😀 Animal, the drummer, was my favourite Muppet.

Fact? Not so, supposition.

If you say so.

Check post Nº 7 and read the extract from his letter to Heinkel, I’d say that was fairly self explanatory.

That he listened to Shenstone is recorded fact.

Few people like to believe that Mitchell, the genius, would have gleaned information from other sources and prefer to believe that the Spitfire was all his own work, that’s understandable.

Truth, not supposition, is that in those days, ideas were shared, one reason why many German planes were fitted with RR Kestrel engines at Derby, circa 1934.

Better than anything he designed? Are we not including the S4 and S5 in that argument then?

😀 I think we’re talking about ‘gun platforms’ here?
Even the S.6b wouldn’t have made a very useful fighter?;)

Yes, the Spitfire was a masterpiece of engineering, that no one can deny.

Many of the technical advances in the Spitfire had been made by others: the thin ellipical wings were by Beverley Shenstone, the under-wing radiators at RAE and the monocoque construction had been first developed in the United States.
Mitchell’s genius was bringing it all together with his experience of high speed flight and the Type 224.

http://www.absoluteastronomy.com/topics/R._J._Mitchell

That it was much more difficult for ground crews to repair than the Hurricane is common knowledge and more Spits were written off as a result.

It would have been foolish to copy the HE-70 wing exactly, mainly because of the difference in size and requirements of each aircraft.

The Spit took 3 times more man hours to construct that the 109, but was probably worth it in the long run.

Also good for ripping up the floor in the supermarket.

They’re only to be used for the walking on ice bit.:rolleyes:
Carry a pair of trainers in your handbag when you do the shopping.:D

Thing is, the styles of those things make you look a bit like the fat loud guy out of Caddyshack.

No worse than the average pair of trainers?

Believe it or not, golf shoes come in very ordinary looking styles, but if they save you from having a nasty fall, who cares what they look like?

A tip for anyone who doesn’t want to slip over on icy pavements.

Invest in a cheap pair of golf shoes with metal spikes.

I used to run uphill in icy weather with them on.

NB: Can’t run much at all nowadays, tempus fugit etc., but no ice here worth mentioning, so no problems.
Still have the shoes though.

Why are you persisting with this idea that Mitchell copied the HE-70?

For fairly obvious reasons.
Have you bothered to compare his previous entry for the eight gun fighter, F.7/30, the original “Spitfire?”
That was built in 1934, then lo and behold, two years later, after seeing the HE-70, out of his head pops the type 300, even with exactly the same retractable u/c layout.

Hats off to him for seeing what a good design it was, but sad that only he gave credit to Heinkel for opening his eyes, but no one else appears willing to.

Mitchell wrote:

“We, at Supermarine Aviation, were particularly impressed, since we have been unable to achieve such smooth lines in the aircraft that we entered for the Schneider Trophy Races…. In addition to this, we recently investigated the effect that installing certain new British fighter engines would have on the He 70, We were dismayed to find that your new aircraft, despite its larger measurements, is appreciably faster than our fighters. It is indeed a triumph.”

Do I qualify for “Grumpy Old Men” yet?

It’s actually called, Grumpier Old Men and has recently become a knitting circle, due mainly to over moderation.;)

Sent home?…No, not even the 1964 freeze.

That was the winter of 62/3.

47 was the best/worst I can remember, my brother made a sled, hooked our chow dog up to it and they once pulled me home from school on it.
From January 22nd to March 17th of that year, snow fell every day and I never missed a day at school and apart from the one off sled incident, I walked.
February 1947, was the coldest February on record at that time in many parts of the UK and daylight was grotty.
It wasn’t until 63 that the UK had a colder winter, but less snowfall. Easy for me to remember, I got married later that year.:(

Nearly forgot to mention, I was still wearing short trousers in 47, like all the other lads, the lucky ones had socks!