Hobby Master Archive

The Mk. IX replaced the Mk. V in June 1942 and on September 12, 1942 a Mk. IX brought down a Ju-86R flying at 43,000 feet. Another major achievement of the Mk. IX took place on October 5, 1944 when 401 Squadron became the first allied aircraft to shoot down an Me-262 jet. Even with the arrival of the Griffon powered Mk. XIV the Mk. IX continued in service until the end of WWII. There were 5,665 Mk. IX Spitfires and its variants produced.

George “Buzz or Screwball” Beurling accumulated 27 victories on Malta during 1942 and was wounded. In September 1943 George joined the 403 Squadron RCAF for a brief period before moving to the 412 Squadron RCAF as Flight Commander. Beurling was a nonconformist and without clearance would sometimes break from formation and attack an enemy aircraft. George Beurling was a master of deflection shooting and in April 1944 when he returned to Canada to promote war bonds he had a total of 31 victories. During the bond campaign George was so graphic about his victories that his involvement was cancelled. Somewhat ironically Beurling survived many encounters with enemy fighters during WWII only to be killed in 1948 while taking off in a Noorduyn Norseman. The aircraft engine shut down while departing the Aeroporto dell’Urbe in Rome en route to Israel.

Specifications for the Spitfire Mk. IX Number built - 5,665 all Mk. IX variants Crew - 1 X pilot Dimensions Length - 31 ft. 3.5 in. Wingspan: Standard (F) - 36 ft. 10 in. Clipped (LF) - 32 ft. 2 in. Height - 11 ft. 9 in. Wing Area - (F) 242 sq. ft. or (LF) 231 sq. ft. Weight Empty - 5,610 lbs. (2,545 kg) Maximum Takeoff - 7,500 lbs. (3,402 kg) Performance Engine 1 X V-12 Rolls-Royce Merlin 61 @ 1,515 hp or 1 X V-12 Rolls-Royce Merlin 63 @ 1,712 hp Maximum Speed - 408 mph (657 kph) @ 25,000 ft. Service Ceiling - 4,000 ft. Range w/o drop tank - 434 miles (698 km) Armament 2 X Hispano 20mm cannons plus either 4 X .303 machine guns or 2 X .50 machine guns 1,000 lbs of bombs (500 centerline, 250 each wing)

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 HA8307 Spitfire IXc “MH883” 412 Squadron RCAF, 126 Wing F/L George Beurling, Biggin Hill, England, Jan 1944