The Battle Of Britain
By Tom Norton 9F
Battle Of Britain
• “Never in the field of human conflict has so
much been owed by so many to so few”, this
was a quote from Winston Churchill after
watching the head of fighter command
scramble all of the available squadrons on the
south coast.
Battle Of Britain
• The Battle of Britain was a massive air battle
between Britain’s RAF and the Nazis’ Luftwaffe. It
was fought from the 13th August to the 12th
October, 1940.
• The RAF was outnumber by the Luftwaffe a
staggering 5 to 1.
• It was a massive turning point in the war as it
meant that Adolf Hitler decided to postpone the
invasion of England and concentrated on the
invasion of the Soviet Union.
What is in this PowerPoint?
• In this PowerPoint I will be comparing the air
battles from the WW1, WW2 and the
Falklands conflict.
• I will also be showing what fighters and fighter
bombers are used for in modern day conflicts.
WW1 Air battles
Background
• There wasn’t many dogfights between aircraft
during world war 1.
• Aircraft were many used for reconnaissance
and controlling the troops on the ground.
• The only kind of fire the planes would get was
from some of the enemy troops on the ground
shooting up at them.
The Aircraft
• At the beginning of the war the planes didn’t
have any guns on them, but towards the end
of the war the planes became armed. They
still weren’t very deadly until Dr. Focker
invented a gun that could fire between the
propellers. This turned the aircraft into a
much more deadly machine.
The Aircraft: Allies
• The Allies had three main aircraft, the Avro
504, the Airco DH.2 (The Pusher) and the
Sopwith Camel. Nearly 6,000 of the Sopwith
Camel were made in just 2 years. These were
the main aircraft that the Allies used
throughout WW1. The first aircraft was a
trainer aircraft, but the last two aircraft were
made to try and put the Germans main fighter
plane out of action, the Fokker DR.1.
The Aircraft: The Germans
• The Germans had the Friedrichshafen G.III ( a
fighter bomber/ trainer), the Albatros D.V (an
advanced fighter) and the Fokker D.R. 1 (one
of the most advanced fighters in WW1).
• The Fokker D.R. 1 and the Albatros D.V were
the two main aircraft that the Germans used
throughout WW1. They both used a gun
designed by Dr. Fokker.
Dr. Fokker
• Dr. Fokker was an engineer who was born in
Holland (a neutral country) he joined the British
before the war but didn’t invent anything useful
for a few years and the British let him go. After
that he went to the Germans and invented the in
The Interrupter Gear. This allowed pilots to fire
the machine guns through the propeller with out
hitting the blades. This meant that the pilot could
aim his plane at the enemy and then fire. This
made it a lot easier for the Germans to shoot
down the British planes.
Aircraft technology
• There was very little to no technology in the
aircraft. The observer would look over the side
of the plane and then draw what ever he saw
onto some paper. He would then drop this out
of the plane to the troops below.
• There was no radio in them or no GPS or other
navigation system. Some pilots would take
road maps to navigate with.
Summary of WW1 Air battles
• Up until around 1916 the only thing that Aircraft were
used for was observation or showing the troops were
to go.
• When the first air battle took place the gunners were
given normal rifles to shoot at the other planes with.
• When the guns were fitted on the planes the British
made a plane with a propeller at the back. This meant
that the gunner could move full 360 degrees with out
hitting anything. This still didn’t work.
• When the planes had the guns firing through the
propellers this meant that a lot of more planes were
shot down, this made the plane a much more deadly
weapon. Dogfights were invented.
WW2 Air battles
Background
• Throughout all of WW2 fighters were used for many
different reasons:
• Escorting bombers during raids,
• Some fighter bombers were used to bomb smaller
targets,
• Used to help give forces on the ground some cover
• The reasons above are just a few of the reasons that
fighters and fighter bombers were used for.
• On the next slides I will show 2 of the Allies and 2 of
the Axis best and most famous fighter planes.
The Allies
• The British had 2 main fighter planes. The
Hawker Hurricane (the workhouse of the RAF)
and the Supermarine Spitfire (the RAF pride
and joy, possibly the most famous plane ever).
• When the Americans joined the war they
brought with them their own fighter plane,
the P-51 Mustang.
Hawker Hurricane
• The Hurricane was not as famous as the
Spitfire, nor did it get the credit it deserved. In
total the Hurricane shot down more German
planes than the Spitfire, but around 63% of
squadrons were issued with Hurricanes.
• The design of the Hurricane was based on a
single seat bi-plane, but with the top wing
removed to create a mono-plane.
Hawker Hurricane
• The Hurricane also had some very good figures:
• Powerplant – 1,030 bhp Merlin engine.
• It had a top sped of 318 mph and could climb to
36,000 feet.
• It had a maximum range of 460 miles.
• It weighed just 4,670 lb
• The hurricane packed a punch as well, it carried 8
7.7mm Browning machine and 2,260 rounds per
gun. This was enough ammo for 12 seconds of
constant firing
Supermarine Spitfire
• The Spitfire is possibly the most famous Aircraft ever
made. During the Battle of Britain a lot less of the
Spitfire were used but had a higher ratio of numbers
shot down to number it shot down.
• Unlike the Hurricane which was based on a old plane
the Spitfire was a completely new design. Unlike planes
before it had a fully metal body. This made it more rigid
and a lot stronger.
• The Spitfire was such a good fighter that it was used by
air forces up to the Koran War.
• The Spitfire also made one of the most famous noises
ever, click the speaker below to hear it.
Supermarine Spitfire
• There were over 26 different Spitfires made between
1936 and 1951, 7 of these were special models used to
take of from a Aircraft carrier.
• It was such an advanced design that the body of it
could reach mach 0.9 or 716 mph.
• Lots of different engines were slotted into the Spitfire
but only 2 were successful, the 1,478 bhp Merlin
engine and the 1,735 bhp Griffin Mk XII engine. The
Griffin engine had a 2 stage supercharger and was a lot
faster up to 15,000 feet but anything higher and the
power would drop a lot, this is why the Merlin was
used as it was more consistent at any height.
Supermarine Spitfire
• The Spitfire had some of the best stats of any plane in
the war:
• It had a 1,478 bhp Merlin engine in most versions.
• Weighted just 4,998 lb
• Could fly at 369 mph and at a height of 36,500 feet.
• It could fly 1,135 miles without stopping, if the plane
was a maximum speed for this flight it would take just
over 3 hours.
• It carried 8 7.7 mm Browing machine guns with only
1,000 rounds per gun, this was nearly 1,000 rounds less
than the Hurricane. But this made it a lot lighter.
The Axis
• The Axis had two main fighter planes, the
Focke-Wulf 190 and the Messerschmitt BF109.
• Both of these were very capable aircraft and
were built in much bigger numbers than any
of the RAF’s planes. But none of them were
based new planes, this mean that there
bodies weren’t as aerodynamic.
Messerschmitt BF-109
• The Messerschmitt BF-109 was a very powerful
and deadly fighter plane. It carried 5 guns but
only 4 in the wings and 1 firing from inside the
hub.
• It was made of a mixture between metal sheeting
and wooden poles covered in canvas.
• The first BF-109 joined the Battle Of Britain mid
way through. If it had joined early it could have
won the war from them but Dr. W. Messerchmitt
(the planes designer) spent a lot of time
perfecting his design and ultimately took to long
over it.
Messerschmitt BF-109
• The BF-109 had some very good stats aswell:
• It had a 1,200 bhp Daimler direct injection
engine (this meant that it could fly upside
down).
• It could fly at 359 mph up a maximum of
36,500 feet.
• It carried 5 guns, one firing from the propeller
hub, and 4 firing from in the wings. It carried
1,500 rounds per gun.
Focke-Wulf 190
• The Focke-Wulf was a single seat fighter put into
service mid 1940. The aircraft was originally devolved
as a brand new single seat fighter and the first
prototype was flown in the summer of 1939.
• It was a very good aircraft and was one of the most
common aircraft used by the German Luftwaffe.
• The aircraft had only one problem, it weighed over
twice as much as a Spitfire or Hurricane. This meant
that it wasn’t as manoeuvrable, but it had a very
powerful engine to keep it a fast fighter.
• The powerful engine was also useful in its role as a
fighter bomber, it allowed the aircraft to carry a lot
more bombs than other fighter bombers but still allow
it to be quick.
Focke-Wulf 190
• The Focke-Wulf also came with some very good
figures:
• A top speed of 408 mph at a maximum of 37,400
feet.
• It had a 2,100 bhp B.M.W engine, but it weighed
7,000 lb (a Spitfire weighed just 4,998 lb)
• The Focke-Wulf came equipped with two 7.9 mm
machine guns, four 20 mm machine guns, one
1,100 lb bomb and two 550 lb bombs. The FockeWulf could carry in total an extra 3,800 lb.
Aircraft Technology
• The still wasn’t much change in technology from
the WW1 fighter planes. The only main difference
was that all of the planes had radios.
• The bombers used a navigator, this was
somebody how sat just behind the cockpit and
told the pilot when to turn, by how much and
where they were in the world. The only
technology that they had was a map and a
compass.
Summary
• Throughout WW2 fighters planes were used a lot
to a lot of effect. Their uses ranging from
defending bombers from other fighters to
bombing target themselves as fighter-bombers.
• Some of the aircraft were such good fighters that
they were used for up to 20 years after the war
ended.
• Not many of these planes are still flying, there are
a few Spitfires and Hurricanes (one of them is
based at Humberside Airport), but there is only 1
Lancaster bomber still flying and that is flown by
the Battle of Britain Memorial Society.
Modern Day fighter planes and their
roles in conflicts
Background
• In modern day conflicts there isn’t as many dogfights
like there was in World War 2, this is mainly because
the enemy doesn’t have fighter planes. For example
the Taliban don’t have an Air Force which means that
our fighter planes have moved to fighter bombers and
are used now to support troops on the ground.
• The last real case of dogfights was in the Falklands
island, this was between a British Harrier Jump Jet and
an Argentinean FMA-IA 58 Pucara. In this case the
Harrier shot down the Pucara using a heat-seeking
missle.
Main Aircraft
• There wasn’t a lot of different Aircraft used in
the Falkland islands war. There only really was
two main ones. The British had the Sea Harrier
and the Argentineans had the FMA-IA 58
Pucara.
• The only other type of aircraft used were
bombers and cargo planes such as the Vicker
cargo plane and the Vulcan bomber.
Sea Harrier
• The Sea Harrier is a very unique aircraft. It is one of
only two aircraft in the world can take of vertically
without the need of a runway, the only other aircraft is
a Russian Yak 38. It does this using 1 massive engine
that runs the length of the plane. The exhaust gas is
then put of out 4 nozzles that can be moved to make
the thrust go into the ground or behind the plane.
• In the Falklands Islands we didn’t have many runways
for aircraft to take off from so we had to use aircraft
carriers. This meant that the Harrier could take off
vertically from the boat then fly off.
Sea Harrier
•
•
•
•
The Harrier has a very good specification:
Weighs just 14,052 lb, but can carry a further 12,000 lb.
It has a maximum speed of 735 mph, mach 1.02.
It’s single engine produces 21,800 pounds of thrust,
this is just a bit less than an engine from Concorde.
• The Harrier packed a real punch, it could carry 4 heatseeking sidewinder missiles and 2 mini-guns with 2,500
rounds per gun.
• Some later Harriers were also fitted to carry 2 nuclear
missiles. This idea was later scrapped as there was no
threat big enough to use nuclear weapons.
FMA-IA 58 Pucara
• The Pucara wasn’t a very advanced or quick
aircraft, but it was designed to carry a lot of
weapons. It carry more weapons than the
Harrier and was built in much higher numbers
aswell.
• The Pucaras main problem was that it still
used propellers and not jets, this made it slow.
FMA-IA 58 Pucara
• The Pucara doesn’t have a very good specification as it only
uses propellers.
• With a top speed of only 310 mph, this is 50 mph slower
than a Spitfire.
• It could only fly at 31,800 feet, again about the same as a
Spitfire.
• It’s engine produced only 978 bhp each but were very good
at carrying a lot of weight.
• The Pucara’s main threat was it’s weapons, it could carry
2x20 mm auto cannons, this was backed up with 4
Browning Machine guns that the gunner aimed. It also
could carry 2x rocket pods, each with 15 rockets in them. To
deal with ships some were made to carry 2 torpedoes that
were dropped when the plane was low over the sea. Some
could also fly over and drops mines in front of enemy
troops.
Aircraft technology
• There is to much technology to fit on this
PowerPoint but I will name some of them.
• The planes were now equipped with radar that
can see planes 100’s of miles away.
• They have rockets that when fired will fly them by
themselves, this can follow the target set by the
pilot or gunner.
• Bombs that are dropped by aircraft now can be
made to hit a target with millimetre precession.
This can reduce the number of civilian deaths.
Summary
• In the Falklands Islands War the was a lot of
dogfights between aircraft.
• Unlike in the Battle of Britain fighters were
also used a lot as fighter bombers. This meant
that some of them will have had to fly out
enemy boats destroy any planes that try to
stop them and then destroy their target.
Comparison
“Never in the field of human conflict has
so much been owed by so many to so
few”
Thanks For Watching
By Tom Norton