Canadian Lancaster to visit the UK
Discussion
Ironically, of course, and as recommended by their own tech bods at the time, if Bomber Command had left all the guns (and therefore gunners) off their bombers they'd have lost less men overall because the only real value the turrets had was of moral support, and without their weight the bombers could have flown higher and faster.
DamienB said:
Ironically, of course, and as recommended by their own tech bods at the time, if Bomber Command had left all the guns (and therefore gunners) off their bombers they'd have lost less men overall because the only real value the turrets had was of moral support, and without their weight the bombers could have flown higher and faster.
With hindsight (always 20/20), build lots of MosquitoesTootles the Taxi said:
ATTAK Z said:
Anyone know why the Lanc was at Humberside today ?
Humberside Airport was originally RAF Kirmington and Royal Canadian Air Force squadrons flew from it in WWII. IanMorewood said:
Stuck In A Lift said:
On the subject of turrets, why didn't the Lancaster have a turret underneath, like the B-17?
Some early Mk1s did but they proved almost useless and subsequently got deleted.Boatbuoy said:
I suspect the answer is in the name of the B-17 - Flying Fortress. They seemed more concerned with carrying defensive systems than the RAF, possibly to do with the B-17's flying by day, and the Lancasters at night. The Lancaster's bomb bay occupies a higher percentage length of the airframe than the B-17, thus (I assume) leaving less space/opportunity for a lower turret.
The B-17's also had waist gunner positions and side mounted guns at the nose - all of which are absent on the Lancs.
The Lancaster evolved from the Manchester which itself was based on a 1936 Air Ministry specification (which also gave rise to the Halifax).The B-17's also had waist gunner positions and side mounted guns at the nose - all of which are absent on the Lancs.
Neither the Manchester nor the Halifax were designed for night operations. In the mid 1930s it was confidently expected that a well defended bomber could reach its target, defend itself, drop its bombs accurately and fly home in broad daylight. The assumption was that "the bomber will always get through".
It was only the dreadful experiences of the early daylight raids of late 1939 that made Bomber Command switch to night raids - too late for the new "heavies" that were coming along to be radically redesigned.
The B-17 was designed with a different philosophy. It was assumed that its targets would be bombed from bases on the US mainland or US territories. The idea was that the aircraft would fly very high and also bomb in daylight, using a semi-automatic bombsight called the Norden. Total bombload was compromised for range, speed and altitude (the B-17 had a much higher ceiling than any of the British heavies).
Early versions of the B-17 had no turrets, just gun positions
Turrets and extra guns were added from the "E" model onwards in response to information coming from the RAF experiences in Europe prior to America entering the war.
You also need to remember that the basic design of the B-17 was quite a bit older than the Lancaster. The B-17 was already flying and under test even before the Air Ministry set out the specification for the aircraft that would become the Lancaster.
CAPP0 said:
I went down to Lashenden (Headcorn) this afternoon and was treated to multiple flypasts of both the Lancs and the Spit and Hurricane accompanying them. No sign of the Dak posted on the BBMF page.
All 4 planes flew in to start, then the Lancs peeled off somewhere out of sight/hearing and the 2 fighters played around with some rolls and steep climbs for a little while. Then the Lancs came back around and made several low passes in formation, nothing too dramatic although they were fairly low (maybe 500ft?) so the visuals were fantastic! After that they all formed up again out to the east, overflew the runway and broke away north-ish, which would tie in with the Southend destination.
Just as I arrived the Vampire turned up, bloody hell that thing is quick, and after one circuit it took a pass over the runway at not much more than treetop height, so much so that where I was about 1/4 mile away you couldn't see it until it suddenly appeared above 10/28, screaming across the airfield.
All very impressive, and a lot of people turned out to watch too.
The Dakota flew. Along with two Gnats and a P51.All 4 planes flew in to start, then the Lancs peeled off somewhere out of sight/hearing and the 2 fighters played around with some rolls and steep climbs for a little while. Then the Lancs came back around and made several low passes in formation, nothing too dramatic although they were fairly low (maybe 500ft?) so the visuals were fantastic! After that they all formed up again out to the east, overflew the runway and broke away north-ish, which would tie in with the Southend destination.
Just as I arrived the Vampire turned up, bloody hell that thing is quick, and after one circuit it took a pass over the runway at not much more than treetop height, so much so that where I was about 1/4 mile away you couldn't see it until it suddenly appeared above 10/28, screaming across the airfield.
All very impressive, and a lot of people turned out to watch too.
Edited by CAPP0 on Saturday 16th August 22:12
Scotty2 said:
Any timings of flights in/out of Humberside for Vera?
I'm just over the water and could pop by before "Anorak Thursday" where I will be queing somewhere near Lincoln just missing the departure of the Avro-fest.
I shall no doubt be sat in that same queue, i'm thinking i might put the bike in the back of the car....I'm just over the water and could pop by before "Anorak Thursday" where I will be queing somewhere near Lincoln just missing the departure of the Avro-fest.
mcdjl said:
Scotty2 said:
Any timings of flights in/out of Humberside for Vera?
I'm just over the water and could pop by before "Anorak Thursday" where I will be queing somewhere near Lincoln just missing the departure of the Avro-fest.
I shall no doubt be sat in that same queue, i'm thinking i might put the bike in the back of the car....I'm just over the water and could pop by before "Anorak Thursday" where I will be queing somewhere near Lincoln just missing the departure of the Avro-fest.
LeighW said:
I'm planning on taking my Dad up to Waddington on Thursday. It says the gates for the PAVE open at 8.15; but as it's first come first served, what time do we need to be there to be pretty certain of getting in?
20:15 the night before? For the lands arrival from Canada people were camping from the night before and by 7am the crowds started to form (remembering that the aircraft was due in around 1400Gassing Station | Boats, Planes & Trains | Top of Page | What's New | My Stuff