Avro Lancaster

History of Avro Lancaster

The Avro Lancaster later became the main British heavy bomber of World War II. Interestingly, their success stemmed from the failure of the Avro Manchester bomber - a twin-engine heavy bomber that first flew in July 1939 and was adopted in November 1940. The type was hampered by unreliable engines, and only 202 were produced in total.

The Lancaster was born from this failed design, combining different engines into a modified wing. The prototype version was nothing more than a modified Manchester with triple vertical stabilizers - the decisive difference being the choice of Rolls-Royce Merlin X-Series piston engines, each producing 1,145 horsepower.

Over time, the three-blade tail was abandoned and replaced by the twin rudder arrangement common in Lancaster history.

The Lancaster prototype flew for the first time on 9 January 1941. With World War II in full swing and extensive British involvement, the prototype was soon handed over to Boscombe Down for formal evaluation. Development was so rapid that a production quality form was aired as early as October 1941, and the series, after passing the required tests, was accepted for operational service in February 1942, pending quantitative orders . An early production version was developed for the Manchester airframe still on the Avro line and entered service with the RAF as the Lancaster B. Mk I.

Once production was in full swing, Lancaster was immediately used on the front lines. Each aircraft requires seven standard operators, including a pilot, bombardier, navigator, flight engineer, radio operator, rear gunner and tail gunner. Each is specially trained for their respective position in the vehicle, from nose to tail. The bomb bay retains most of the central interior space. The flight deck consists of a thick glass canopy with traditional seating and controls.

The nose is also glazed, giving the bombardier and his equipment an unobstructed view of what's going on ahead and below. The landing gear consists of two main gear legs (single wheel) with a tail wheel at the rear. Externally, the Lancaster was designed in the same way as other British bombers, nothing but hilarious. The original Lancaster showed a bomb bay and was originally intended to carry up to 4,000 pounds of guns.

At the height of the war, a typical Lancaster started out with around 14,000 lb conventional drop bombs and eventually even used 22,000 lb "Grand Slam" bombs (their size forced the bomb bay door to be completely removed).

In addition to the bomb load for offensive weapons, the Lancaster was equipped with no less than 8 x 7.7 mm Browning machine guns for firing through three hydraulically located nose, dorsal and stern Powered Fraser-Nash turret for self-defense. Two were mounted in the nose/chin turret and operated by the bombardier. Two are mounted on the dorsal tower amidships along the hull spine. Four are installed in the power tail pylon at the very end of the aircraft.

Unlike their American brethren, the Lancaster series lacked (roughly) a belly turret and corset gunner for added defense, and used a smaller caliber (7.7mm/.303) machine gun (relative to .50 caliber). The idea of ??a belly tower as a standard was considered but never implemented.

Only a few early forms of Lancaster were equipped with ventral turrets (these turrets were armed with 2 x .303 machine guns).

The demand for capable Lancaster aircraft was so great that their production was tied to other much-needed aircraft, meaning there was a near-shortage of available Merlin engines, threatening manufacturing. To replenish the Rolls-Royce Merlin's inventory, US-focused Packard was added to the group to produce the same powerplant in the US (under license). In extreme cases, the RAF fought Lancasters with 1,735 hp Bristol Hercules VI/XVI radial piston engines.

As the Merlin engine itself has evolved, so have the various Lancaster engines rolling off the line - new mounts include the Merlin XX, 22 and 24 series.

The Lancaster family started their operational career with mixed results. A daylight attack without an escort fighter is sure to be devastating for bomber crews, as enemy fighter patrols and interceptors combined with ground-based anti-aircraft fire can pass through with relative impunity Lancaster formation.

In an early such raid, Lancaster managed to hit German targets at Augsburg, but lost 7 of 12 aircraft in the process. This forced Bomber Command to take the fight to the night sky where Lancaster aircrews showed their skills.

Daylight raids are now protected by escort battlegroups, increasing the success rate of returning crew members.

On November 12, 1944, two Lancaster groups attacked the ship in Tromso Fjord, Norway, with a special 12,000-pound "Tallboy" bomb designed for armored personnel carriers. developed. The battleship sank as a result, a complete loss for the dwindling German navy. In a like-minded operation, the "Grand Slam" giant bomb came into play, targeting reinforced underground positions, with a 22,000-pound bomb strong enough to slice through a concrete structure and destroy its integrity.

The "Maintenance" series is a 9,250-pound design designed to destroy the dam.

The Lancaster bombers, comprising approximately 59 Bomber Command squadrons, conducted 156,000 bombing raids during the war, dropping approximately 681,600 tons of (short) artillery.

Lancaster served outside the UK and its RAF, in Argentina, Australia, Canada, Egypt, France, Poland, the USSR (some during WWII, others in the postwar period) (through Lend-Lease) and Sweden. By February 2, 1946, when the last Armstrong Whitworth airframe was transferred to the RAF, total production was 7,377.

The last operating Lancaster was retired from Canada in 1963, about 20 years after its launch. Lancaster was produced in Canada under the names B. Mk X (Lancaster B. Mk III) and B. Mk XV (Lincoln B. Mk I).

The Lancaster line had several notable variants, although the original Merlin XX-equipped B. Mk I model (later with Merlin 22 and 24 engines) survived until the end of the war in 1945. PR. The Mk 1 is a photographic reconnaissance platform without artillery, turret and bomb-carrying capabilities.

B. Mk I (FE) was a form of tropicalization designed to counter the Japanese in the Far East. The B. Mk II was equipped with a Bristol Hercules engine and 300 examples were completed by Armstrong Whitworth. The B. Mk III was used to designate the B. MK I model with the American Packard engine. ASR. The Mk III is a B. Mk III bomber model, suitably modified with lifeboats and detection antennae, for air-to-sea rescue (ASR) missions. gr.

The Mk 3 is the maritime reconnaissance platform version of the B. Mk III series. The B.IV received an elongated fuselage with flared wings and a Boulton Paul powered turret with 2 x 12.7mm heavy Browning machine guns, powered by parallel Merlin 85/68 engines.

The brand was so different that it became the Lincoln B. Mk I, followed by the B. Mk V, which became the Lincoln B. Mk II with flared wings and a longer fuselage, Equipped with Merlin 85 engine. The final production Lancaster became the B. Mk VII, with improved equipment.

Performance specs for the final B.Mk I model include a top speed of 282 mph, cruising speed of 200 mph, range of 2,530 miles, a service ceiling of 21,400 feet and a rate-of-climb of nearly 720 mph hour minutes .

Specification

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Performance

Performance

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Changes