail section allowing for better rear view, as well as a new bubble canopy. The armament also differed from the regular Mk XIV as it featured an "E" type wing with two 20 mm Hispano cannons and two 12.7 mm Browning M2 machine guns instead of the "C" type with two cannons and four 7.7 mm machine guns.

The Spitfire F Mk XIVe was introduced in Update 1.41. Featuring much greater engine power due to its Griffon engine, the Mk XIVe is faster than the previous Merlin-powered variants, at the cost of decreased maneuverability. However, the Spitfire is still able to out-turn most of its opponents while retaining the great climb rate and speed.

General info

Flight performance

Details

Survivability and armour

• 38 mm Bulletproof glass in cockpit front.
• 4 mm Steel plates in pilot's seat.
• 4-7 mm Steel plates behind the pilot.
• 3 mm Steel boxes around the wing ammunition.
• 12.7 mm Steel plate between fuel tanks.
• 6 mm Steel plate in front of liquid cooling system.

Modifications and economy

Priority to research:

1. Radiator - The stock engine overheats too fast, getting this upgrade first will be useful in dogfights where WEP is needed.
2. Compressor - This is a good upgrade to get as the stock engine is pretty average.
3. Offensive 20mm belts - While the 20mm belts are good for the, well, belts, the reason to research this is to research "New 20mm cannons" to sort of mitigate the jamming and accuracy of the 20mm.
4. New 20mm cannons
5. Engine - As the Spitfire will be facing mostly German planes which are primarily energy fighters, this upgrade will help with dogfighting German planes.

After that, the rest is up to the pilots preference, but research the fuselage repair last as it does little to the aircrafts performance.

Armaments

Offensive armament

The Spitfire F Mk XIVe is armed with:

• 2 x 20 mm Hispano Mk.II cannons, wing-mounted (135 rpg = 270 total)
• 2 x 12.7 mm Browning M2 machine guns, wing-mounted (260 rpg = 520 total)

Suspended armament

The Spitfire F Mk XIVe can be outfitted with the following ordnance:

• Without load
• 1 x 500 lb G.P. 500 lb Mk.IV bomb (500 lb total)

Usage in battles

The Spitfire F Mk XIVe, being outfitted with a Griffon engine, does not have as stellar of a climb rate as its Merlin engine counterparts. However, it still does have a very competitive rate of climb, and can usually come out above all but a few opponents. With such an altitude advantage, the pilot is able to choose which engagements to pursue, and the ability to choose engagements wisely is necessary. Since dogfighting in the Spitfire can involve prolonged turn-fights, make sure that no other enemies are nearby, or that if there are, that they can be dealt with by teammates. This plane's engines gives it great acceleration, and it also accelerates well in dives. Be careful though, since at very high speeds, sharp maneuvers may cause the wings to snap.

As far as maneuverability goes, the Spitfire is still very good at turning, especially at high altitudes. It also has a good roll rate, making rolling scissors maneuvers a viable tactic in dogfights.

With these flight characteristics, the Spitfire is a sort of jack of all trades. It can turn fight well, of course, but it can also boom and zoom or energy fight with much success. However, the plane does have some drawbacks. For one, the powerful engine is prone to overheating, so throttle and WEP management may be necessary. Additionally, performance at low altitudes can be inadequate in certain situations. Finally, the only ordnance that the plane can carry is a single 500 lb bomb. While this can certainly destroy an enemy tank in ground realistic battles, precise aim is required to do so consistently, and the one bomb is the only anti-tank weapon that the plane has. Still, it excels in an anti-fighter role in ground RB; its excellent maneuverability is well suited for the gamemode's tendency to involve one on one dogfights.

The Spitfire F Mk XIVe carries a fairly standard ammunition count: not particularly high and not very low. It's possible to spray a little bit, but it is also wise to keep an eye on your ammo count, and to preserve ammunition if possible.

Manual Engine Control

Supercharger - Use gear 1 from sea level to 4,000 m. Once you've hit roughly 4 km, switch to supercharger gear 2 to maintain performance. The output of the engine in the first gear will slowly gain from sea level to 2 km, then at 4 km and above it will begin to drop performance, which is when you should switch to the second supercharger stage.

Pros and cons

Pros:

• Very good at turning, especially at high altitude
• Excellent climb rate
• Very powerful engine that provides a very good acceleration
• Very good dive rate
• Good roll rate
• Very accurate guns when modifications have been researched and equipped
• Lots of ammo for cannons and machine guns
• Can perform turn-fights, Boom-and-Zoom and energy fighting equally
• Effective counter to high-altitude fighters (Ta 152, G.56, etc.)
• Bubble-style canopy offers excellent visibility for simulator battles
• Good turn rate at low speeds

Cons:

• Poor performance and maneuverability at low altitude
• No combat flaps configuration
• Gear and landing flaps rip easily: safe landings must be approached very slowly
• Oil and water overheat quickly
• Guns perform inadequately when stock
• Insufficient close air support payload options
• Inadequate armament for hunting heavy bombers like the B-17G-60-VE or the G8N1
• Poor wing lift coefficient when at high altitude, low speeds and stock

History

Media

Skins

• Skins and camouflages for the Spitfire F Mk XIVe from live.warthunder.com.

Videos

See also

Links to the articles on the War Thunder Wiki that you think will be useful for the reader, for example:

• reference to the series of the aircraft;
• links to approximate analogues of other nations and research trees.

External links

• Official data sheet - more details about the performance