The Griffon engine F Mk.22 delivered a top speed of 450mph and to my eye was the sportiest looking of all the Spitfire variants. Considered by many the ultimate spitfire, airframe changes introduced to cope with this increase in performance marked the end of its remarkable wartime evolution, finally giving way to the developments in jet technology. Increased tail and wing areas, shorter fuselage, bulges around the exhaust area and a bubble canopy gave the aircraft a distinctive appearance, as did the business-like five-bladed propeller, which required a lengthened undercarriage. Moulded in the now customary grey plastic, the quality of the parts is very good. The spark eroding process does leave a very slightly rough surface on the parts but a gentle rubbing with a Scotchbright cloth or an equivalent fine abrasive will smooth the parts before painting. The finesse of the engraved panel lines has always been something of a weakness with Airfix and whilst they are still not quite up to the same level of quality of some of its competitors, they are perfectly acceptable and as fine as I've ever seen in a kit from this company. Details such as the rivets around the engine panels are evident and the wing surfaces are well rendered.
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