Avro Lancaster
The Avro Lancaster was a
four-engined World War II bomber aircraft made by Avro
for the Royal Air Force. First used in 1942, together
with the Handley-Page Halifax it was the main heavy
bomber of the RAF and the most heavily used.
The original design was for a twin-engined heavy bomber
to be powered by the Rolls-Royce Vulture engines. The
resultant aircraft was the Avro Manchester, a
disappointing aircraft that was doubly hampered by the
unreliable engines, it was withdrawn from service in 1942
with only 200 aircraft built.
When the Vulture proved unreliable, A. V. Roe's chief
designer Roy Chadwick switched to a design using four
more reliable Rolls-Royce Merlin engines instead. The
result was the aircraft was initially called the Type
683. Renamed the Lancaster it made its first test flight
on January 9, 1941.
Avro Lancaster, England, 2002.
The majority of Lancasters were manufactured by
Metropolitan-Vickers, Armstrong Whitworth and A.V. Roe.
Only 300 of the Mk. II with Bristol Hercules engines were
made. The Mk. III had newer Merlin engines but was
otherwise identical to earlier versions; 3030 Mk. IIIs
were built, almost all at A.V. Roe's Newton Heath
factory. Of later versions only the Canadian-built Mk. X
was produced in any numbers, built by Victory Aircraft in
Malton, Ontario. 430 of this type were built. They
differed little from earlier versions, except for using
Packard built Merlin engines and having a differently
configured mid-upper turret. 7,377 Lancasters of all
marks were built over the war; a 1943 Lancaster cost
?4545-50,000.
The Lancasters flew 156,000 operations and dropped
608,612 tons of bombs. 3,249 Lancasters were lost in
action. Only 35 Lancasters completed more than 100
successful operations. The greatest survivor completed
139 operations and survived the war to be scrapped in
1947.
An important feature of the Lancaster was its extensive
bomb bay, at 33 feet (10.05 metres) long. Initially the
aircraft carried 4,000 lb (1,818 kg) bombs or for special
targets the 21 feet (6.4 metres) long 12,000 lb (5,455
kg) 'Tall Boy'. Towards the end of the war, attacking
hardened targets, the 'Special B' Lancasters could carry
a single 25.5 feet (7.77 metres) long 22,000 lb (10,000
kg) 'Grand Slam' or 'Earthquake' bomb. The Lancaster was
primarily a night-time bomber.
The Lancaster had a very advanced communications system
for its time; the famous 1155 receiver and 1154
transmitter. These provided radio direction-finding, as
well as voice and morse capabilities. Later Lancasters
carried primitive radar installations.
The most famous use of the Lancaster was probably the
1943 mission, codenamed Operation Downwood, to destroy
the dams of the Ruhr Valley using special drum shaped
"bouncing bombs" carried by modified Mk. IIIs.
The story of the mission was later made into a film, The
Dam Busters.
There was a civilian airliner based on the Lancaster,
known as the Lancastrian. It was a Lancastrian that was
involved in the famous stendec incident.
Two Avro Lancasters remain in air-worthy condition,
although few flying hours remain on their airframes and
actual flying is carefully rationed. One is PA474 of the
Battle of Britain Memorial Flight and the other is FM 213
of the Canadian Warplane Heritage Museum.
Avro Lancaster Mark I
Gross weight: 63,000 lb (28,636 kg)
Span: 102 ft (31.09 metres)
Length 69.5 ft (21.18 metres)
Crew: 7 - pilot, flight engineer, navigator, bomb aimer,
wireless operator, mid upper and rear gunners
Power: 4 x Rolls Royce Merlin XX, 1,280 hp each
Maximum speed: 280 mph at 18,500 ft (448 km/hr)
Ceiling: 23,500 ft (7,163 metres)
Range: 2,700 miles (4,320 km) with minimal bomb load
Maximum bomb load: 14,000 lb (6363 kg) (later versions up
to 22,000lbs)
Defences: 10 x Browning .303 machine-guns
External links
PA474 of the Battle of Britain Memorial Flight
FM 213 of the Canadian Warplane Heritage Museum
R1155 radio receiver