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The Avro Lancaster Heavy Bomber first flew in January 1941 with deliveries starting during September 1941 and continuing into February 1946.

By the end of WWII, Lancasters had carried out 156,000 sorties and dropped 608,612 tons of bombs on Europe. They were also, the only aircraft capable of carrying the Upkeep Mine (Bouncing Bomb) 12,000lb Tallboy and 22,000lb Grand Slam (Earthquake bomb) designed by Dr Barnes Wallis.

Specification

• There were many variants, but the most common were the BI, BII, and BIII

  • BI - powered by V12 Cylinder liquid cooled Rolls Royce Merlin 20 or 22 engines
  • BII - powered by 14 Cylinder air cooled Bristol Hercules VI
  • BIII - powered by Packard built Merlins.

Weights

• Empty: 36,900lbs (16,705kg)
• Loaded: 68,000lbs (30,800kg)
• Bombload 14,000lbs (6,350kg)
• Grand Slam (22,000lbs)
• Variant: 70,000lbs (31,750kg

Dimensions

• Wingspan: 102 feet (31.1m)
• Length: 69 feet 4 in (21.1m)
• Height: 19 feet 7 in (5.69m)

Performance, Ceiling and Range (BI,BIII)

• Maximum Speed 287 mph (462 kph)
• Cruising Speed 210 mph (338 kph)
• Climbing Rate: 20,000 feet (6,095m) = 41 minutes
• Ceiling: 24.500 feet (7,467m)
• Range: 1,660 miles (2,675 km)

Armament

• Nose Turret: Twin .303
• Mid Upper Turret: Twin .303
• Rear Turret: 4 x .303 or 2 x .5
• Dorsal Turret (Where fitted) 2 x .5