Beaufighter Mk X

Beaufighter Mk X

Beaufighter Mk VIc

Beaufighter Mk 21

Beaufighter Mk X

Beaufighter Mk VIc

Beaufighter Mk 21

Britain

II Rank

Battle rating:

AB	RB	SB
2.7	3.0	3.7

Class:

Strike aircraft

Torpedo bomber

Research:5 600

Purchase:22 000

Show in game

This page is about the British twin-engine fighter Beaufighter Mk X. For other versions, see Beaufighter Mk VIc and Beaufighter Mk 21.

Description

The Beaufighter Mk X is a rank II British twin-engine fighter with a battle rating of 2.7 (AB), 3.0 (RB), and 3.7 (SB). It has been in the game since the start of the Open Beta Test prior to Update 1.27.

General info

Flight performance

Describe how the aircraft behaves in the air. Speed, manoeuvrability, acceleration and allowable loads - these are the most important characteristics of the vehicle.

Characteristics	Max Speed (km/h at 2,600 m)		Max altitude (metres)	Turn time (seconds)		Rate of climb (metres/second)		Take-off run (metres)
	AB	RB		AB	RB	AB	RB
Stock	468	450	4575	29.8	30.8	6.6	6.6	443
Upgraded	517	490		27.3	28.5	14.5	10.0

Details

Features
Combat flaps	Take-off flaps	Landing flaps	Air brakes	Arrestor gear
✓	✓	✓	X	X

Limits
Wings (km/h)	Gear (km/h)	Flaps (km/h)			Max Static G
		Combat	Take-off	Landing	+	-
0	242	440	242	216	~7	~3

Optimal velocities
Ailerons (km/h)	Rudder (km/h)	Elevators (km/h)	Radiator (km/h)
< 330	< 390	< 410	> 300

Compressor (RB/SB)
Setting 1
Optimal altitude	100% Engine power	WEP Engine power
460 m	1,395 hp	1,743 hp
Setting 2
Optimal altitude	100% Engine power	WEP Engine power
2,651 m	1,300 hp	1,547 hp

Survivability and armour

• 25 mm Steel - Armoured nose plate
• 1 mm Steel - Forward engine nacelle armour plates
• 25 mm Steel - Rear aircraft/gunner protection armour plate
• 38 mm Bulletproof glass - Armoured windscreen

Armaments

Offensive armament

The Beaufighter Mk X is armed with:

• 4 x 20 mm Hispano Mk.II cannons, belly-mounted (283 rpg = 1,132 total)
• 6 x 7.7 mm Browning .303 machine guns, wing-mounted (2 x left, 4 x right) (1,000 rpg = 6,000 total)

Suspended armament

The Beaufighter Mk X can be outfitted with the following ordnance:

• Without load
• 1 x Mark XII torpedo
• 8 x RP-3 rockets

Defensive armament

The Beaufighter Mk X is defended by:

• 1 x 7.7 mm Vickers K machine gun, dorsal turret (1,000 rpg)

Usage in battles

Just like the Mk VIc version of the Beaufighter, you can use this aircraft in a variety of roles. Heavy fighter, torpedo bomber, and attacker are all still viable roles for this aircraft. The big difference is in how effective you are at these roles. In the ground attack role, you see a large improvement in capabilities. This is mainly due to the additional ability to carry rockets for ground attack, and the increase in 20 mm cannon ammo. Torpedo bomber tactics should be avoided, however. With the torpedo on offer still being very poor in terms of drop requirements, surviving against incoming flak will be a real challenge. Heavy fighter tactics can be used once again, but with a few changes. Compared to the Mk VIc, you pack a much bigger punch with your weaponry. Unfortunately, this adds weight to the airframe. Thanks to the extra weight, climb rate, manoeuvrability, and speed will all suffer. In short, you will find it harder to find and catch targets, but you can shoot them down more easily. Overall, stick to relatively low altitude. Go after ground targets whenever you see the opportunity and attack any bombers operating at low altitude the second they show up. In order to ensure effectiveness in this role, ground target or universal ammo belts should be used with the 20 mm cannons. The same applies to your 7.7 mm machine guns ammo belts; armoured or universal should be used. With a good flight escort, you can take give your opponents a lot of trouble attacking their ground units, ultimately helping to secure victory for your team.

Manual Engine Control

MEC elements
Mixer	Pitch	Radiator			Supercharger	Turbocharger
		Oil	Water	Type
Not controllable	Controllable Not auto controlled	Not controllable Not auto controlled	Controllable Not auto controlled	Combined	Controllable 2 gears	Not controllable

Modules

Tier	Flight performance		Survivability	Weaponry
I	Fuselage repair	Radiator		Offensive 7 mm	Offensive 20 mm
II		Compressor	Airframe	New 7 mm MGs	New 20 mm cannons
III	Wings repair	Engine		Turret 7 mm	Mk.II year 1942	TSC mk.II
IV		Engine injection	Cover	New 7 mm MGs	Mk.II year 1943	RSC mk.II

Pros and cons

Pros:

• Excellent armament consisting of four Hispano Mk II cannons and six 7.7 mm machine guns
• Very likely to come out on top during a head-on attack
• Can actually intercept bombers, provided they are flying low
• Center-lined cannon armament makes them much more accurate
• Good horizontal agility
• Very good ammo load, especially helpful during RB and SB

Cons:

• Mediocre climb rate, stay in low altitudes
• Machine guns' accuracy suffers from wing mounting (-> convergence)
• Bad roll rate on high speeds
• Less manoeuvrable than the Mk VI
• Gunner is almost useless due to only having a single machine gun for defensive armament
• Cannot carry any bombs, which makes it harder to destroy pillboxes and heavier tanks

History

In-game description

A design rapidly born from the wings and tail of the earlier Beaufort, the Beaufighter was a two seat, twin engine heavy fighter designed for long range, ground strike and night fighter duties. Equipped with an early AI radar, the Beaufighter was one of the world's first successful night fighters.

Most of the last mass-produced aircraft in Britain were Beaufighter TF Mk Xs. This model was a logical continuation and development of the Mk VIC, had two Hercules Mk VI engines optimised for low level flight, and could carry the standard torpedoes produced in Britain and the United States. The TF letters in the designation stood for "Torpedo Fighter". The aircraft could also carry a bomb load of 1100 kg, and with the help of an AI Mk.VIII radar installed in a 'thimble' nose, they were highly capable machines employed in detecting and destroying surface shipping. In the Far East the Beaufighter was reputed to be nicknamed 'Whispering Death' by Japanese soldiers, although some modern historians believe this to be Allied propaganda.

In March 1945, over a period of 48 hours, Beaufighter TF Mk Xs of No 236 and No 254 Squadrons found and destroyed five German submarines.

The last major variant of the Beaufighter, over 2200 were built in Britain.

Media

The Shooting Range #9 - Metal Beasts section at 06:20 discusses the Bristol Beaufighter.

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

Paste links to sources and external resources, such as:

• topic on the official game forum;
• encyclopedia page on the aircraft;
• other literature.