The Griffin engined Spitfire was a beast. Nearing the end of WWII when Australia was looking for a new high alt fighter for the RAAF it came down to the Spitfire VIII or the Mustang.

The Spitfire had a better rate of climb and superb manouverability, the Mustang had great speed and diving ability and also greatly superior fuel capacity. The deal breaker for the Spitfire was that it was so damn finicky to build compared to the Mustang. I think we built 200 CAC Mustangs at Fisherman's Bend, finishing up in 1951.

Both beautiful planes though, I love them both!


Cheers,

Snowy