Swift F.7

This page is about the British jet fighter Swift F.7. For the other version, see Swift F.1.

Swift F.7

Swift F.1

Jaguar GR.1

Swift F.7

Swift F.1

Jaguar GR.1

Britain

V Rank

Battle rating:

AB	RB	SB
8.7	8.7	8.7

Class:

Fighter

Jet fighter

Research:120 000

Purchase:340 000

Description

The Swift F.7 is a rank V British jet fighter with a battle rating of 8.7 (AB/RB/SB). It was introduced in Update 1.91 "Night Vision".

The Swift F.7 was the last variant in the line of Swift fighters produced by Supermarine Aviation Works. This fighter was one of Britain's fighters to come out of the early 1950s. Post-war England saw new leadership which made the faulty assumption that for the next ten years or so, no new major conflict would happen and therefore defence spending, research and development on new aircraft was reduced to a trickle, mostly experimental prototypes made for research purposes.

The early 1950s saw a change of leadership and Winston Churchill made sweeping changes which amped up research and development churning out Swift fighters as part of that. In the haste to research, develop and produce these fighters, problems crept up in the aircraft which happened so fast, it was difficult to stop the manufacturing process long enough to make the necessary updates, especially problems found during flight trials. These updates when made produced the different Swift variants which lead to the final production of the Swift F.7. By now a majority of the problems with the aircraft had been ironed out, however, the F.7 never entered active service, instead, the fourteen built acted as training aircraft which taught pilots how to get used to shooting off air-to-air missiles, namely the Fireflash.

Swift F.7 showing effective camouflage for the terrain it is flying in.

Though never seeing combat during its short career, the Swift F.7 has an opportunity to make a name for itself in War Thunder. Not as fancy or bristling with weapons like a Sabre or a MiG, the Swift F.7 has its place in the sky and can dance with the best, and even shoot them down. Armed with two 30 mm ADEN cannons and two Fireflash air-to-air missiles, while maintaining between 700 and 810 km/h, this fighter can get the best of even superior aircraft it may go against. Its slower speeds may allow for an overshoot of an enemy aircraft which may place it in front of the Swift's gun sights or even for the radar beam riding Fireflash, of which the enemy pilot will have no indication it was launched unless they are diligent about watching behind them. In the right hands, the Swift F.7 and its weapons have the ability to humble enemy pilots and their superior aircraft.

General info

The sleek Swift F.7 searching for targets.

Flight performance

Max speed

at 3 048 m985 km/h

Turn time25 s

Max altitude12 192 m

EngineRolls-Royce Avon Mk.116

Type

Cooling systemAir

Take-off weight10 t

The Swift F.7 is a good fighter which excels in playing the interceptor role, however like the three bears from Goldilocks' story; this jet has a sweet spot in speed where it does well. Like many jets, this one does not do so well when slow and it becomes an easy target for others to attack. On the other hand, flying too fast causes the controls to lock up, preventing any real manoeuvring at all and, if playing in realistic or simulator battles, ripping off the wing-tips is a very real problem when moving too fast.

The sweet spot or "just right" speed zone for the Swift F.7 is between 700 km/h and 810 km/h. Here the jet will have sufficient speed to properly manoeuvre. Diving either to shoot down another aircraft or to get away from someone on your tail can be a challenge as doing so can result in the aircraft superseding the 810 km/h threshold (easily going into the mid 900s) and end up a sitting duck unable to manoeuvre or if close enough to the ground turning into a lawn dart because it could not pull up due to the control surfaces locking up.

Speed management is key to survival - the afterburner can aid with increasing the aircraft's speed if slow - and with the afterburner the aircraft has a really good climb rate - it can accelerate significantly even in a steep climb. However, slowing down to keep from going too fast is a major problem because this aircraft does not have an air brake and just reducing the throttle will not help very much. Two options are available to reduce speed in this aircraft and the first is to deploy landing flaps. The landing flaps have been reinforced and should not rip when used to slow the aircraft down and can be deployed and retracted as needed. Another option to help bleed off any unnecessary speed is to lift the nose of the aircraft (pull up or back on the control stick). Placing the fighter into a nose-high attitude will help with decreasing speed to a safe zone when the pilot can resume normal flight.

Characteristics	Max Speed (km/h at 3,048 m)		Max altitude (metres)	Turn time (seconds)		Rate of climb (metres/second)		Take-off run (metres)
	AB	RB		AB	RB	AB	RB
Stock	980	977	12192	26.5	26.9	14.8	10.1	850
Upgraded	993	985		24.1	25.0	42.6	28.0

Details

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

Limits
Wings (km/h)	Gear (km/h)	Flaps (km/h)			Max Static G
		Combat	Take-off	Landing	+	-
0	435	N/A	1,035	465	~9	~5

Optimal velocities (km/h)
Ailerons	Rudder	Elevators	Radiator
< 850	< 600	< 600	N/A

Engine performance

Engine			Aircraft mass
Engine name		Number	Empty mass		Wing loading (full fuel)
Rolls-Royce Avon Mk.116		1	6,540 kg		273 kg/m2
Engine characteristics			Mass with fuel (no weapons load)			Max Takeoff Weight
Weight (each)	Type		8m fuel	20m fuel	28m fuel
1,000 kg	Afterburning axial-flow turbojet		7,096 kg	7,916 kg	8,463 kg	9,530 kg
Maximum engine thrust @ 0 m (RB / SB)			Thrust to weight ratio @ 0 m (WEP)
Condition	100%	WEP	8m fuel	20m fuel	28m fuel	MTOW
Stationary	3,126 kgf	4,501 kgf	0.63	0.57	0.53	0.47
Optimal	3,126 kgf (0 km/h)	4,501 kgf (0 km/h)	0.63	0.57	0.53	0.47

Survivability and armour

Crew1 person

Speed of destruction

Structural0 km/h

Gear435 km/h

Armour

• 12.7 mm steel plate behind pilot's seat
• 50 mm bulletproof glass in canopy windscreen

The simple armour setup on this fighter affords protection to the pilot, via the front windscreen having 50 mm bulletproof glass to help protect against head-on attacks. Behind the pilot's seat is a 12.7 mm steel plate which is in place to provide protection for the pilot if their aircraft is shot from behind. The fuel tanks and the engine should take most of the brunt of an attack from behind, but in the event, something gets through the steel plate is meant to be the last line of protection.

Modifications and economy

Repair costBasic → Reference

AB2 915 → 4 270

RB8 330 → 12 203

SB9 504 → 13 923

Total cost of modifications101 300

164 400

Talisman cost2 200

Crew training98 000

Experts340 000

Aces1 800

Research Aces780 000

Reward for battleAB / RB / SB

120 / 380 / 600 %

202 / 202 / 202 %

Modifications

Flight performance	Survivability	Weaponry
Fuselage repair Research: 10 000 Cost: 16 000 410 New boosters Research: 5 700 Cost: 9 100 230 Compressor Research: 5 700 Cost: 9 100 230 Wings repair Research: 8 500 Cost: 14 000 350 Engine Research: 8 500 Cost: 14 000 350 G-suit Research: 11 000 Cost: 18 000 450	Airframe Research: 5 700 Cost: 9 100 230 EFS Research: 11 000 Cost: 18 000 450 Cover Research: 11 000 Cost: 18 000 450	aden_belt_pack Research: 10 000 Cost: 16 000 410 Fireflash Research: 5 700 Cost: 9 100 230 aden_new_gun Research: 8 500 Cost: 14 000 350

Armaments

Offensive armament

Weapon 12 x 30 mm ADEN cannon

Ammunition320 rounds

Fire rate1 200 shots/min

The Swift F.7 is armed with:

• 2 x 30 mm ADEN cannons, belly-mounted at right side (135 + 185 = 320 total)

This aircraft has been outfitted with two 30 mm ADEN autocannons. Though they are mounted on the fuselage resulting in not having to configure for convergence the pilot will need to account for both autocannons being mounted on the right side of the aircraft fuselage near the right air intake. Pilots which are used to having balanced machine guns or autocannons (equal amounts on both left and right side) will need to slightly adjust their aim to ensure the bullets don't miss just to the side of where they would normally aim. The ADEN cannons when they do hit their mark usually result in a critical hit or a destroyed aircraft with wings flying in one direction and tail sections going in another.

Suspended armament

List of setups (1)

Setup 12 x Fireflash air-to-air missiles

The Swift F.7 can be outfitted with the following ordnance:

• Without load
• 2 x Fireflash missiles

The Fireflash missile was the first air-to-air guided missile put into service with the United Kingdom's Royal Air Force. Built by Fairey Aviation, the same company who built the Swordfish, this missile utilised radar beam riding guidance to get the missile onto a target. The odd-looking missile consists of a central dart attached to two boosters. The boosters spin-stabilize the missile in flight and propel the missile to speeds upwards of Mach 2. 1.5 seconds after launch, with fuel spent, the boosters separate and the missile would coast the rest of the way to the target, still receiving guidance from the controlling aircraft.

This missile has an effective range of about 4 km (2.4 mi) before it no longer has the kinetic energy to continue. This missile is best used in short-range encounters such as head-on attacks where the enemy fighter is closing the distance rather than flying away. This missile can be used during tail chases as long as you maintain close distance and can keep the radar on the enemy long enough for the missile to acquire its target. The Fireflash is a finicky missile which requires practice and patience, though not as simple to use as other missiles found in-game, it can be a surprise to enemy fighters they are not expecting resulting in them having to go back and watching replays in unbelief to see what took them out. Having only two of these missiles to rely on will require the pilot to exercise restraint and not launch one if the chances of a hit are marginal and instead maybe turn to the 30 mm cannons instead in that instance.

Unlike heat-seeking missiles, beam riding missiles will not trigger a missile launch warning for the enemy player.

Usage in battles

The Swift F.7 is played similar to the Hunter as more of a Boom and Zoom aircraft. The aircraft has a sweet spot for its manoeuvrability around 800-900 km/h. Above those speeds, doing a hard turn can result in a ripped wing. It is generally advised to keep some altitude with the aircraft. The missiles are SACLOS-guided and can be useful in head-on. But for the drag that you get with the missiles it might not be worth it carrying them in the first place. The vehicle has an afterburner which results in a very good acceleration.

Radars

The Swift F.7 is equipped with an AN/APG-30 rangefinding radar, located in the nose of the aircraft. It will automatically detect other planes within the scanning area and display the range to the closest target. It is linked with a gyro gunsight and can help with aiming at close range.

AN/APG-30 - Rangefinding radar
Maximum Tracking Range	Minimum Tracking Range	Azimuth Tracking Angle	Elevation Tracking Angle
2,750 m	300 m	±9°	±9°

Pros and cons

Pros:

• Excellent climb rate with afterburner
• High top speed at sea level
• Access to excellent Fireflash short-range beam guided missiles
• Fireflash missiles work against tanks in ground attack scenarios
• Two powerful 30 mm ADEN autocannons
• Fireflash can be considered an all-aspect missile considering only needing radar and mouse guidance
• Retains energy very well
• Fireflash missiles could be used without the need to lock on target, meaning faster response time

Cons:

• No dedicated air brake, must use take-off flaps as an airbrake at high speeds, or alternatively manoeuvre, risking ripping wings
• Severe control surface locking above 820 km/h
• Wingtips will break around 800 km/h when turning high G in realistic or simulator battles
• Both autocannons are on right side of the aircraft fuselage, requires slight adjustment when aiming
• Afterburner will overheat after prolonged use
• Fireflash missiles have to be manually guided to the target by pointing the aircraft in the direction of the target
• Poor manoeuvrability at high speeds and high risk of ripping wings while doing so

History

In the years following the end of WW2, Great Britain focused their efforts on rebuilding their nation from the devastation caused by the war as the British government didn't consider a new war possible in the following ten years. Under these circumstances, developing new military technology wasn't considered a priority in most cases.

As a result, Great Britain found itself lagging behind in military aviation at the start of the 1950s by the outbreak of the Korean War. This prompted the RAF to hastily look for a new fighter aircraft to put into service, even if it meant taking into consideration an interim design.

One of the designs that sparked the RAF's interest was a new swept-wing aircraft developed by the Supermarine company - the Type 510. Being in essence just a modified Supermarine Attacker, development of this design continued, eventually maturing into the Type 541.

Soon, the Type 541 received the highest development priority and was hastily rushed through testing and into production as the Supermarine Swift. In fact, production was so rushed that it began before necessary design changes could even be applied from the results of the test flights conducted with the Type 541 prototypes.

Nonetheless, the Supermarine Swift F.1 entered service with the RAF in February 1954, followed shortly afterwards by the F.2 variant. However, many of the aircraft's teething problems weren't resolved as a result of being rushed into production. This resulted in a number of accidents happening early on involving the Swift , leading to the aircraft being grounded for a time.

Newer modifications were developed, which addressed most of the known issues. However, it was a case of too little too late for the Swift, as it quickly became replaced by the Hawker Hunter. In the end, just under 200 Supermarine Swifts were produced out of the close to 500 planned aircraft. The Swift was phased out of active service relatively quickly after its introduction, with the last fighter models being withdrawn by the RAF in the mid to late 1950s.

- From Devblog

Media

Skins

• Skins and camouflages for the Swift F.7 from live.warthunder.com.

Images

• 
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Videos

The Fireflashes Are The Most Fun You'll Have With Missiles - Spit_flyer

Is The Supermarine Swift F.7 Worth your time? - DEFYN

See also

Related development

• Supermarine Attacker FB 1
• Supermarine Attacker FB.2

Aircraft of comparable role, configuration and era

• North American F-86 Sabre
• Dassault M.D.450B Ouragan
• de Havilland Venom
• Grumman F9F Cougar
• Hawker Hunter
• Mikoyan-Gurevich MiG-17
• Saab J29D Tunnan

External links

• [Development] Supermarine Swift: Banking on Success
• Official data sheet - more details about the performance