The Spitfire Kids by Alasdair Cross

Author:Alasdair Cross
Language: eng
Format: epub
Publisher: Hachette Headline
Published: 2021-08-15T00:00:00+00:00

Forty-eight bombs landed on the airfield, according to Quill’s account, but miraculously eleven of the twelve Spitfires made it safely into the air. There was no chance to exact revenge, though, as the enemy was already roaring back across the Channel. Manston had been the victim of a specialist Luftwaffe dive-bombing unit, Erpobungsgruppe – or Test Group – 210.

Germany’s Stuka dive bombers had been effective in destroying airfields and air defence systems in Poland and France, but it had quickly become apparent that over Britain they were easy meat for the faster Hurricanes and Spitfires. Erpobungsgruppe 210 was the Luftwaffe’s solution. Led by a charismatic Swiss-German veteran of the Spanish Civil War, Walter Rubensdörffer, 210 was formed of bomb-carrying Messerschmitt 109s and 110s. They were tasked with lightning-fast hit-and-run attacks on coastal airfields and radar stations. Flying close to the wave tops, the E-210 aircraft could appear suddenly over a cliff edge and create havoc, escaping at speed before any surviving British fighters could take to the air.17

The laser focus of the Luftwaffe on Fighter Command’s airfields, aircraft and communication systems had precisely the intended effect. In the two weeks from 24 August to 6 September, it’s estimated that 295 British fighters were destroyed and 171 damaged. The Luftwaffe was losing fewer Messerschmitt 109s and had the production capability to replace them fast. It became absolutely critical that the surviving Spitfires operate to their optimum level.18

Once airborne, dodging and weaving with German fighters, the Spitfire’s true combat performance revealed itself. Quill was no longer dealing with theoretical stresses and limits; he was pushing the Spitfire as hard as he could every day. He felt he had the edge over the Messerschmitt 109 in terms of rate of climb and a tighter turning circle, but his calls and letters to Joe Smith, R. J. Mitchell’s successor at Supermarine, reported a host of problems.

In the high-speed dogfights that defined the Battle of Britain, it was imperative that you see the enemy before they saw you. In a Spitfire Mark I, your field of vision was significantly impaired. The side panels of the cockpit windscreen were made of curved Perspex, distorting the view, particularly over long distances. There were also problems from the engine cooling system, with coolant boiling over at low speeds, ejecting steam that could freeze on the windscreen. Rapid dives threatened stalls and caused more condensation:

When you had been flying at high altitude for some time the inside of the windscreen got very cold. As you descended into warm, moist air the moisture condensed on the inside of the screen and promptly froze up . . . You couldn’t damn well see.19

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