fiddler
Apr-22-2014, 18:53
I was reading Spitfire Diary by E.A.W. Smith. Smith was a WWII Spitfire pilot and made the following comment on pages 63/64 concerning landing procedure.
"By this time, Red Leader is on the approach, in that rate two (planes) turn to port, all the way down to the deck that make Spitfire pilots seem crazy, to the
uninitiated. These are people who do not know that you cannot make a straight approach to land with a Spitfire. The cockpit is too far back to give forward
vision, so you have to get your line of sight to the landing strip around the port side, between the propeller and the leading edge of the wing."
I have always had difficulty with straight in landing with the Spit because of the problem of visibility over the nose. If I come in too flat then I can't see the
field and from higher, I can't bleed off enough speed for a smooth landing. I have repeatedly practiced Smiths method of coming at an angle to the strip as he
described and it made all the difference for a smooth landing. Angle in over the threshold at 100- mph. level the wings and a 3 point landing at 90/95 mph.
Hope this helps, it did for me.
"By this time, Red Leader is on the approach, in that rate two (planes) turn to port, all the way down to the deck that make Spitfire pilots seem crazy, to the
uninitiated. These are people who do not know that you cannot make a straight approach to land with a Spitfire. The cockpit is too far back to give forward
vision, so you have to get your line of sight to the landing strip around the port side, between the propeller and the leading edge of the wing."
I have always had difficulty with straight in landing with the Spit because of the problem of visibility over the nose. If I come in too flat then I can't see the
field and from higher, I can't bleed off enough speed for a smooth landing. I have repeatedly practiced Smiths method of coming at an angle to the strip as he
described and it made all the difference for a smooth landing. Angle in over the threshold at 100- mph. level the wings and a 3 point landing at 90/95 mph.
Hope this helps, it did for me.