A Case of a Good Bubble
The legendary Supermarine Spitfire is often credited with saving England during WWII. Among its many variants was the Mk.XVI, which was a Mk.IX airframe that was powered by a Merlin 266 engine license-built by Packard Motor Car Company in the United States. Most Mk.XVIs featured the larger rudder and E Type wing with two 20mm cannons and two 12.7mm machine guns. With the introduction of the teardrop canopy, the rear upper fuel tank capacity was reduced to 33 gal. and that of the forward lower fuel tank was increased to 48 gal. to compensate. 1,054 Mk.XVIs produced were from September 1944 until July 1945. During the war, they were deployed on the European front and served as fighter-bombers. In the post-war period, the Mk.XVI was used by the RAF as well as the Belgian and Greek air forces until the early-1950s.
The Supermarine Spitfire was designed by R.J. Mitchell and its distinctive silhouette makes it one of the most widely-recognized fighters of WWII. Famous for its exploits during the Battle of Britain, the Spitfire continued to evolve to counter newer Axis aircraft. As a result of this evolution, numerous variants of the Spitfire were born and served with distinction in the RAF as well as the air forces of many other countries until well after the end of WWII.
The Spitfre Mk.XVI was almost identical to the Mk.IX in nearly all aspects except that most were powered by a Packard-built Merlin 266 engine which had taller dimensions than the Rolls Royce 66 engine and featured a bubble canopy with a “low back” fuselage. Other new structural changes saw the Mk.XVI equipped with a larger 96 gallon main fuel tank, as well as two additional fuel tanks installed at the rear of the fuselage and a larger oil sump to allow it to flylonger distances. Mk.XVIes were mainly used in ground-attack roles and came with the “E” armament configuration of two 20mm cannons and two 12.7mm Browning machine guns. Also, as concrete tarmacs became more common as the war progressed, changes to the camber angle of the Spitfire’s landing gears were made to make for more efficient landings and take-offs. With the changes made to the new gun and cannon positioning, ammunition ejection ports, and the landing gear design, the wings featured new bulges compared to the Mk.IX. The Mk.XVIe, served with distinction throughout Europe for the latter half of the war.
Features
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Challenging model production technology limits, the engine cowlings have an amazing 0.4mm thickness to allow for a fully accurate scale representation of the engine. These cowlings can be installed and removed thanks to small magnets.
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The E Wing with its two 20mm cannons and two 12.7mm Browning machine guns is faithfully reproduced.
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The details of the Packard Motor built Merlin 266 engine, including oil tanks and supercharger, have been faithfully remodelled.
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Movable elevators, rudder, and ailerons. Flaps can be depicted in up or down position.
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Landing gear parts included to depict either up or down position (interchangeable).
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Complicated frame configuration of the cockpit features realistic bulkheads and frames.
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Photo-etched parts to depict details such as wheel covers, cockpit area including instrument panel and seat belts with or without pilot included.
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1 seated and 1 standing pilot figures are included.
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Three kinds of markings included.
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Also included is a display stand which enables you to depict the plane in flight
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A variety of Tamiya AS and XF paints are separately available for the perfect paint job.
