Stability and Control characteristics of the Early Mark Spitfires

[Sandstone]

Skimming this thread, it seem that the Spitfire was longitudinally unstable in a narrow technical sense, which primarily manifested itself as a perceived sensitivity to elevator input.

However, the aircraft had generally good handling properties and pilots on both sides actually regarded it as rather easy to fly. In fact, it was successfully used by low-hours pilots without problem, so clearly the technical instability had either very little or no impact on its real-world use.

Can this be represented in a game? No, not unless the game forces the use of full-size force feedback joysticks and prevents players using response curves.

We should note that words like "instability" can have a narrow technical meaning that is rather different from their normal everyday meaning. Crumpp would have avoided a lot of confusion, much of it his own, if he had made this distinction clear from the beginning.