Ahh, the jolly ol' RAF. Here they are in arbitrary order. If you want more info check the stat cards or the fricking wiki (pretty accurate-ish except for the Vb due to it's handling). You don't need me to tell you how the spitfire turned in her firepower class paper in a clear plastic binder so I gave her an A.

The Brit FM characteristics tend to be very similar from one plane to the next (most of their aircraft are variants of an older model) so the main thing you need to know is the changes from model to model.

It's common practice that your reserves are gonna fall short of the Russians. Don't get too attached to em.

It's speed is good once it gets moving but it's turn rate is merely good and not UFO like some of the other biplanes. It's acceleration is a tad underwhelming as well. A competent reserve all-round though I'm not a fan of the Vickers 7.7MMs (though for reserves, it gets worse).

How to kill: It's a reserve, just point your nose at it and hope for the best.

With Joystick: Rock steady. Have fun with this one

Because one set of reserves planes weren’t enough. You might need to rethink your play-style if you go through all four of em in a match.

Almost just like the Fury though on paper, the Nimrod has a better engine.




How to Kill: (This space is reserved for something other than the skull-♥♥♥♥♥♥♥♥♥ obvious) Quit dancing around and kill it already. At this rank you can't really do much else.

With Joystick: Just like the Fury. You shouldn't have any problems with this one.

Ah, Just look at that smug biplane pilot in his fancy dancy enclosed cockpit.

Yep, that 4 7.7MMs up front. The Brits got a handle on the whole “stack as many guns up front as possible” thing pretty quick. A terror to light aircraft but bombers will just laugh at you. The Gladie's elevator and rudder authority is actually pretty low. That can be a problem when you are still well within the “Turn and Burn” tiers. However it's roll rate is ridiculous. Keep a barf bag handy and have fun trying to get your guns on target. It's easier said than done.

How to kill: Dance around him if you are flying anything other than a washing machine. Be gentle, he's a little slow.

With Joystick: This one is tricky. The roll rate is so fast that you are gonna get some wobble but you get no wobble from the rudder or elevator (mostly cause they kinda suck).

This is where the Brits start getting more gun happy than the Russians or Americans if that was at all possible.

If they could make a tier 1 any more solid I have yet to see it. Roll rate, turn rate, and firepower is the name of the game here. Everything about the Hurricane fits perfectly in it's tier. 8 7.7MMs up front? Yes please. Keep in mind that at this point you will find that the your climb rate is nothing special. This will become a habit for the British for a while so try to preserve your energy.

How to kill: The Hurri is a good all-rounder which is problems for you if your plane doesn't have an overwhelming turning advantage to crutch on. All other things equal, you should be able to build an energy advantage before you engage.

With Joystick: Careful when recovering from a sharp turn as it gets a tad wobbly. Other than that, it's solid.

This is about as ridiculous as it get folks. Can't get more dakka than the Hurricane MKII.

Another good showing from the Brits though at this point you are probably getting tired of the 7.7MMs. Just think MKI with more guns and a little heavier and you got the gist of the MKII.



How to Kill: How bout I copy pasta the part from the Hurri MK I section and save us all some time?

With Joystick: Same deal as with the MKI. Don't ham on the controls and you'll be fine.

The Hurricane must of thought life was pretty good for it being a solid workhorse. But then this flashy and totally sexy new aircraft comes along and steals the show like a bad high-school chick flick.

Something of an icon of the RAF alongside the Hurricane. This is true of all Spitfires but they can dance. Anything fighting in their wheelhouse is proper f***ed except for the Japanese zeros (as the RAF painfully found out). Still stuck with those damned 7.7MMs though the IT rounds are hilarious and give you and appreciation on how many bullets War Thunder actually tracks even though you can't see em. Climb rate is not great but that shouldn't be a problem... yet.

How to kill: From at least 800 meters above preferably. Anywhere else and you are screwed vs anyone competent (unless you brought a zero).

With Joystick: The spitfire's ability to bend over the arcade flight model is unparalleled so keep as much energy as possible so you can smack people over the head with it (this is true with all Spitfire variants). The MKI will bounce after sharp turns and has lots of rudder authority so be careful with it.

If you are like me then you gave this entire tech line a miss until you got the Brokenfighter.

Yep, those are four 20MM Hispanos with all the ammo you could ever want. A good time for a firepower upgrade but this is an absolute terror. The Mk VIc is one of the best turning heavy fighters in the game (second only to the KI-45 due the KI's ridiculous engines but that’s another story). To top it all off, the VIc is now one of the better climbers in your arsenal. Have fun with this one. Note if the airspeed gets to be around 230kph, the plane will start protesting by yoinking you of your mobility.

How to kill: In the DOS game Wing Commander, there was a baddie with a ♥♥♥♥-ton of guns upfront that even one of your wingman told you never to take head on. "It ain't worth it". Same thing here. Break early and try to catch em on the inside of their turn. Aim a little ahead to hit that big ol' bullseye of a cockpit and turn that pilot into paste.

With Joystick: This crate can sure swing it's nose around and it's acceleration can allow you to be a bit overzealous. Thus said it is not the most stable thing in the world and it tends to bounce in this slow irritating way that takes ages to clear up if you center the stick too quickly. Try to ease out of your turns. The roll rate also locks up at high speeds.

Ah Beau-Shi... *boom*: You after getting in front of the Mk X.

Looks like some fool strapped on 6 12.7MM browning MGs to your wings. Feels like it too. I'm pretty mixed on this one. On one hand MASSIVE FIREPOWA. On the other, compared to just your cannons do you really need those 6 MGs making your plane fly like a washing machine now?

How to kill: Same as the MK VIc, just easier.

With Joystick: Much more stable than the VIc but that's only because it ain't moving as quick. Still has that irritating rudder bounce.

Get used to this one. It's going to be in your hanger for a *long* time.

Ho-lee sheet does the MK II deliver. True to form the climb-rate and acceleration is serviceable but nothing special but the turn rate and energy retention is phenomenal. So just get in there and bust some heads. Just watch out for those high altitude fighters but they are not plentiful yet thankfully.

How to kill: If you take him head on you will just get danced and pantsed unless you have the almighty Japanese hard counter. If you can't get above him then wait to sucker punch the bastard when he is occupied (and pray the spit doesn't look your way).

With Joystick: The Spit II is pretty much your wet dream. Agile and stable. I'd say maintain good energy discipline so you can abuse the FM later but the energy retention of the Spit II is just so ♥♥♥♥♥♥♥ good that it is much less of an issue. Also firing the cannons will cause your plane to nose down a smidge due to the recoil.

Here's a fun fact. The suffix designation A,B,C refers to the wings attached to the spit and subsequently it's loadout. A has 8 7.7 Brownings, B had 4 Brownings and 2 20MM Hispano cannons, and C had the option of 4 Hispanos (as in the Vc) or 2 Hispanos and 4 Brownings (starting with the IX) with a better ammo supply for the cannons in either case.

A new plane in patch 1.35 filling out the brit's low tier fighter gap. Same deal as with the IIb only with a crappier armament (the 7.7MMs will make you hate your life). Still an excellent plane in it's own right.

How to kill: Same as the IIb but without cannons he will have to take more risks to get kills. You do have some bait handy do ya?

With Joystick: Same as the IIb which is good because you need to keep those brownings on target to do any reasonable damage. Sticky pitch and roll with a little bit of rudder bounce. Have fun with it.

This lug takes 9-10 seconds just to get it's fat ass moving off the runway. I've counted.

So apparently 7.7 MMs are still a thing. The Typhoon 1a has 12 of em. Pretty hilarious with IT rounds but what the hell where the loons at Hawker thinking? However this thing is fast as hell once it gets moving. I just wish the guns has more *omph* to em as the slow roll rate and pitch will make keeping your guns on target tricky.

How to kill: Like it or not once this thing gets in range you are committed. There is no outrunning the Typhoon. Thankfully it's not much of a dogfighter (or at all really).

With Joystick: Stable as a rock but that's only because it's flies like one. It's a fast rock though so watch out you don't plow into the ground. Seriously.

Patch 1.43 gave the T3 Spitfires some well needed lovin. They don't hemorage speed nearly as badly anymore so that makes the Vb in particular a viable turn fighter. Good thing too cause it did not fill that energy fighter role worth a damn.

It took Gaijin about a year but they finally done it. The Vb is a marketed upgrage over the IIb. Better acceleration, better top speed, better turning at speed. In AB the Vb can hold it's turn all friggn day once your upgrades kick in. RB and SB, it's still a terrible low speed performer. Par for the course for the Spitfires really. Only bad thing is that the hispanos tend to run out of ammo at the worst possible moments.

How to kill: If BnZ isn't an option then keep in mind that Vb's low speed performance is complete crap. If you can sucker him into bleeding speed for a period of time then he's all yours.

With Joystick: Hey this thing is actually usable. More touchy than the IIb due to the faster pitch rate but otherwise a decent flier. Either that or I'm actually getting better at this.

You may be wondering why the hell the Spitfire Vc is so damn expensive. Well it's a holdover from 1.35 where the Spit Vc was rank 12 (similar to the Spitfire LF. IX). Well it sucked then and it sucks now. 1.43 Hasn't helped matters. The Vc is still too gun heavy.

Speed: What's that?
Stability: Huh?
Acceleration: Acclerwha?
Low speed performance: Yeah.... not happening. To be fair though that's just par for the course for spitfires.
Firepower: Oh right! If you don't mind getting your ♥♥♥♥ knocked around.

And this is a BR 5.3?!? It's like the spit Vb but handles way worse and now you are facing baddies on a whole new caliber. Don't get smitten by the 4 hispanos and save your lions and sanity.

How to kill: Easily. Just note that the Vc can still swing it's nose around really quickly if it still has speed. However it can only do this for about 4 seconds at best.

With Joystick: Just... just give up.

Here is our new Spitfire as of patch 1.35. No more using the 150 octane fuel upgrade as a crutch. Again, 1.43 gave this craft some much needed help in the energy retention department.

The switch to a proper Merlin 61 engine brings it engine performance on par to the Vb. The main difference here is that the Mk IX is a smidge more stable and has better energy retention. However, Boom and Zoom is starting to become the dominant tactic so the spit's traditionally lackluster acceleration will become a serious problem for you. Extra ammo for the 20MMs is a godsend though courtesy of the belt-fed box magazines (as opposed to the old ammo drums).

How to kill: You should have a high speed fighter at this point right? Vulch the poor bastard. If that ain't an option then try forcing a vertical speed bleeding maneuver.

With Joystick: Hold off on your manuevers until you break 330 KPH or that pitch bounce will be the end of you. Hell, the yaw might do you in all the same.

I wasn't sure it was possible for a Spitfire to handle any looser. Then I played the XIV. You mouse aimers have it easy.

The spitfire MK XIV actually gains back some of it's low speed performance, can swing it's nose around ridiculously well, and has access to the 150 Octane fuel upgrade. One final note is that the chopwing cannot hold on to it's speed. Price you pay for ridiculous high speed turning. Some of my squad mates swear by the XIV but I think they are a bunch of loonies.

How to Kill: Bad energy retention is the deal here. Rope a Dope him into bleeding speed an then smack him around at your leisure. The spit's non-existent low speed performance is still a thing.

With Joystick: Loose but snappy. Hope you have some surgeon hands and some major pitch discipline.

A plane that got tired up from in 1.35 just on the basis that it's a spitfire whose climb rate does not suck. Okay! The real reason is that it has a 150 octane fuel upgrade that mimics the performance of the Merlin 66 engine rather than the Merlin 61 engine it is supposed to have. So for it's tier, it's climb rate was off the charts bringing everybody into the horrible rape radius that is the Spitfire's turn rate.

Anywho, why the hell are we still bothering with the 7.7MMs? The Mk IX is just like the old one but it accelerates and climbs like a boss. Not a moment too soon because those jets are right next door and it's good for the spitfire to get some of it's mojo back. Just remember that the spit is STILL not the turn-fighter it was so many ranks ago. In RB though this thing is a *nice* aircraft. My go-to choice when the Girffion spits are not an option.

How to kill: Same as before, low speed preformace is still utter trash. Drag him upstairs and you can nock the ♥♥♥♥ outta him all day.

With Joystick: At least your acceleration is a fair bit better so you can afford to be a bit more aggressive in your turns. Other than that, it's the same as the Mk IX.