Hobby Master Archive

The Spitfire Mk. VIII was going to use the larger Merlin engines so the airframe of the earlier Mk. V had to be redesigned. This kept the new mark from entering service until June 1943. The Mk. VIII was produced in 3 versions; the standard fighter F.VIII with the 1,560 hp Merlin 61; the high altitude fighter HF.VIII with the 1,655hp Merlin 70 and the low altitude fighter LF.VIII with the 1,705 hp Merlin 66. The Mk. VIII was going to be the answer to the Fw-190.

On January 18, 1944 the 31st FG arrived at Castel Volturno, a steel mat strip located near Naples, Italy. The 308th FS was one of the 31st FG’s three Spitfire squadrons and it was equipped with Mk. VIIIs. On January 22, 1944 the 31st FG participated in the invasion at Anzio and in mid-March was involved in the push to capture Cassino. Spitfire HL-K was named “Fargo Express” and flown by Capt. Leland P. Molland who accumulated 11 victories in WWII.

Specifications for the Super Marine Spitfire LF. Mk. VIII Total Produced - 1,658 Dimensions - Wingspan - 36 ft 10in (11.23 m) Length With Enlarged Rudder - 31 ft 6 in (9.58 m) Height - 12 ft 8 in (3.86 m)

Weight - Empty - 5,190 lb (2,354 kg) Loaded - 7,990 lb (3,624 kg)

Performance - Engine - 1 X Rolls-Royce Merlin 66, 1,720 hp (1,283 kW) @ 5,750 ft (1,752 m) Maximum Speed - 404 mph (650 km/h) @ 21,000 ft (6,401 m) Rate of Climb - 4,660 ft/min (23.7 m/sec) @ sea level Service Ceiling - 41,500 ft (12,649 m) Combat Range - Internal Fuel Only - 680 miles (1,094 km) Internal Fuel + 90 Imp. Gallon Drop Tank - 1,180 miles (1,899 km) Ferry Range - 1,530 miles (2,462 km) with a 170 Imp. Gallon Drop Tank Armament - 2 X 20 mm Hispano II cannons with 120 rpg 4 X 303 Browning machine guns with 350 rpg 2 X 250 lb (110 kg) Bombs + 1 X 500 lb (230 kg) Bomb

1/48 scale pre-finished. Die-cast metal with a minimum of plastic. Professionally painted. All markings pad applied for superb results. Canopy slides open. Comes with a pilot that can be removed. Comes with display stand. Landing gear is fully retractable and can be displayed up or down. Propeller is metal. Extremely sought after by collectors.

Hobby Master 1/48 Air Power Series HA8302 Spitfire Mk. VIII “Fargo Express” HL-K, Lt. Leland P. Molland, 308th FS, 31st FG, Italy 1944