Seafire F Mk XVII

Seafire F Mk XVII

Seafire LF Mk.III

Seafire FR 47

Seafire F Mk XVII

Seafire LF Mk.III

Seafire FR 47

Britain

IV Rank

Battle rating:

AB	RB	SB
5.3	5.3	5.7

Class:

Fighter

Naval aircraft

Research:46 000

Purchase:155 000

This page is about the British naval fighter Seafire F Mk XVII. For the other navalised Spitfire, see Seafire FR 47. For other uses, see Spitfire (Family).

Description

The Seafire F Mk XVII is a rank IV British naval fighter with a battle rating of 5.3 (AB/RB) and 5.7 (SB). It was introduced in Update 1.49 "Weapons of Victory".

First thing to know is that the XVII is a low altitude fighter, unlike the next Seafire - the FR 47 which is a high altitude fighter. Climb rate is fantastic until 2,500 m, where it can still perform quite well until 3,500 m but going over is not recommended as the engine will fail to provide enough power. It is recommended to climb at the beginning of the game until 2,000 m, targeting enemy Attacker aircraft, retreating, climbing up to 3,500 m, baiting down enemy fighters and finishing them on your own turf (under 2,000 m).

The Seafire Mk XVII has an excellent manoeuvrability, stock turn time is 18.3 s (AB) and 18.6 s (RB/SB) and once fully upgraded it reaches 16.6 s (AB) and 17 s (RB/SB). Once the first pass of an enemy is dodged, sticking to its tail is not a difficult task as it can out turn many of its opponents especially Germans and Americans.

Stock, the plane is very difficult to handle, the climb rate is horrible (17 m/s in AB, 19.5 m/s in RB/SB), energy retention is lacking, weaponry is inefficient, speed is terrible (603 km/h max speed in AB, 586 km/h max speed in AB/SB)... Players will have a bitter time unlocking each and every module of the plane and should stick to a boom and zoom strategy until the performance modules are fully unlocked and installed. 20 mm ammo belts should be researched as soon as it is available to research, but focusing on the performance is the key, 7.7 mm and bombs should be left as the last modules to unlock. Stock, the plane is NOT worth playing in RB, play it in AB until you have at least unlocked all the performance modules.

The 2 x Hispano Mk.V 20 mm guns are devastating once the air belt equipped, composed of 50% HEF-I and 50 HEF-SAPI (HEF-I HEF-I HEF-SAPI HEF-SAPI) it wrecks others fighters in small bursts and does not require much more for medium bombers if used at convergence point. On the other hand the 7.7 mm appears like an archaic weapon, ineffective but kept as a souvenir of the "good old days" of the Spitfire Mk Ia. Ineffective, yes but not useless actually, the 7.7 mm with tracer can be use as visual guide to see where you are firing with the 20 mm air belt which does not contain tracers! Quite useful tip in RB for inexperienced players.

Unfortunately the plane is lacking rockets for ground attacks like its elder brother the Seafire FR 47, nevertheless it can equip up to 2 x 250 lb + 500 lb bombs which are enough to easily destroy medium tanks or finish a damaged base. Payload is useful in late RB game but it should be avoided to start a game with as it affects performance significantly.

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
Stock
Max Speed (km/h at 3,962 m)		Max altitude (meters)	Turn time (seconds)		Rate of climb (meters/second)		Take-off run (meters)
AB	RB		AB	RB	AB	RB
606	586	10900	18.0	18.7	19.5	19.5	480
Upgraded
Max Speed (km/h at 3,962 m)		Max altitude (meters)	Turn time (seconds)		Rate of climb (meters/second)		Take-off run (meters)
AB	RB		AB	RB	AB	RB
676	635	10900	16.3	17.0	31	24.2	480

Details

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

Limits
Wing-break speed (km/h)	Gear limit (km/h)	Combat flaps (km/h)	Max Static G
			+	-
		N/A	~10	~6

Optimal velocities
Ailerons (km/h)	Rudder (km/h)	Elevators (km/h)	Radiator (km/h)
< 321	< 400	< 350	> 500

Compressor (RB/SB)
Setting 1
Optimal altitude	100% Engine power	WEP Engine power
1,880 m	1,480 hp	1,953 hp
Setting 2
Optimal altitude	100% Engine power	WEP Engine power
4,200 m	1,350 hp	1,782 hp

Survivability and armour

Examine the survivability of the aircraft. Note how vulnerable the structure is and how secure the pilot is, whether the fuel tanks are armoured, etc. Describe the armour, if there is any, and also mention the vulnerability of other critical aircraft systems.

• 38 mm Bulletproof glass - Armoured windscreen
• 4 mm Steel - Armoured plates in pilot seat
• 6-7 mm Steel - Armoured plates behind pilot's seat
• 1 mm Steel - Armoured plate between fuel tanks
• 3 mm Steel - Armoured boxes around wing ammunition

Armaments

Offensive armament

The Seafire F Mk XVII is armed with:

• 2 x 20 mm Hispano Mk.V cannons, wing-mounted (120 rpg = 240 total)
• 4 x 7.7 mm Browning .303 machine guns, wing-mounted (350 rpg = 1,400 total)

Suspended armament

The Seafire F Mk XVII can be outfitted with the following ordnance:

• Without load
• 2 x 250 lb G.P. 250 lb Mk.IV bombs (500 lb total)
• 3 x 250 lb G.P. 250 lb Mk.IV bombs (750 lb total)
• 1 x 500 lb G.P. 500 lb Mk.IV bomb + 2 x 250 lb G.P. 250 lb Mk.IV bombs (1,000 lb total)

Usage in battles

Describe the tactics of playing in an aircraft, the features of using vehicles in a team and advice on tactics. Refrain from creating a "guide" - do not impose a single point of view, but instead, give the reader food for thought. Examine the most dangerous enemies and give recommendations on fighting them. If necessary, note the specifics of the game in different modes (AB, RB, SB).

Manual Engine Control

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

Modules

Tier	Flight performance		Survivability	Weaponry
I	Fuselage repair	Radiator		Offensive 7 mm		HSBC mk.2
II		Compressor	Airframe			HSBC mk.3
III	Wings repair	Engine		New 7 mm MGs	Offensive 20 mm
IV		Engine injection	Cover		New 20 mm cannons	HMBC mk.3

Pros and cons

Seafire XVII on a night sortie

Pros:

• Twin 20 mm Hispanos are a staple of British planes at this point
• Very manoeuvrable as with other Spitfire variants
• Good bomb load for a Spitfire: up to 2 x 250 lb + 500 lb bombs
• Good climb rate...

Cons:

• ...until about 2,000 m
• Loses A LOT of performance above 2,500 m
• Outperformed compared to other planes at the same BR
• .303 cals in the armament are no longer sufficient
• Other Griffon Spitfires have better performance
• Default belts are terrible
• Runs out of cannon ammo far too quickly, only 240 rounds

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 long, take it to a separate article, taking a link to the article about the vehicle and adding a block "/ History" (example: https://wiki.warthunder.com/(Vehicle-name)/History) and add a link to it here using the main template. Be sure to reference text and sources by using <ref></ref>, as well as adding them at the end of the article with <references />. This section may also include the vehicle's dev blog entry (if applicable) and the in-game encyclopedia description (under === Encyclopedia Info ===, also if applicable).

Media

Excellent additions to the article would be video guides, screenshots from the game, and photos.

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

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