Lancaster taxi
Discussion
Rob197 said:
Hi, have bought this for my other halfs mums 50th. Anyone been and know if its anygood? Looks ok on youtube videos. Shes obsessed with the Lancaster so hope she likes it
I think there is a bit of lunch and a talk thrown in as well. It will be an unforgettable experience. Four Merlins and a taxi out to the field followed by a spirited blast down the grass stripThey are rebuilding a Mosquito there and there is a lot to see in the museum, which comprises of many hangars as well as the haunted control tower.
Props and Pistons is a great event held yearly on August Bank Holiday Monday each year by the local tyre company Bush Tyres.. This year apart from the wonderful Bearcat and Mustang display there were a huge number of exotic cars for pistonheads to gawp at.
I did the taxi 5 years ago.
Highly recommend it. The aviation centre itself is great. Plenty to look at and the grounds are very well kept.
A lot of the staff there have been there from the start or are related to the Pantons and they really care for the place and Jane (as well as the other exhibits)
Our day consisted of a tour of the aircraft. A briefing which was based on a briefing for a raid on Germany (loads of facts thrown in) A morning taxi with half of our group in Jane and half watching from outside.
Dinner in the excellent cafe. (We had homemade pie) where we ate with the staff/crew and they fielded our questions.
Then the second group taxi.
It’s a wonderful experience. To be inside a lanc with the 4 merlins going was indescribable. I got the upper mid position which was a great view of everything. If you have any family connections to any particular crew position they will try and accommodate you in that one.
The staff were brilliant. Friendly. Approachable. Knowledgeable and professional.
It’s a great day.
Highly recommend it. The aviation centre itself is great. Plenty to look at and the grounds are very well kept.
A lot of the staff there have been there from the start or are related to the Pantons and they really care for the place and Jane (as well as the other exhibits)
Our day consisted of a tour of the aircraft. A briefing which was based on a briefing for a raid on Germany (loads of facts thrown in) A morning taxi with half of our group in Jane and half watching from outside.
Dinner in the excellent cafe. (We had homemade pie) where we ate with the staff/crew and they fielded our questions.
Then the second group taxi.
It’s a wonderful experience. To be inside a lanc with the 4 merlins going was indescribable. I got the upper mid position which was a great view of everything. If you have any family connections to any particular crew position they will try and accommodate you in that one.
The staff were brilliant. Friendly. Approachable. Knowledgeable and professional.
It’s a great day.
Did it a few years back https://www.pistonheads.com/gassing/topic.asp?h=0&...
They also have a Mosquito there now that's also just been brought back to ground running condition. I believe the owner is planning taxy runs in this too.
The BBMF is just down the road, so might be possible to combine visiting both ?
They also have a Mosquito there now that's also just been brought back to ground running condition. I believe the owner is planning taxy runs in this too.
The BBMF is just down the road, so might be possible to combine visiting both ?
A gentleman who lived nearby was an instructor in Canada with over 3000 hours but he became frustrated towards the end of 1943 as he wanted to do battle with the enemy.
He managed to be posted back to Lincolnshire but found when he arrived that they had a glut of pilots but they were looking for people of pilot material to operate the rear turret in a Lancaster
By this time the rear gunner had radar which meant that he had to swing the turret at regular intervals
This was very unpopular with the rest of the crew as it yawed the aeroplane and made them feel ill,
He also had an infrared signalling device to let him know if our night fighters were about or not. They did not know about this when I took him to Coningsby to see the flying Lancaster.
Because the rear turret was isolated from the rear of the plane he had to have an electrically heated suit with separate gloves and socks
In the early days when losses were high, really before mid 1943, rear gunners sometimes kicked off their boots to get frostbite to save them from further missions. It became a court martial offence to get frost bite and was deemed to be "lack of moral fibre'
Every single one of those that went on these missions deserves a VC in my opinion
However on one mission my friend found that he had an electrical fault in his boot sock and had to make a difficult decision about whether to be burnt or frost bitten!
Anyway here is me after a successful mission
He managed to be posted back to Lincolnshire but found when he arrived that they had a glut of pilots but they were looking for people of pilot material to operate the rear turret in a Lancaster
By this time the rear gunner had radar which meant that he had to swing the turret at regular intervals
This was very unpopular with the rest of the crew as it yawed the aeroplane and made them feel ill,
He also had an infrared signalling device to let him know if our night fighters were about or not. They did not know about this when I took him to Coningsby to see the flying Lancaster.
Because the rear turret was isolated from the rear of the plane he had to have an electrically heated suit with separate gloves and socks
In the early days when losses were high, really before mid 1943, rear gunners sometimes kicked off their boots to get frostbite to save them from further missions. It became a court martial offence to get frost bite and was deemed to be "lack of moral fibre'
Every single one of those that went on these missions deserves a VC in my opinion
However on one mission my friend found that he had an electrical fault in his boot sock and had to make a difficult decision about whether to be burnt or frost bitten!
Anyway here is me after a successful mission
Vanin said:
By this time the rear gunner had radar which meant that he had to swing the turret at regular intervals
This was very unpopular with the rest of the crew as it yawed the aeroplane and made them feel ill
The rear gunner didn't have radar, but the aircraft might have had tail warning radar (Monica). Unfortunately it attracted nightfighters, who homed in on it iwth their Flensburg radar detectors. That might explain why he constantly had to traverse the sky...!This was very unpopular with the rest of the crew as it yawed the aeroplane and made them feel ill
Surprised that rotating the rear turrent cause a heavy to yaw... can't think the drag from 4x .303 barrels was that significant.
Simpo Two said:
Vanin said:
By this time the rear gunner had radar which meant that he had to swing the turret at regular intervals
This was very unpopular with the rest of the crew as it yawed the aeroplane and made them feel ill
The rear gunner didn't have radar, but the aircraft might have had tail warning radar (Monica). Unfortunately it attracted nightfighters, who homed in on it iwth their Flensburg radar detectors. That might explain why he constantly had to traverse the sky...!This was very unpopular with the rest of the crew as it yawed the aeroplane and made them feel ill
Surprised that rotating the rear turrent cause a heavy to yaw... can't think the drag from 4x .303 barrels was that significant.
https://mraths.org.uk/?page_id=480
I am not sure if this article is totally correct about the use of IFF Liquid Lunch as my friend was adamant that he used it but perhaps it was only in training and not actual missions.
All I know is what he said about the crew hating it, especially on a long mission. He did thirteen hours in the rear turret on one mission!
I suppose it is more than just the Brownings as perhaps the glass area of the turret will act like a rudder to cause yaw.
Another story he told me concerned a pilot at East Kirkby, who had just completed two tours and was having a rest period. He thought he would go down to watch all the Lancs taxiing out for the next mission. He lit a cigarette while standing next to the latrines thinking thank God he did not have to go along with them as he was a bundle of nerves after what he had been through.
The rear gunners were exercising the turrets as they taxied but unfortunately one of the gunners caught the trigger and took off the roof of the latrine . I am not sure about the extra damage to the pilot's nerves!
Deptford Draylons said:
Did it a few years back https://www.pistonheads.com/gassing/topic.asp?h=0&...
They also have a Mosquito there now that's also just been brought back to ground running condition. I believe the owner is planning taxy runs in this too.
There was an auction there on Saturday for a chance to actually take controls of the Lanc during a taxy run, and another one for a pax ride in the Mossie for a taxy run.They also have a Mosquito there now that's also just been brought back to ground running condition. I believe the owner is planning taxy runs in this too.
Vanin said:
A gentleman who lived nearby was an instructor in Canada with over 3000 hours but he became frustrated towards the end of 1943 as he wanted to do battle with the enemy.
He managed to be posted back to Lincolnshire but found when he arrived that they had a glut of pilots but they were looking for people of pilot material to operate the rear turret in a Lancaster
By this time the rear gunner had radar which meant that he had to swing the turret at regular intervals
This was very unpopular with the rest of the crew as it yawed the aeroplane and made them feel ill,
He also had an infrared signalling device to let him know if our night fighters were about or not. They did not know about this when I took him to Coningsby to see the flying Lancaster.
Because the rear turret was isolated from the rear of the plane he had to have an electrically heated suit with separate gloves and socks
In the early days when losses were high, really before mid 1943, rear gunners sometimes kicked off their boots to get frostbite to save them from further missions. It became a court martial offence to get frost bite and was deemed to be "lack of moral fibre'
Every single one of those that went on these missions deserves a VC in my opinion
However on one mission my friend found that he had an electrical fault in his boot sock and had to make a difficult decision about whether to be burnt or frost bitten!
Anyway here is me after a successful mission
Mrs DS's dad was a tail gunner in a Lancaster; we scattered some of his ashes at Elvington.He managed to be posted back to Lincolnshire but found when he arrived that they had a glut of pilots but they were looking for people of pilot material to operate the rear turret in a Lancaster
By this time the rear gunner had radar which meant that he had to swing the turret at regular intervals
This was very unpopular with the rest of the crew as it yawed the aeroplane and made them feel ill,
He also had an infrared signalling device to let him know if our night fighters were about or not. They did not know about this when I took him to Coningsby to see the flying Lancaster.
Because the rear turret was isolated from the rear of the plane he had to have an electrically heated suit with separate gloves and socks
In the early days when losses were high, really before mid 1943, rear gunners sometimes kicked off their boots to get frostbite to save them from further missions. It became a court martial offence to get frost bite and was deemed to be "lack of moral fibre'
Every single one of those that went on these missions deserves a VC in my opinion
However on one mission my friend found that he had an electrical fault in his boot sock and had to make a difficult decision about whether to be burnt or frost bitten!
Anyway here is me after a successful mission
He especially liked me as I was so interested in stuff and knew the features of, for example, a Fraser Nash turret. In fact he left his collection of turret books (there are such things!) to me.
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