Spitfire Mk XI PRU Question

[Sasquatch]

Hello All,

Last night I was reading a Flight Journal special edition on Spitfires that I picked up recently at the airport, and I noticed a photo similar to this one posted on Wikipedia:

http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/c ... 65_arp.jpg

Is it an optical illusion that the "chin" of the Mk. XI looks to be somewhat enlarged due to the paint being all PRU blue, or is there some reason that the "chin" is actually structurally larger than most other Spit models?

If it is indeed larger, what is in there that caused this difference?

Thanks in advance for your help with this question!



-Tom

PS...If interested in this speical issue, you can find it on the newstands, or here:
http://www.airagestore.com/special-issu ... n.html?p=3
(I have no commercial connection with Flight Journal or AirAge, etc....just helping out here)

[One-0-Wonder]

The apparent bulge in the lower front cowl is not an illusion, but a modified cowl to accomodate a larger oil tank needed as a result of the additional fuel (longer sorties) for the PRU variants. I think the oil tank is something like 14.5 gallons.

[TJJ]

Here's a shot of the Merlin 70 mounted in the Hangar 11 Collection's Spitfire PRXI. This aircraft must be one of the very few World War 2 warbirds flying with its original operational engine.



Here's the aircraft taking off. The deeper profile of the nose is clearly visible.

[Sasquatch]

Excellent! Thank you to you both for the explanation and the GREAT photos...I sure appreciate it!

--Tom