Meeting BoB Spit pilot and Rigger

[Madfish]

Originally Posted by baronWastelan

How often did the fighters get washed and polished?

How was the quality of the Spitfire paint job? Did the paint flake off all over, or just the parts where it was stepped on?

Originally Posted by Skoshi Tiger

and was it important was it to keep the canopy clean and in good condition? How much effort was placed in keeping it so?

I would chime in on this. It reminds me of a recent discussion: the cockpit glass. Was it always in perfect condition or did it have tiny scratches and stains etc. at times?

Also I remember another heated discussion some had about the fuel. I think it was about how many Spitfires were really flying on 100 octane fuel and not 90.

[major_setback]

What sort of force was needed to move the joystick under normal conditions, and also under combat/aerobatic manoeuvres.

[zxwings]

Please ask him this: How far away could he hear the (engine) sound of another fighter, at his 12, 3, and 6 o'clock, respectively?

If you can show him sreenshots of COD, please ask him if the colour and brightness of the explosions of 20mm cannon rounds in COD are the same as what he saw in air combat.

[Skoshi Tiger]

In their weapon loadouts when they used .303 'Ball' did they use MkVII or MkVIII or both? (Though I guess this is more of an armourers Job)

Cheers!

[adonys]

I've just finished reading "The blonde knight of Germany.. Erich Hartman" in which there are some answers to some of the questions which are floating around here:

- Hartman talks in two places about zooming in from above, and then having the enemy aircrafts losing him and his katschmarek due to looking from above for camouflage painted 109's against terrain (one case is in winter, another is in summer)

-> pilots were really losing sight of an airplane against the ground

- he also talks about flashes in the sky: due to german aircrafts being camouflage painted, he indentifies some flashes he saw in the sky as Mustangs (ie probably the russian couldn't have been indentified as flashes neither), which had bare metal parts

-> camouflage painted aircrafts were not flashing in the sky

- he also talks a few times about his mechanical chief starting to clean his canopy as soon as he landed, in order to prepare the 109 for the next mission

-> canopy was constantly cleaned up before each flight

[Talisman]

Did all fighter sqns, Spit and Hurri, have 100 octane fuel for the Battle of Britain period?

Thanks in advance.

[zxwings]

Originally Posted by zxwings

Please ask him this: How far away could he hear the (engine) sound of another fighter, at his 12, 3, and 6 o'clock, respectively?

Oh, this I forgot to put in front of the question: 'when flying a Spit with his cockpit closed'.

[guderian]

PLEASE...why dont you ask him to come to your place and play some cod??...u could record it on video and see what he thinks about it..then post abck in here...it would be very interesting i remember something like that (an interview with a former wwii pilot about his impressions on clod, the only thing was that there was no video)..