Spitfire F Mk XIVc

This page is about the premium British fighter Spitfire F Mk XIVc. For other versions, see Spitfire (Family).

Spitfire F Mk XIVc

Spitfire F Mk XIVc

Britain

IV Rank

Battle rating:

AB	RB	SB
4.7	5.7	5.3

Class:

PREMIUM

Fighter

Purchase:6 090

Show in game

Description

The Spitfire F Mk XIVc was the product of installing a Rolls-Royce Griffon 60 engine into the fuselage of the existing Spitfire Mk VIII, which was an experimental series of about 100 Griffon-powered Spitfires. The fuselage was lengthened to 9.95 m and new wing fuel tanks had to be installed due to higher fuel consumption of the Griffon engine compared to the previous Merlin. The Mk XIVc also received a new five-blade Rotol propeller and a "C"-type wing with two 20 mm Hispano cannons and four 7.7 mm Browning machine guns. The Mk XIVs were primarily used as a V-1 flying bomb hunters due to their high speed while utilizing 150 octane fuel.

The Spitfire F Mk XIVc was introduced in Update 1.41. Featuring much greater engine power due to its Griffon engine, the Mk XIVc is faster than the previous Merlin-powered variants, at the cost of decreased manoeuvrability. However, the Spitfire is still able to out-turn most of its opponents while retaining the great climb rate and speed.

General info

Flight performance

Max speed

at 6 400 m726 km/h

Turn time17 s

Max altitude12 000 m

EngineRolls-Royce Griffon-65

TypeInline

Cooling systemWater

Take-off weight5 t

While it does have the older wing and body type of pre-Griffon Spitfires, this aircraft takes the best of both worlds and becomes a monster at its rank. Utilizing the powerful Griffon engine, this plane has amazing acceleration and climb rate, even better than the Merlin variants. This aircraft does not compromise on manoeuvrability as it can still turn on a dime. Beware of the brittle wing construction as taking hard G turns at 600 km/h and beyond can break its wings.

Characteristics	Max Speed (km/h at 8,537 m)		Max altitude (metres)	Turn time (seconds)		Rate of climb (metres/second)		Take-off run (metres)
	AB	RB		AB	RB	AB	RB
Stock	694	671	12000	18.4	19.1	18.8	18.8	400
Upgraded	770	726		16.7	17.3	32.5	24.3

Details

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

Limits
Wings (km/h)	Gear (km/h)	Flaps (km/h)			Max Static G
		Combat	Take-off	Landing	+	-
794	260	N/A	N/A	260	~13	~8

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

Survivability and armour

Crew1 person

Speed of destruction

Structural794 km/h

Gear260 km/h

• 42.8 mm Bulletproof glass in front of the pilot.
• 12.7 mm Steel plate between 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

Modifications and economy

Repair cost

AB1 929

RB4 811

SB6 748

Crew training10 000

Experts340 000

Aces1 200

Research Aces1 140 000

Reward for battleAB / RB / SB

2 × 100 / 240 / 490 %

2 × 178 / 178 / 178 %

Modifications

Flight performance	Survivability	Weaponry
Fuselage repair Radiator Compressor Wings repair Engine Engine injection	Airframe Cover	bmg303_belt_pack hispano_belt_pack bmg303_new_gun SMBC mk.2 Mk.II year 1943

Armaments

Offensive armament

Weapon 12 x 20 mm Hispano Mk.II cannon

Ammunition240 rounds

Fire rate600 shots/min

Weapon 24 x 7.7 mm Browning machine gun

Ammunition1 400 rounds

Fire rate1 000 shots/min

The Spitfire F Mk XIVc is armed with:

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

Suspended armament

List of setups (1)

Setup 11 x G.P. 500 lb Mk.IV bomb

The Spitfire F Mk XIVc can be outfitted with the following ordnance:

• Without load
• 1 x 500 lb G.P. Mk.IV bomb (500 lb total)

Usage in battles

The Spitfire F Mk.XIVc is the pinnacle of dogfighting at mid to high altitude. Primarily a fighter, this plane excels at catching unsuspecting pilots still climbing to altitude and amazing at the spitfire trademark of dogfighting.

Tactics

This aircraft has an ideal operating altitude of between 4,000 and 6,000 m due to the properties of the Griffon engine, but this aircraft has no problems climbing past that altitude, though manoeuvrability is slightly compromised at altitudes higher than 7,000 m. This aircraft excels at energy dogfighting, a mix between energy fighting and dogfighting. The insanely good acceleration coupled with the great climb rate and energy retention allows this aircraft to excel in horizontal dogfighting as well as vertical energy manoeuvres. Don't get into extended energy fights as many pure energy fighters can outdo this aircraft in pure energy fights.

Specific enemies worth noting

American aircraft can really outdo this plane in speed and energy retention, but cannot dogfight this plane very well. German planes are even more dangerous due to their high top speed and energy retention. This plane can adequately fight Japanese aircraft, but Zeroes can turn faster than you can, though they don't accelerate in a straight line as fast. If you stay up above 4,000 m, you can deal with most Soviet aircraft effectively.

Counter-tactics

Booming and zooming and pure energy fights are this plane's weaknesses, it does not hold up well in drawn-out fights of speed.

Manual Engine Control

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

Pros and cons

Pros:

• Famed Hispano Mk.IIs provide excellent damage in tandem with the Air targets belt
• 7.7 mm Tracer belt can help with aiming, as the Brownings and the Hispanos have a similar muzzle velocity
• Great turning ability
• Effective climb rate
• Smaller repair costs than normal tree variant
• Excellent acceleration
• Extremely powerful Rolls-Royce Griffon engine provides solid medium-to-high altitude performance
• Above-average roll rate at medium speeds
• Can equip a single 500 lb bomb for ground attack
• Has relatively no trouble when being up-tiered
• Effective earner of Silver Lions and Research Points

Cons:

• Its characteristics are not as refined as the normal tree variant.
• As with all Spitfires, it has an airframe that is very vulnerable to battle damage
• 7.7 mm Brownings have low stopping power and are woefully inadequate at this rank
• Controls stiffen up at high speeds
• Carrying the 500 lb bomb is a waste of the plane's dogfighting potential

History

Archive of the in-game description

The Supermarine Spitfire Mk.XIV was a single engine, single seat fighter which served with the Royal Air Force during the Second World War. In 1941 the Spitfire Mk.IV was the first Spitfire to be trialed with the new Rolls Royce Griffon engine. By the time the Griffon Spitfire entered service with the RAF in February 1943, subsequent modifications had redesignated the aircraft as the Spitfire Mk.XII. As successful as this new Spitfire was at low altitudes, the Mk.XII's performance was actually inferior to the Merlin engine Mk.IX at medium and high altitudes. Thus, the Spitfire Mk.XIV entered service as an interim fix. Fitted with a Rolls Royce Griffon 65 with two-stage supercharger producing 2050 hp, the Mk.XIV immediately corrected many of the performance shortcomings suffered by the Mk.XII. The fuselage was strengthened to harness the powerful engine and a five bladed Rotol propeller replaced the earlier four bladed examples. Early models were fitted with the Type C wing although later Mk.XIVs were equipped with the Type E wing housing two 20 mm Hispano cannons and two .50 cal Browning machine guns or four 20 mm cannons, as well as a high visibility teardrop canopy. A common modification to the Mk.XIV was the clipped wing, which increased roll rate and gave a marginal increase to speed, but at the most of rate of climb. The Spitfire Mk.XIV entered service with Nos. 91, 322 and 610 Squadrons in southeast England where it saw notable success as an interceptor against V-1 Flying Bombs but also as part of the 2nd Tactical Air Force in operations over occupied Europe. Spitfire Mk.XIVs were also planned for use in the Far East but whilst a number of airframes were shipped to Burma, none were operational before the end of the war. The Spitfire Mk.XIV met mixed reviews from its pilots; whilst there was no doubt of the huge performance increase the new variant offered, it was uncomfortable to fly and lacked the balance and control harmonization of earlier Merlin engine Spitfires. Just under 1,000 Spitfire Mk.XIVs were produced with exports being employed by the Air Forces of India, Belgium and Thailand.

Media

Skins

• Skins and camouflages for the Spitfire F Mk XIVc from live.warthunder.com.

Videos

The Shooting Range #95 - Metal Beasts section at 02:55 discusses the Spitfire F Mk XIVc.

The Shooting Range #124 - War Machines section at 00:28 discusses the Griffons.

See also

Related development

• Spitfire (Family)

External links

• Official data sheet - more details about the performance