Did the Hurricane shoot down more planes than the Spitfire?

Well over half of every enemy aeroplane destroyed in the Battle of Britain was by Hurricanes, not Spitfires. Spitfires in the Battle of Britain were down to 19 squadrons. Hurricanes, there were 32 squadrons of them.

Was the Hurricane better than the Spitfire?

It formed the backbone of the RAF's Fighter Command at the time. While the fighter was slightly slower than the Spitfire, the Hurricane was robust, stable, and had impressive firepower. It played a critical role in ridding the skies of the German bombers that rained destruction upon British targets.

How many planes did the Hurricane shoot down?

Hurricanes were credited with shooting down more than 1,500 Luftwaffe aircraft in the critical first year of the war, a total barely exceeded by all other British aircraft combined.

How many planes were shot down by the Spitfire?

The Battle of Britain took place between 10 July and 31 October 1940. The Royal Air Force had nearly 2,000 aircraft of which around 370 were Spitfires. A total of 529 enemy aircraft were shot down by Spitfires during the battle. Illustration of Vickers Supermarine Spitfire LF.

Which British plane shot down the most planes in ww2?

It was the Hurricane pilots, including a number of Canadians in No. 1 Squadron, who shot down the most aircraft. Indeed, 55% of German planes were shot down by Hurricanes, compared with 42% for the Spitfires.

Battle of Britain's Finest: Spitfire and Hurricane fighter aircraft compared

Which was faster Spitfire or Hurricane?

That Hurricane, for a Hurricane, was particularly fast, about 350 miles an hour. But the performance of a Hurricane, regardless of Mach or what it was carrying, always was a fair bit shorter than a Spitfire or a 109 in out and out speed.

Was the Bf 109 better than the Spitfire?

So, the spitfire was slightly faster and had a better turn radius but the 109 could climb a lot faster and it could be thrown into steep dives thanks to its fuel-injected engine.

Did a Spitfire ever fight a zero?

A year later the Spitfire VC-equipped No 1 Fighter Wing, RAAF, faced the battle-hardened 202nd Kokutai of the IJNAF, equipped with A6M2 Zero-sens, over Darwin. This was a grueling campaign between evenly matched foes, fought in isolation from the main South Pacific battlegrounds.

What ship shot down the most planes in WW2?

In 18 months of combat operations, USS Hornet CV-12 achieved the following combat record: 668 Japanese planes shot down. 742 Japanese planes destroyed on the ground.

Who shot down the most planes in WW2?

Erich Hartmann, with 352 official kills the highest scoring fighter pilot of all time. In World War II many air forces adopted the British practice of crediting fractional shares of aerial victories, resulting in fractions or decimal scores, such as 111⁄2 or 26.83.

Did the Spitfire and Hurricane have the same engine?

The Rolls-Royce Merlin Engine powered some of the most famous aeroplanes of World War II, including the Spitfire, the Hurricane, the Mosquito, the Mustang and the Lancaster. The Merlin was also used in aeroplanes like the Fairey Battle and the Boulton Paul Defiant.

Was the Spitfire any good?

A symbol of victory. The Spitfire is the most famous plane of World War Two. Its groundbreaking design and superior specifications gave the British a decisive advantage fighting the Luftwaffe in the Battle of Britain. But early models were often cruelly exposed in head-to-head duels with the enemy.

How many Spitfires are left?

Between 1938 and 1948, 20,351 Spitfires were built. Fast-forward to present times and how many are left in the world today? Around 240 are known to exist. Of these, around 60 are airworthy.

Could a Hurricane outturn a Spitfire?

About The Hawker Hurricane

Though powered by the same Merlin engine it was a little slower than the Spitfire, but a steadier gun platform and could out-turn both the Spitfire and the Luftwaffe's Me109.

What was the fatal flaw of the Spitfire fighter plane?

The Spitfire's original engine couldn't handle barrel rolls. The throttle valve would get flooded with fuel as the plane turned upside-down. German pilots quickly caught on to this particular flaw because black smoke would puff out of the Spitfire whenever it flipped over.

Are German planes better than Spitfires?

In terms of performance, the Spitfire had an advantage in terms of its climb rate and turning ability. It was also more heavily armed than the Messerschmitt 109, which made it more effective in dogfights. However, the Messerschmitt 109 had a higher top speed and could outfly the Spitfire in a straight line.

Did a Spitfire shoot down a jet?

The Spitfire's steady pace of development meant that it always remained a formidable adversary to any opponent. Even the world's first jet fighter, the Me262, was first shot down by a Spitfire.

What was the most feared warship in WW2?

Launched on Valentine's Day 1939 at the Blohm & Voss shipyard in Hamburg, the battleship Bismarck inspired love in many of those watching her go down the slipway. A powerful representation of Germany's rise from the ashes of the First World War, it was a fearsome combination of size, swiftness and firepower.

What could beat a Spitfire?

But the P-51 was sufficiently faster than the Merlin engined Spitfires to use “boom and zoom” tactics to reliably defeat the Spit in the same way as the Spitfire, Wildcat, P-40, P-38 and many other fighters could deal with the much more agile Japanese Zero.

What was the Spitfires nemesis?

Messerschmitt Bf 109: The Spitfire's nemesis

Take a look in the cockpit and hear from the pilots who flew the Bf 109 during the Second World War.

Did the Soviets like the Spitfire?

The Soviet Union was then supplied with some 1,200 Spitfire Mk. IXs from 1943. Soviet pilots liked them but they did not suit Soviet combat tactics and the rough conditions at the forward airfields close to the front lines. Spitfires Mk.

What did German pilots think of the Spitfire?

Everyone always trumpets how until the Spitfire lX came into production the Fw 190 rained supreme. But the truth is the German 190 pilots were not fazed by the Spitfire lX when it arrived in numbers. If a Spitfire got behind a 190 the Germans would simply dive away at speed.

What was the toughest plane in ww2?

The P-47 was one of the toughest Allied planes during WWII and had the most firepower from its eight . 50 caliber guns in its wings (3,400 rounds.)

What was the best RAF plane in ww2?

Supermarine Spitfire

This short-range, high-performance interceptor was the hunter of the skies designed to eliminate enemy fighters quickly and efficiently. After the Battle of Britain, the Spitfire was adopted as the main fighter aircraft of the RAF, replacing the Hurricane.