MAQUETTE À MONTER - Supermarine Spitfire Mk.Ia Airfix | N° A05126A | 1:48

Characteristics

Description

The Supermarine Spitfire is arguably both the most famous and best loved fighter aircraft of all time. It was designed by R.J. Mitchell in the early 1930s as a monoplane fighter aircraft to replace the RAF's ageing biplane fleet. Its highly successful performance during the Second World War has made it one of the most celebrated aircraft in aviation history. The Spitfire Mk.Ia was the first mark to enter service in the RAF. In 1940, the Mk.Ia represented just over half of Fighter Command's strength during the Battle of Britain. In 1942, the Mk.Ia was superseded by the Mk.Vb and relegated to training duties. The Mk.Ia was fitted with a Rolls-Royce Merlin II or III engine and armed with eight .303-inch machine guns. The aircraft were subsequently modified in 1941 with cannon armament after experience against Luftwaffe bombers showed the machine gun armament to be inadequate. The Spitfire Mk.Ia remains in a special place in the hearts of the British public, as the aircraft that helped to save the nation in its hour of need during the summer of 1940. Scheme 1: P7308 WZ-Z, flown by Flying Officer William Cunningham, 19 Squadron RAF, Fowlmere Cambridgeshire September 1940. Scheme 2: R6644 DW-K, flown by Pilot Officer Al Deere, 54 Squadron RAF, Hornchurch Essex August 1940. Scheme 3: L1067 PR-X, flown by Flying Officer Geoffrey Stephenson, 19 Squadron RAF, Duxford Cambridgeshire September 1938. Scheme 4: K9793 PR-F, 609 (West Riding) Auxiliary Air Force Scheme 5: L1007 DX-X, flown by Flying Officer Douglas Bader, 222 Squadron RAF, Duxford Cambridgeshire March 1940. Scheme 6: K9795 PR-G, flown by Squadron Leader H. Cozens, 609 (West Riding) Auxiliary Air Force, Yeadon July 1939

More to read about the KIT here, thanks to scalemates, a Belgian Scale modeling database