Spitfire: Portrait of a Legend

by Leo McKinstry

In June 1940, the German Army had brought the rest of Europe to its knees. 'Hitler knows that he will have to break us in this island or lose the war. If we can stand up to him, all Europe may be free and the life of the world will move forward into broad, sunlit uplands, ' said Churchill. The future of Europe depended on Britain. A self-confident Herman Goring thought that it would be only a matter of weeks before his planes had forced Britain to surrender. The courage, resourcefulness and brilliant organisation of the RAF were to prove him wrong. By late September 1940, the RAF had proved invincible, thanks to the Vickers Supermarine Spitfire. It exceeded anything that any other air force possessed. RJ Mitchell, a shy and almost painfully modest engineer, was the genius behind the Spitfire. On the 5th March 1936, following its successful maiden flight, a legend was born. Prize-winning historian Leo McKinstry's vivid history of the Spitfire brings together a rich cast of characters and first hand testimonies. It is a tale full of drama and heroism, of glory and tragedy, with the main protagonist the remarkable plane that played a crucial role in saving Britain.

Genres: History, Aviation, Nonfiction, World War II, Military History, War, Battle Of Britain

569 pages, Kindle Edition

First published October 18, 2007

About the author

Leo McKinstry writes regularly for the Daily Mail, Sunday Telegraph and Spectator. He has also written nine books including a life of Geoff Boycott, which was recently named one of the finest cricket books written in a Wisden poll. His best-selling biography of the footballing Charlton brothers was a top-ten bestseller and won the Sports Book of the Year award, while his study of Lord Rosebery won Channel Four Political Book of the year. Most recently he has written a trilogy about the RAF in the Second World War, including Spitfire, Lancaster and Hurricane.

Born in Belfast he was educated in Ireland and at Cambridge University.

Reviews

[Danny Whatmough · Rating 5 out of 5]

TALLY-HO!
Wait that's a call into battle...

If the rate at which I added Leo Mckinstry's Hurricane book to my lists after starting this book doesn't tell it clearly enough I'll put it in words, I'm a huge fan.

It's researched as well as some of the paleo reads I've sunk into this year but it's a totally different topic with a very different tone. And there's some quotes which I hesitate to call "truely British" as that term changes from person to person but they're truly things and attitudes British people can be proud of, though not all the words and actions quoted are like this.

I worried at times that the book would elevate the Spitfire onto some 'flawless' pedestal and try to raise it higher by knocking down it's rivals(?) in the Hurricane, BF109 and FW190 but instead it gives views from different angles, and while sure there's a bias toward the Spitfire the merit of each aircraft are laid out and the advantages some had never shied away from. There's even mentions of the competition against Zero's (something I never gave much thought to) and some Spit v Spit action too.

If you're a fan of Spitfires, Fighter Aircraft, World War 2, RAF History or even just Aviation History I'd recommend this book. It's got stories from all angles of the Spitfire's glorious (albeit flawed) run and after a short break to read something non-war related I'll be sinking my teeth into Leo McKinstry's Lancaster or Hurricane book.

[Russ Spence · Rating 4 out of 5]

very interesting read, full of little details that expose a few minor myths (about the times, the people, the war and the Spitfire) but enhance the legend

[Peter Grant · Rating 4 out of 5]

I was a bit of wary of this book as I thought it would be devoted to a lot of technical and engineering detail as to how the Spitfire was designed and built and then how each of the variants came to be in similar style. Instead, this book was a thoroughly engrossing biography of the Spitfire from its origins in the 1930s, through governmental interference, poor business practice to its outstanding record as a weapon of war which came to be arguably the most famous plane of all time. The birth of the plane was so troubled that it's a wonder it got built at all - in fact, it was amazing to learn that it was viewed as a stop gap before the introduction of more 'promising' planes like the Whirlwind or the Beaufighter. The author did a great job of bringing to life the various key characters in the Spitfire's history such as the eccentric R J Mitchell, the aloof Dowding, the useless Lord Nuffield, the ferociously industrious Lord Beaverbrook and the ambitious Leigh-Mallory. The book is also littered with accounts from pilots and ground crew providing warts and all eye-witness accounts of flying the plane, fighting in the plane and so many near misses. The technical detail is peppered in and amongst all this and, rather being dry and boring, proved interesting as the plane developed from the Battle of Britain version with its Merlin engine and machine guns, through successful marks like the V and the XIV with their enhanced Merlins and cannons all the way to the Spitfire of steroids of the later marks with the huge Griffon engine.
Throughout the book, the author also provides informed opinion on historic controversies such as the row between Dowding and Park, and Leigh Mallory and Bader (who sounds insufferable) over big wings and Churchill's role in getting the US to help deliver Spitfires to Malta. He also described some odd versions like the Spitfire float plane and one that was adapted to carry beer barrels to thirsty troops in France.
So, this book provides a comprehensive and fascinating account of an aviation icon.

[Brian Keith · Rating 5 out of 5]

Audiobook, just under 20 hrs. Well researched and well read by the narrator! Includes a lot of detail on the key players in the Spitfire's development, and the personal suffering and sacrifice typically not told in many other historical works. This covers the politics, the friends and adversaries working an agenda, often with precarious consequences. The stories of the pilots, the factory workers, raw material shortages and other day-to-day suffering of Brits are fascinating. It reads like a great historical should, bordering on unbelievable. This is another body of work which reinforces just how close Britain was to falling to the Nazi blitz; it might have been a matter of a few squadrons of Spitfires which made the difference in Germany postponing a land invasion, or their evil push forward onto the isles. Give this one a go if you have even one iota of interest in WWII, the Battle of Britain or the RAF.

[Stephen Bigger · Rating 5 out of 5]

The production of Spitfires before ww2 was a shambles. Government, plane manufacturers, and armed forces squabbles were all to blame. A prototype could have been flying in 1934, which would have altered the whole shape of pre-war politics. Political support for aviation was poor until it was understood that Hitler was a real threat. Aircraft production was frankly too little too late owing to political inertia. There was sniping from the Army and Navy, and empire chiefs were asking from more protection. It was thanks largely to Neville Chamberlain’s insight that defence of Britain must come first, pressing hard as PM for fighter production. He realised too that if the war began in 1937 or 1938 the quantities of stukas and Ms109s being battle-hardy in Spain might mean rapid defeat. This does not exonerate Chamberlain from the Munich Agreement, but explains his anxiety to slow confrontation down. We know of the piece of paper he brought back, but not the one he took, which listed aircraft production numbers. Dowding's reaction to Munich was 'Thank God'. From the media, W E Johns published various magazines on flying and put huge pressure on politicians to change course.
Trenchard’s disastrous anti-fighter doctrine set him against Sir Hugh Dowding who saw fighters as an essential defence against free-ranging bombers. Had Trenchard had his way, we would have lost the second word war in 1940. There was major political dragging of feet despite evidence of Germany rushing ahead with aircraft manufacture. In 1935 Sir Philip Cunliffe-Lister took over from sacked Londonderry and within two weeks of committee work had issued two reports demanding rapid expansion of aircraft manufacture. The F7/30 specifications were developed into the Gloster Gladiator, a biplane, already outmoded on its maiden flight. It survived until 1942 and three of them, Faith, Hope and Charity, made major contributions to the defence of Malta (see Josephine Blackstock’s Island on the Beam discussed in my http://1930-1960.blogspot.co.uk/2009/...). The Hurricane and Spitfire were given their own specifications and told to get on with it. Sir Philip soon became Viscount Swinton and was freed from what he considered the tedious dealings in the House of Commons. Success in the Battle of Britain hinged on this new appointment. A prototype Hurricane and Spitfire was expected in 1935-6. Lord Swindon brought in William Weir the Scottish engineer industrialist who rapidly stimulated production. The Spitfire prototype first flew on 5th March 1936. Test flights by Jeffrey Quill followed and the prototype handled well. The nose was lonto 380 mph. There was nearly a disaster on the Ministry test-flight at Martlesham when the pilot forgot to lower the undercarriage, but rectified this just in time. After a positive report, an order for 310 planes was put in eight days later on 3rd June. Delivery was expected by March 1939. Further flights were successful and greatly admired.
However, Mitchell’s bowel cancer returned and he died 11th June 1937, aged 42.
From a production point of view, 1937 was a traumatic shambles. The question of how to roll out the build to 310 planes had not been thought through. Factory space was too small and what was needed was new purpose-built factories, much as happened later in Swindon and Castle Bromwich (Birmingham). 600 Hurricanes had been ordered, a traditional and simpler build and these would hold the fort well into 1940 when the first Spitfires began to creep through. This was caused by more than Mitchell’s death. Leadership was awful, and factory problems were kept from the Ministry, otherwise alternative arrangements would have been made. Essentially no flyable Spitfire was built in 1937, nor were production problems identified and solved. 1937 was a wasted year, which could have had terrible consequences. The Ministry demanded that the parent company made a total reshuffle. Much work had been contracted out, with inadequate drawings, so the components did not fit. Government panic was in the air. But they were their own worst enemy, heavily bureaucratic, committees everywhere, and crassly suicidal in their preference for bombers, whilst leaving London unprotected. In the end 300 Spitfires were allotted to Fairey Aviation in Stockport (though this was not honoured). The delays in Supermarine led to the stupid replacement of Lord Swinton, who had been the only positive voice in the whole debacle. In the government, Hore-Belisha was one of the few who pushed for rearmament – but he was Jewish and lampooned as Horeb-Elisha by anti-semitic colleagues, of which there were many.
We are now at the start of the war. Hurricanes are in place, but no Spitfires. The war could have been over by Christmas, like in Poland – but fortunately the Nazis did not press this advantage, and the “phoney war” resulted.

[John LeBrun · Rating 5 out of 5]

This a pretty complete story of the Spitfire, warts and all. I like McKinstry's style of using a large number of quotations from original sources. He does not often analyse events or give many of his own opinions but when he does, I felt they were well thought through and logical. I like particularly his take of the Downding, Park, Leigh-Mallory disputes. All three of these experienced people wore blinkers, blanking out the needed flexibility required at the time. Still, Downding's reporting and controlling network was a stroke of genius, particularly that he saw the major advantage of radar.

As a pilot (Harvards and Vulcans chiefly) I would dearly have loved to get my hands on an early mark of Spitfire. McKinstry's book certainly made me fly the aircraft in my imagination, and I liked that.

For those who want to know just about the whole story, this is a book for them.

[Matthew Culley · Rating 5 out of 5]

A very interesting account of the Spitfire. It gives some emphasis to the development and sometimes rocky start to the aeroplane. The book gives a good account of Reginald Mitchell, the designer of the Spitfire, who was clearly a brilliant engineer. It was a great loss that he died so young. We learn about the pilots who flew this great aircraft and what is was like to fly it. Many of the key battles involving the Spitfire are mentioned. It gives a good description of the sometimes confusing development cycle of the Spitfire. Recommended.

[Ian · Rating 5 out of 5]

This is a superb account of the complete history of the Spitfire. Very detailed and interesting. Given the circumstances surrounding it's production it's a wonder this superb aircraft ever got into production at all never mind the quantity that were built. I do wonder how things may be now without it..

[Koit · Rating 4 out of 5]

The Spitfire is a plane most everyone can imagine when it gets mentioned. But, really, it is far more than a plane. The Spitfire is a dream that someone dared to dream -- and this dream became a reality just in time for the British to make it into their collective saviour in the 1940's. However, as these things so often begin in another time, the history of the Spitfire reaches back beyond that into the early 20's, and it is this whole story that Mr McKinstry provides.

I found the level of detail more thorough than I had expected -- a lot of the background or people noted forced me to investigate things more thoroughly, and this is generally a good thing. Also typically, as a story of modern Britain, the Spitfire's is a story of government incompetency and well-meaning failures -- but this is how a number of parliamentary sessions descriptions' get brought into the question of how to design a really fast plane. 

For the other type of reader, the statistics brought up by the author are likely to be interesting. While not as numerous as the other type of fact presented, there are a few observations which are likely to make the reader wonder about the importance of marketing -- no matter what we are selling. 

As a final touch, the last chapters detailing service (and combat) in other forces were a wonderful conclusion to this book.

Originally posted here.

[Jon · Rating 5 out of 5]

Few authors capture the essence of machinery as wholly as McKinstry; Spitfire examines it's subject as engineering feat, tool of strategy, cultural marvel. This is as perfect a book one could write about such a wonderful airplane.

[Aaron Giddings · Rating 4 out of 5]

Excellent deep-dive into the development and history of the Spitfire, beginning with its early developmental troubles and running all the way to its final versions, combats and missions. Thorough, well researched, and worth the time needed to read.

[Gomcp · Rating 5 out of 5]

Excellent book - very readable and packed with facts

[Steve Mitchell · Rating 5 out of 5]

The Spitfire is just one of the most beautiful machines ever built and this book really does that justice. The problem with any history book is any new information provided of opinion expressed within the pages could lead to accusations of attempting to rewrite history; I think this book manages to avoid criticism by keeping the balance in the arguments just right. It does point out that there were not enough Spitfires in 1940 to win the Battle of Britain alone and that the Hurricanes played a big part in winning the battle. That said, it also points out that if the RAF had Spitfires instead of Hurricanes then the battle would still have been won; which is not something that is necessarily true if the RAF only had Hurricanes.
The myth that the RAF was on the brink of defeat at the end of the Battle of Britain is also exposed in this book. It is true that 11 Group of Fighter Command had thrown every plane at the Luftwaffe, but there were plenty of fighters in other areas of the UK sitting on the ground while those in Kent and Sussex were in constant combat. The reluctance to call upon the support of 12 Group is shocking and cannot be justified even in the disagreement over the ""Big Wing"" tactics employed by the pilots of 12 Group. Having squadrons of Spitfires sitting idle in the north of England and Scotland in case the Luftwaffe switches tactics whilst the south-east and London were being bombed seems curious with the benefit of hindsight, but exposes Sir Keith Park's comment to Churchill that we had no reserves for the overstatement that it was. McKinstry also sets the record straight about the criticism that the RAF had to endure that they left the the British Expeditionary Force exposed on the beaches at Dunkirk.
If you are thrilled by the sound of a Merlin engine and look up expectantly for the grace of the elliptical wings on RJ Mitchell's masterpiece - and after all, who doesn't - then this book is a must read.

[Adrian · Rating 1 out of 5]

I had to stop reading this book after just two chapters due to the bad print(The ink used for this book is not very good,also the paper used is terrible)

I would like to say that this is not a review for the book as a whole ,but for the way this book was printed(i.e the ink and paper) This book hurt my eyes even in perfect daylight.I don't know if it was just the paperback version that is printed poorly or if it affects the hardback version too.

I must also admit after reading just two chapters I found many grammatical errors and written errors by the author(Leo Mckinstry)who made many wrong statements about the Spitfire prototype K5054.

After reading numerous books about the Spitfire and the Battle of Britain I get the feeling that this author has included a lot of incomplete information regarding this iconic Aeroplane,but saying this I only read two chapters so I cannot form a complete review of this book.

I will try to read this book again at a later date(kindle version) and then edit my review as-per-needed.

P.s don't let this review put you of reading this book as it's not a proper review of the book,but a review of the layout.I'm sure that the hardback or kindle version would be easier to read than the paperback. So all I'm going to say is stay away from the paperback version if you can and try a different format.

Long Live The Spitfire!

[Jonathon Dyer · Rating 4 out of 5]

This book is a must-read for anyone with an interest in the Second World War, modern British history, aeronautical engineering, design development, mass-production processes, or a handful of other areas McKinstry's machine-biography touches upon. From an idea for a fighter-plane born of the experience of designing racing seaplanes, through the torturous development of convincing the war office of the prototypes's viability, the manufacturing and false-starts and complications, through to the aerial battle over eastern England that could have easily become a prelude to invasion, this book covers it all.

To be fair, there ere twice as many Hawker Hurricanes (the subject of a sister volume by McKinstry) in the air fighting the onslaught German fighters and bombers in the Battle of Britain, but it was the Spitfire, with its graceful silhouette that captured the public imagination. McKinstry's portrait reveals both the plane and the larger-than-life personalities that brought it to life.

[Richard · Rating 4 out of 5]

This is a nicely written overview of the Spitfire, from its development to end of service, in the 1950s.

I liked the easy to read writing style. It reads like a story being unfolded; rather than a detailed technical manual. The book covers the warts in the Spitfire story, for example, difficulties getting the plane into production, even as late as 1940.

I found it interesting and refreshing when the author offers an alternative interpretation to history. For example, although acknowledging Hugh Dowding and Keith Park's vital roles in winning the Battle of Britain, McKinstry also highlights short-comings in their managerial styles (which could have contributed to them losing their positions after the battle).

[Jon · Rating 3 out of 5]

Excellent general history of the world's most iconic aeroplane. McKinstry keeps the geeky technical details to a minimum, but gives marvellous pen-portraits of the people involved in the design, production and operation of the Spit. Every stage of the story is told from the human angle, and is fascinating and gripping from start to finish. He is not blind to the faults of the aircraft, and deals fairly with the various controversies encountered. (I had not realised, for example, just what a basket case Supermarine was, and that the continued failure to produce Spits on schedule may have been a major factor in Chamberlain's Munich policy).

[Tony · Rating 3 out of 5]

I had this book on my shelves for a couple of years before I got round to reading it. I was put off reading it by the garish cover but once I got over this I quite enjoyed the book, at least the first two thirds. Leo McKinstry writes, I think, very well and the early chapters describing the troublesome birth of the Spitfire was well worth reading. The problem for me was that the last third of the book petered out into a simple list of the different marks of Spitfire and their technical developments. Overall though, I enjoyed it and I have the author's lancaster to look forward to.

[Alice · Rating 3 out of 5]

'The cult of the Clitoris' is an unusual opening for a book on aviation history, but it's typical of this often irreverent look at the Second World War's most famous plane. An enjoyable read let down by proofreading errors; I also found the very long chapters with few natural breaks hard work.

[Susan Paxton · Rating 5 out of 5]

Excellent biography of the Supermarine Spitfire; McKinstry provides a balance of excellent new research and veteran accounts to give a full picture of the design, building, and use of the Spitfire. Very highly recommended.

[Saikat · Rating 5 out of 5]

... also building an RC spitfire for my little boy ...

[Laura · Rating 4 out of 5]

A must read for any aviation history geeks. Wonderful book, well written.

[Ang · Rating 2 out of 5]

All about the Spitfire that you could imagine - great resource, tough going as a general read.
[paperback edition].

[Robert · Rating 5 out of 5]

The history of the Spitfire from it's creation from a racing plane to the fighter that won the Battle of Britain. Lot's of personal accounts by pilots that put you right in the cockpit.