Geopolitics
Russia / UK in the air

Every year, Russian propeller-powered aircraft come into UK airspace. Why can't we send a Spitfire squadron instead of two Eurofighters?

Burgess COMMENTARY

Peter Burgess

Every year, Russian propeller-powered aircraft come into UK airspace. Why can't we send a Spitfire squadron instead of two Eurofighters? Daan Bronkhorst Daan Bronkhorst, Parttime Asshole, Fulltime Embodiment of Sarcasm Answered Apr 28

If this had been 1946, right after the Second World War, and the Russians (Soviets at the time) would have sent this:



Petlyakov Pe-8, a four-engined heavy bomber designed to carry a really big bomb. It was used as a morale-booster for the Soviet Union, so sending one over to the UK wouldn’t have been such a crazy idea.

You would have been right. In that case, a squadron of Mk 24 Spitfires, the last and most powerful model, would have sufficed.

But this isn’t 1946, and the Russians aren’t sending Pe-8s, so Spitfire won’t do anymore. They’re sending these:


A Tupolev Tu-95 ‘‘Bear’’.

To the untrained eye, this may look like a regular four-engined heavy bomber, but you may notice a few things.

It has swept wings, which helps planes go fast. It has a double set of propellers for each nacelle. It’s really F**cking big.

Coincidentally, it also goes really fast! So fast, in fact, that a Spitfire wouldn’t stand a chance in hell of catching up to one.

It’s powered by 4 Kuznetsov NK-12 turboprops (each one produces a cool 11.000 kW, or 14.800 shp), and has a top speed of a whopping 926 km/h.

So, that’s why instead of these:



The UK now sends up these: