SPITFIRE MkVC T W, 249 Sqdn
CFS3 - V2.85.06
AvHistory 1% Aircraft General Statement and Installation Instructions
It is the intention of the AvHistory 1% project to over time build the most accurate aircraft that the CFS3 software can support. The development of a 1% aircraft requires specific and in many cases dramatic changes to the aircraft delivered with the MS game as well as the addition of aircraft built from the ground up by third parties which were never included in the original MS game. We believe that because the AvHistory 1% aircraft are materially different they should not be mixed with "box stock" aircraft in online combat.
All the planes 1% listed for download are qualified for use in our AvHistory William Tell Meet Air Combat Ladder. For information and to get the sign up sheet for the ladder please go to the LINKS section at http://www.avhistory.org
No AvHistory 1% aircraft maybe provided for download from any site without express written consent of AvHistory. No skins for AvHistory aircraft, other then those based on stock MS CFS3 visuals, maybe offered for download with our written permission.
Additionally, direct linking to our download site is forbidden.
SPITFIRE MkVC T W
This aircraft was built by Bill "SPITFRND" Wilson using version 2.85.06 of the AvHistory 1% Assembly Line process. It is based on the new CFS3 Spitfire MkVb visual 3D model created by and painted by Josh Ziebarth "ZUYAX".
ZUYAX painted this plane to represent Spitfire Mk V c BR108, "T W", flown by Pilot Officer P. A. Nash, 249 Sqdn., Malta, April 1942. Nash used this aircraft to destroy 1 Bf109 and two Ju87s with another 109 and Ju87 probable in May of 1942. It was also flown by a number of other famous Malta pilots including 'Laddie’ Lucas, Buck McNair, Stan Grant and Paul Brennan in the summer of 1942, ultimately recording at least 4 confirmed kills.
BR108 was delivered in early 1942 and shortly after its maiden flight it was partially disassembled, crated and loaded aboard the freighter Empire Heath, for transport to Gibraltar. After reassembly, it was loaded aboard the USS Wasp on 7 May and flown to Malta two days later.
As was the practice at the time, two of the aircraft's four cannons were soon removed after arrival on Malta. The expected, though unconfirmed, reason for this was to conserve ammunition which was a precious commodity on Malta in this period. The pilots also appreciated the reduction in weight since the aircraft performance was already degraded with the tropical filter used at that time. BR108 was issued to 249 Squadron and recoded T-W. BR108 enjoyed a distinguished career with 249 Squadron before being transferred to 603 Squadron in July. After recording a Ju88 damaged and Bf109 probable with PO L. V. Sanders, BR108 was shot down by Heinz-Berres of I/JG77 and ditched in Marsalforn Bay, Gozo. The pilot was rescued by Maltese fishermen. Its wreckage was recovered and ultimately placed on display in the Air Hall at the National War Museum in Valletta, Malta.
Although the Spitfire is best known for its importance during the Battle of Britain, its significance to the Malta campaign was undoubted one of the most important contributions of its impressive battle career. Situated in the middle of the Mediterranean near the supply routes to the Axis North Africa campaign, Malta was of huge strategic importance in the war effort. Thus in late 1941 the Lftwaffe transferred a large contingent of fighters and bombers to Sicily to attempt to pave the way for an invasion of the island. Constant air raids soon followed and the losses sustained by the island's aging Hurricane defenders soon made it imperative that their numbers be supplemented by some new Mark V Spitfires.
The logistics of this exercise were non trivial. Malta was too far from Gibraltar for a direct flight and the strength of the Axis air and naval blockade made freighter transport undesirable. Thus it was decided to board the Mark Vs on carriers and transport them to a point where they would be flown with extended range tanks the last 650 miles to the island. The first operation, codename Spotter, successfully delivered 15 Mark Vs from the deck of the HMS Eagle to Malta on March 11, 1942. The Spitfires were soon put to vital use providing top cover to permit the Hurricanes to once again concentrate on the enemy bombers. Fighting was constant and intense and it is often said that any fighter pilot that survived long enough was sure to become an ace. Attrition was high due to the constant raids and the Eagle begin regular deliveries before suffering damage to its steering gear in April leaving the area without a suitable transport carrier.
In response to a personal request from Winston Churchill, President Roosevelt authorized the use of the carrier Wasp to continue the deliveries. On April 20th, the first 47 Spitfires were delivered to Malta for the larger carrier as 'Operation Calendar'. While all arrived safely, the Maltese airports were instantly inundated with large raids and by April 21st only 27 remained serviceable from the delivery. From the end of April through May the Island saw some of its most intense aerial combat. Fortunately, the Spitfire deliveries continued with another 47 by the Wasp and the return of the Eagle to action. By late May Malta had a full five squadrons of Spitfires available and its security was now finally assured. Spitfire deliveries continued and the Island was soon resumed its importance as a base for offensive strikes against Axis supply lines. In the summer of 1942, Supermarine developed a 170 gallon slipper tank, finally enabling the Spitfire to make the 1100 mile direct flight from Gibraltar.
The first Mark Vs paired the Merlin 45 with some minor modification to the Mk II airframe. The first operational Mark Vs were delivered to 92 Squadron at Manston in February 1942. Ironically, the Mark V became operational nearly at the same time as the Bf109F-2, the re-engineered successor to the main adversary of the Spitfire Mk I. Overall, the two fighters were very closely matched. The 109F enjoyed the speed and climb advantage below 10,000 ft and the Mark V retained the earlier Spitfire edge in turn radius and the performance edge at higher altitudes. With twin 20mm cannons and four .303 machine guns, the Mark V was also better armed. Ongoing improvements, such as metal ailerons and a permanent solution to the negative G engine cutout, the Mark V enjoyed parity with the Luftwaffe in the contest for air superiority until the appearance of the FW190 in the late summer of 1941. But that heralded yet another chapter in the development of the Spitfire.
The MarK Vs delivered to Malta and North Africa typically required no less than 26 major modifications. The most significant of these included the addition of a large oil tank and the fitting of a tropical air filter, the first of which was the "Vokes filter". The filter increased drag and noticably reduced speed and climb rates.
The preceding text includes original and edited material provided by Bill Wilson from the following sources: Spitfire, Story of a Famous Fighter, Bruce Robertson; Spitfire, The History, Eric Morgan & Edward Shacklady; Malta - the Spitfire Year; The Secret Years, Flight Testing at Bascombe Down, Tim Mason; The Spitfire Story, Alfred Price; Spitfire Mark V Aces, Alfred Price; Famous Fighters of the Second World War, William Greene; Aircraft of WWII, Steward Wilson; Spitfire, Flying Legend, John Dibbs and Tony Holmes; Smithsonian Air and Space Magazine, http://www.airspacemag.com; Spitfires and Polished Metal, Graham Moss New Zealand Fighter Pilots Museum, www.nzfpm.co.nz and Sky Corner Aviation Reference, Drawings, Spitfire Mk5, www.airwar.ru.
CFS3 - V2.85.06
AvHistory 1% Aircraft General Statement and Installation Instructions
It is the intention of the AvHistory 1% project to over time build the most accurate aircraft that the CFS3 software can support. The development of a 1% aircraft requires specific and in many cases dramatic changes to the aircraft delivered with the MS game as well as the addition of aircraft built from the ground up by third parties which were never included in the original MS game. We believe that because the AvHistory 1% aircraft are materially different they should not be mixed with "box stock" aircraft in online combat.
All the planes 1% listed for download are qualified for use in our AvHistory William Tell Meet Air Combat Ladder. For information and to get the sign up sheet for the ladder please go to the LINKS section at http://www.avhistory.org
No AvHistory 1% aircraft maybe provided for download from any site without express written consent of AvHistory. No skins for AvHistory aircraft, other then those based on stock MS CFS3 visuals, maybe offered for download with our written permission.
Additionally, direct linking to our download site is forbidden.
SPITFIRE MkVC T W
This aircraft was built by Bill "SPITFRND" Wilson using version 2.85.06 of the AvHistory 1% Assembly Line process. It is based on the new CFS3 Spitfire MkVb visual 3D model created by and painted by Josh Ziebarth "ZUYAX".
ZUYAX painted this plane to represent Spitfire Mk V c BR108, "T W", flown by Pilot Officer P. A. Nash, 249 Sqdn., Malta, April 1942. Nash used this aircraft to destroy 1 Bf109 and two Ju87s with another 109 and Ju87 probable in May of 1942. It was also flown by a number of other famous Malta pilots including 'Laddie’ Lucas, Buck McNair, Stan Grant and Paul Brennan in the summer of 1942, ultimately recording at least 4 confirmed kills.
BR108 was delivered in early 1942 and shortly after its maiden flight it was partially disassembled, crated and loaded aboard the freighter Empire Heath, for transport to Gibraltar. After reassembly, it was loaded aboard the USS Wasp on 7 May and flown to Malta two days later.
As was the practice at the time, two of the aircraft's four cannons were soon removed after arrival on Malta. The expected, though unconfirmed, reason for this was to conserve ammunition which was a precious commodity on Malta in this period. The pilots also appreciated the reduction in weight since the aircraft performance was already degraded with the tropical filter used at that time. BR108 was issued to 249 Squadron and recoded T-W. BR108 enjoyed a distinguished career with 249 Squadron before being transferred to 603 Squadron in July. After recording a Ju88 damaged and Bf109 probable with PO L. V. Sanders, BR108 was shot down by Heinz-Berres of I/JG77 and ditched in Marsalforn Bay, Gozo. The pilot was rescued by Maltese fishermen. Its wreckage was recovered and ultimately placed on display in the Air Hall at the National War Museum in Valletta, Malta.
Although the Spitfire is best known for its importance during the Battle of Britain, its significance to the Malta campaign was undoubted one of the most important contributions of its impressive battle career. Situated in the middle of the Mediterranean near the supply routes to the Axis North Africa campaign, Malta was of huge strategic importance in the war effort. Thus in late 1941 the Lftwaffe transferred a large contingent of fighters and bombers to Sicily to attempt to pave the way for an invasion of the island. Constant air raids soon followed and the losses sustained by the island's aging Hurricane defenders soon made it imperative that their numbers be supplemented by some new Mark V Spitfires.
The logistics of this exercise were non trivial. Malta was too far from Gibraltar for a direct flight and the strength of the Axis air and naval blockade made freighter transport undesirable. Thus it was decided to board the Mark Vs on carriers and transport them to a point where they would be flown with extended range tanks the last 650 miles to the island. The first operation, codename Spotter, successfully delivered 15 Mark Vs from the deck of the HMS Eagle to Malta on March 11, 1942. The Spitfires were soon put to vital use providing top cover to permit the Hurricanes to once again concentrate on the enemy bombers. Fighting was constant and intense and it is often said that any fighter pilot that survived long enough was sure to become an ace. Attrition was high due to the constant raids and the Eagle begin regular deliveries before suffering damage to its steering gear in April leaving the area without a suitable transport carrier.
In response to a personal request from Winston Churchill, President Roosevelt authorized the use of the carrier Wasp to continue the deliveries. On April 20th, the first 47 Spitfires were delivered to Malta for the larger carrier as 'Operation Calendar'. While all arrived safely, the Maltese airports were instantly inundated with large raids and by April 21st only 27 remained serviceable from the delivery. From the end of April through May the Island saw some of its most intense aerial combat. Fortunately, the Spitfire deliveries continued with another 47 by the Wasp and the return of the Eagle to action. By late May Malta had a full five squadrons of Spitfires available and its security was now finally assured. Spitfire deliveries continued and the Island was soon resumed its importance as a base for offensive strikes against Axis supply lines. In the summer of 1942, Supermarine developed a 170 gallon slipper tank, finally enabling the Spitfire to make the 1100 mile direct flight from Gibraltar.
The first Mark Vs paired the Merlin 45 with some minor modification to the Mk II airframe. The first operational Mark Vs were delivered to 92 Squadron at Manston in February 1942. Ironically, the Mark V became operational nearly at the same time as the Bf109F-2, the re-engineered successor to the main adversary of the Spitfire Mk I. Overall, the two fighters were very closely matched. The 109F enjoyed the speed and climb advantage below 10,000 ft and the Mark V retained the earlier Spitfire edge in turn radius and the performance edge at higher altitudes. With twin 20mm cannons and four .303 machine guns, the Mark V was also better armed. Ongoing improvements, such as metal ailerons and a permanent solution to the negative G engine cutout, the Mark V enjoyed parity with the Luftwaffe in the contest for air superiority until the appearance of the FW190 in the late summer of 1941. But that heralded yet another chapter in the development of the Spitfire.
The MarK Vs delivered to Malta and North Africa typically required no less than 26 major modifications. The most significant of these included the addition of a large oil tank and the fitting of a tropical air filter, the first of which was the "Vokes filter". The filter increased drag and noticably reduced speed and climb rates.
The preceding text includes original and edited material provided by Bill Wilson from the following sources: Spitfire, Story of a Famous Fighter, Bruce Robertson; Spitfire, The History, Eric Morgan & Edward Shacklady; Malta - the Spitfire Year; The Secret Years, Flight Testing at Bascombe Down, Tim Mason; The Spitfire Story, Alfred Price; Spitfire Mark V Aces, Alfred Price; Famous Fighters of the Second World War, William Greene; Aircraft of WWII, Steward Wilson; Spitfire, Flying Legend, John Dibbs and Tony Holmes; Smithsonian Air and Space Magazine, http://www.airspacemag.com; Spitfires and Polished Metal, Graham Moss New Zealand Fighter Pilots Museum, www.nzfpm.co.nz and Sky Corner Aviation Reference, Drawings, Spitfire Mk5, www.airwar.ru.
