Spitfire LF Mk IXc (USA)

▃Spitfire LF Mk IXc

▃Spitfire LF Mk IXc

USA

IV Rank

Battle rating:

AB	RB	SB
5.3	5.7	5.0

Class:

PREMIUM

Fighter

Purchase:4 880

Show in game

This page is about the American fighter Spitfire LF Mk IXc (USA). For other uses, see Spitfire (Family).

Description

The ▃Spitfire LF Mk IXc is a Rank IV premium American fighter with a battle rating of 5.3 (AB), 5.7 (RB), and 5.0 (SB). This fighter has been in the game since the start of the Open Beta Test prior to Update 1.29.

General info

Flight Performance

Characteristics
Stock
Max Speed (km/h at 4,878 m)		Max altitude (meters)	Turn time (seconds)		Rate of climb (meters/second)		Take-off run (meters)
AB	RB		AB	RB	AB	RB
617	599	11500	16.9	17.5	17.3	20.4	320
Upgraded
Max Speed (km/h at 4,878 m)		Max altitude (meters)	Turn time (seconds)		Rate of climb (meters/second)		Take-off run (meters)
AB	RB		AB	RB	AB	RB
?	?	11500	??.?	??.?	??.?	??.?	320

Details

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

Limits
Wing-break speed (km/h)	Gear limit (km/h)	Combat flap (km/h)	Max Static G
			+	-
774	270	N/A	~12	~6

Optimal velocities
Ailerons (km/h)	Rudder (km/h)	Elevators (km/h)	Radiator (km/h)
< 321	< 400	< 450	> 250

Compressor (RB/SB)
Setting 1
Optimal altitude	100% Engine power	WEP Engine power
3,200 m	1,380 hp	2,084 hp
Setting 2
Optimal altitude	100% Engine power	WEP Engine power
6,200 m	1,310 hp	1,978 hp

Survivability and armour

• 38 mm Bulletproof glass in front of the pilot
• 3 mm Steel plate on top of fuel tanks
• 4 mm Steel plate on pilot's seat. Behind pilot is another 6-7 mm steel plate
• 3 mm Steel plates around ammunition

• Critical components located at the front of aircraft (fuel, pilot, engine, controls)
• More fuel tanks located in wings near the fuselage

Armaments

Offensive armament

The Spitfire LF Mk IXc (USA) is armed with:

• 2 x 20 mm Hispano Mk.II cannon, wing-mounted (120 rpg = 240 total)
• 4 x 7.7 mm Browning machine gun, wing-mounted (350 rpg = 1,400 total)

Suspended armament

The Spitfire LF Mk IXc (USA) can be outfitted with the following ordinance:

• Without load
• 1 x G.P. 250 lb Mk.IV bomb (250 lb total)

Usage in the battles

All Spitfire versions served primarily as fighter aircraft. Due to its high manoeuvrability, it excels in dogfight matched only by few opponents (mainly Japanese). Due to its vulnerabilities, namely it's low ammunition load and somewhat flimsy airframe, it is not recommended to attack heavily armed bombers. It can outclimb many rivals at its rank, and the climb rate is one of its great advantages. Yet it is not recommended to try to catch up with zoom-climbing enemy fighters, because Spitfire will most likely run out of speed before you manage to engage the opponent. Therefore go into a shallow, but high-speed climb to patiently gain the same altitude as the foe. Do not waste too much speed or altitude to the Boom & Zoom bounce from above, or else it will not work. In emergency situations, when an opponent is diving onto you, your speed is insufficient to face them and when there are no clouds to hide in, you can descend to the tree-top level and use sharp turns and preferably uneven terrain to make dive attack impossible for your opponent. He will most likely have to pull up before he can attack, due to his high speed and exactly at that moment when he is pulling up, you can take initiative.

Manual Engine Control

MEC elements
Mixer	Pitch	Radiator			Supercharger	Turbocharger
		Oil	Water	Type
Controllable	Controllable	Not controllable	Controllable	Combined	Controllable	Not controllable

Modules

As a Premium Aircraft, this Spitfire comes with all modules unlocked and equipped.

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		SBC mark 25	Mk.II year 1942
IV		Engine Injection	Cover		Mk.II year 1943

Pros and cons

Pros:

• Excellent Rate of climb which will rival later Griffon Spitfires and most late war props
• Excellent acceleration from a standing start due to the boost configuration
• Good manoeuvrability, albeit lower than other Spitfires (I-V Marks)

Cons:

• Features the British 7.7 mm 303 Browning machine guns
• Tendency to break its wings during high-speed manoeuvres
• Very low ammunition count, must be very conservative
• Poor engine performance at high altitudes

History

Describe the history of the creation and combat usage of the aircraft in more detail than in the introduction. If the historical reference turns out to be too big, take it to a separate article, taking a link to an article about the vehicle and adding a block "/ historical reference" (example: https://wiki.warthunder.com/Name-vehicles/historical reference) and add a link to it here using the main template. Be sure to include links to sources at the end of the article.

In-game description

"Supermarine Spitfire Mk.IX (Type 361) single-engine interceptor fighter/front-line fighter

A single-seat, single-engine, all-metal, low-wing cantilever monoplane fighter.

Not only the British but also quite a few pilots from other countries fought on Supermarine Spitfire fighters. The Americans used Spitfires, as well.

The beginning of the Spitfire was marked by volunteers who had joined the ranks of the British RAF before the USA joined the war. In 1941, there were three full-fledged American fighter squadrons in Britain, named the Eagles. The Americans originally flew Hurricanes, but in August 1941 they started their retraining on Spitfires. Until the autumn of 1942, the Eagles were common British squadrons with the corresponding staff, uniforms, and markings. On September 29, 1942, thanks to an intergovernmental agreement, the Eagles were transferred to the command of the Eighth Air Force of the USAAF, located in Great Britain. Three squadrons were combined to form the 4th Fighter Wing, and the tricolour British cockades on the planes were replaced with American ones.

Beginning in 1942, a number of the USAAF's fighter units which had arrived at the West European theatre of war without planes received British fighters as part of the so-called ""Reverse Lend-Lease"". These squadrons were originally based in Great Britain. Later, they were also based in North Africa. A total of about 1,000 Spitfires of various versions were handed over to the USAAF by the RAF.

For example, the 52d Fighter Wing was redeployed in July 1942 from the USA over the ocean to Northern Ireland. It was there that American fighter pilots had to master the Spitfire. The Americans flew Spitfires when they joined the North African Campaign in November 1942. American pilots fought in Spitfires in the North African theatre of war until the German troops were defeated in May 1943.

The Americans used Spitfires (Mk.VIII and Mk.IX variants) in the skies over Italy as part of the Twelfth Air Force. By March 1944, the majority of the British planes had been replaced with Mustangs, but there were still some planes with those white stars on their fuselages all the way up until the Capitulation of Germany."

Media

An excellent addition to the article will be video guides, as well as screenshots from the game and photos.

Read 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.

Sources

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