SUPERMARINE TYPE 224

The 'Supermarine Type 224' was a design submitted by Reginald Mitchell for a Royal Air Force (RAF) competition to select a new fighter in 1934. The design was an all-metal monoplane with a fixed undercarriage and an open cockpit. It featured an interesting cooling system using a steam condenser mounted along the wings which gave the craft continuous reliability problems. In the competition in February 1934 The Type 224 did not perform well compared to the other biplane and monoplane designs. It displayed a maximum speed of only 367 km/h (228 mph) and took 9.5 minutes to climb to 15,000 feet (8 m/s). By comparison the winner of the competition, the Gloster entrant (a biplane which would soon become the Gloster Gladiator), displayed a top speed of 390 km/h (242 mph) and a much better climb rate, achieving 15,000 ft in 6.5 minutes.

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Specifications (Supermarine type 224)

Specifications (Supermarine type 224)